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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 3 of 3. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Deneb on May 25, 2005, at 23:01:43
I have to attend some training on the weekend to help out with my uncle's fast food place. I'm afraid to work...what if I get so nervous that I forget how to count money? What if I can't remember all the dishes served because I'm so terrified? What if my face goes all red while talking to a customer? What if I run into people who know me? What if I can't even do a simple thing like handle the cash register? What if a customer complains and I get so upset and scared that I start to cry and have a panic attack?
Ohhh...I hate my social anxiety...it is by far the most debilitating of my afflictions. :-(
How am I ever going to make it in the "real" world? :-(
I've been getting help on and off since I was 18, if social anxiety is so easy to treat, why am I not cured yet?Deneb (used to be Shy_Girl)
Posted by JenStar on May 26, 2005, at 0:15:36
In reply to I'm afraid of starting work :--(, posted by Deneb on May 25, 2005, at 23:01:43
hi deneb,
welcome to the exciting world of fast food! :) I did a stint there after high school, and all those things happened to me: I forgot how to use the cash register, I locked it up, I got red in the face, I messed up orders...me with the high grades having a hard time heating up an egg croissant thingie. But it all got better, of course, and soon I was doing just fine. And you will too! Don't get mad at yourself for any mistakes - it's totally normal and everyone goes thru it. YOu'll be fine!I think it will be so busy you'll even forget that you're interacting with people. At some points, you just go into autopilot and get stuff done without even remembering that you're "suppposed" to be feeling anxious. The busy times seem to fly by.
As for the bad customers...I know they suck at the time, but keep it in the back of your mind: "This will make a great story to tell on Babble!" Sometimes the worst customers turn into the funniest stories ever. I used to try and remember that and it got me thru some rough times.
Here's an example: I was working in an ice-cream place for the summer. We were told explicitly that each extra topping was 50 cents, and there were NO exceptions or freebies.
So this lady comes in and asks me to give her a gallon of the vanilla. She wants me to load in 1/2 the vanilla, then put a BIG layer of strawberry topping (about 10 scoops), then the other 1/2 of vanilla. So I do this.
When I ring her up, she is aghast. "WHAT?" she demands, frowning, her face all red and pursed and angry. "Did you charge me for extra toppings?"
"Yes," I told her calmly, "each topping scoop is 50 cents. So that adds $5 extra."
"That is unacceptable, you little b***ch!" she yells at me, her face getting redder. "The OTHER girl used to give it to me FREE! This is wrong! It's a travesty!"
I don't know what to say. I'm 18. I'm floored by her angriness.
"I'm sorry," I tell her, trying not to be mean, although I'm thinking that I would like to put rat poison into her icecream instead of strawberries, "but we really do have to charge for the toppings. That's our policy here."
"No it is NOT your policy! It is NOT!" she tells me, and sort of pushes the gallon container at me spitefully. "Your POLICY," she continues, "is to serve the CUSTOMER. Get it?"
Naturally all my co-workers are in back, playing some kind of ball game with a mop and a balled up rag. The manager is absent as always.
"I'm sorry," I keep saying. "But we can't give out free toppings. Do you still want the ice cream?"
"No, I don't want it anymore, not at THAT price!" she yells again.
finally one of my co-workers sauters out of the back room. "Oh, hey, Clarice," she says listlessly to the mean lady. The mean lady attacks. "This GIRL" and she points at me "is trying to charge me for the toppings!"
Eventually we decide to give it to her for free, with a strong admonition that "next time" she will be charged. ("I won't be coming back HERE" she tells me, although this is a lie, since she comes back every week afterwards, although she stops getting strawberries in the middle of her gallon of icecream.)
So it was not fun...but it's a funny story now!
Good luck to you.
tell us how it goes!JenStar
Posted by TamaraJ on May 26, 2005, at 9:57:54
In reply to I'm afraid of starting work :--(, posted by Deneb on May 25, 2005, at 23:01:43
Jenny,
Try not to deal in "what ifs", ok. I do it too, often, but it really doesn't serve any purpose except to put doubts in your mind and perpetuate unfounded fear. Anyway, I got my first job when I was 15, and it was at a fast food place. I was a very, very shy kid, and remained relatively shy until I was in my 30s, but I did fine. It was scary at first, and I was really nervous serving customers. I remember one of the managers taking me aside and telling me something like "Tamara, you have to look at the customers when you serve them" LOL. So, I started making a real effort to make, and keep, eye contact (red face and all), and it got easier and I started to feel more comfortable. Anyway, it ended up being a very good experience for me. I made even more friends, and ended up with friends from every highschool in the city. And, I started to gain a bit more confidence, which was good too.
And, as for nasty, complaining customers, it is embarrassing when someone goes off on you, but when you really think about it, they are the one that look like a fool. In the years I worked in the service industry, I only had one or two really bad customers, and I remember other customers being so kind and apologizing for the nasty customer.Have faith in yourself. You will do just fine. Good luck.
Tamara
> I have to attend some training on the weekend to help out with my uncle's fast food place. I'm afraid to work...what if I get so nervous that I forget how to count money? What if I can't remember all the dishes served because I'm so terrified? What if my face goes all red while talking to a customer? What if I run into people who know me? What if I can't even do a simple thing like handle the cash register? What if a customer complains and I get so upset and scared that I start to cry and have a panic attack?
> Ohhh...I hate my social anxiety...it is by far the most debilitating of my afflictions. :-(
> How am I ever going to make it in the "real" world? :-(
> I've been getting help on and off since I was 18, if social anxiety is so easy to treat, why am I not cured yet?
>
> Deneb (used to be Shy_Girl)
This is the end of the thread.
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