Am I the only person that does this?

I'm starting to look at things differently and to evaluate more... so in shops sometimes you have a friendly person working there but sometimes not so much. Years ago I was shopping with my mum and despite our efforts to be kind and friendly the lady working on the till clearly wasn't happy or enjoying her job. She was really moody with us, barely made eye contact and as we walked away we said to each other 'oh it must be happy Wednesday'. This kinda became a thing that we would say lol.

But it made me think back to when I worked on the checkouts at tkmaxx. Saturdays were so busy and when the customers don't talk to you it's so boring. You are literally standing there scanning things through over and over. Although I would greet each customer and be polite many times I was completely ignored. To be honest I think that's really rude.

Manners dont cost a penny, and it sure as hell doesn't hurt to say hello to the person serving you. This made the shift seem so much longer and boring. So just putting it out there to try and make a conversation when in a store. It doesn't mean your crazy to talk to a stranger. It's what humans need, connection.

I feel like that's been lost a lot because we are so caught up in our own bubble. I'm guilty of this too, but then that makes me think more than ever you don't know what people are going though so being kind and sharing a little chitter chatter could actually really brighten someone's day. When i had a customer come in that actually spoke to me it was so uplifting. Now I get it some people have social anxiety and find this hard but just give it a try, even if you can just manage please, thankyou and a smile. Trust me it will go a long way!

Nowadays with my son we make it a little challenge when we go out. We say let's see how much happiness we can spread today, let's see who we can make smile. Sometimes it's harder than you think but it's a fun game too. Cheer someone up and spread some love. The world needs more of that! Not just in shops but over the phone too. I've had experience working for a charity fundraiser in a call centre. It's not the most rewarding job but the people you meet or talk to are what really make it a good experience. But due to the calibre of work you are doing you can receive a lot of negativity. I mean you are literally cold calling people asking for money.

At the time I really did believe in the cause I was trying to raise money for but I also sympathised with the people I called when they said they couldn't afford to support it. So I wasn't great at this job lol I was too nice but some of the reactions of people were really mean!

I understand its annoying getting those calls but you can politely say you are not interested. If you've never been on the other side of it having a boss breathing down your neck telling you not to take no as an answer and that you have to go through the '3 asks' and get through the script with all the facts etc then you don't know what it's like. To be completely honest I actually left this job due to depression because I couldn't take the negativity anymore. So like I said just consider that the person on the end of the phone no matter what they are calling for are human too. Politely say no and tell them you are going to hang up if you are not interested I even add have a nice day. Same goes for the annoying call centres you have to ring if you have a problem with your broadband or gas an electric for example.

They can be so frustrating because you just want to get answers, get whatever it is fixed I get it, I've been there many a time and got annoyed at the person on the other end. But we have to learn from our mistakes. When I've called things like that in a good mood with a kind attitude I've managed to get my answers easier and come off the call much happier and not stressed out at all. A little positive energy really goes a long way!!

One more example I have to add is when you go out for food whether it's Mcdonalds, a fancy restaurant or an anything in between I feel like people need to be kinder too! Now I hold my hands up here that I do get 'hangry' sometimes I'm sure you can relate but I do my best not to take it out on the staff. I was a waitress for a few years when my son was a baby and although I loved that job some people were sooo rude! Unfortunately mistakes get made with food, especially with a busy kitchen.

As a waitress serving you get the brunt of the complaints. I used to try so hard to sympathise with people an rectify the mistakes. I mean we're only human it's going to happen from time to time. The chef may be having a bad day you never know. On the other side of it, yes it is annoying when you're order is wrong but it's really not difficult to explain that to the waiting staff in a polite way to try and get it sorted. The more stressed you get about it the less enjoyable your eating out experience wil be right?

Anyway that's just my thoughts on spreading some extra compassion, I really do believe the kinder you are and if you use manners you will go much further in life, and the world would be a more pleasant place to be. Do you agree?