The ADHD Manager Requests Patience

If I had to describe Black Friday in four words they would be complete and utter madness.

I worked at the mall from 6am to 2:30pm; but that wasn’t too bad, after all, some people were there at 4am and the mall opened at 5am. Why does the busiest shopping day of the year have to start so early? Couldn’t stores open at 8am?

Besides the ungodly early hours, the holiday season seems to bring out the worst in shoppers. Everyone seems so grumpy and demanding – like I’m really thrilled to be working at 7am picking up clothes off the floor after a stampede swept through. It seems to me that after Thanksgiving everyone loses their manners; no one says please or thank you, picks up after themselves, or waits more than five seconds in line before getting aggravated.

It’s frustrating to work in the mall during this madness; after all, I have another job too, and by the time I get to the store on weeknights I’ve already been working for 9-10 hours. I’m hungry, tired, and trying my best to run around cleaning the store while answering questions, looking for sizes in the stockroom, and explaining the restrictions on coupons to customers.

Now that I’m a seasonal manager I also have to prep all the associates before they start their shifts, deal with customer issues, and come running when an associate has a question, or needs an approval for a return. It’s a lot of work.

Please, if you’re out shopping for gifts this month try to remember that we’re just human, too. The store employees are doing their best to satisfy everyone – complaining, demanding, and making a mess won’t make your shopping go any faster.

Have some patience and say thanks when an associate spends the time checking stock or calling another store for you. Forgive us if we seem rushed or frazzled or we can’t point out the exact location of the top on the mannequin in the window in under three seconds.

And please, don’t leave everything you tried on inside-out on the floor of the dressing room. Thank you.