when in doubt, tell your manager.

so i had my first day of work today. There were definitely moments when i felt useless and dumb (i followed a co-worker around all morning like a puppy dog), but other times when i felt competent and strangely comfortable in my new environment. by the end of my eight-hour shift i was assembling boxes like it was my god-given talent (108 in all). let’s rewind though for a second...

...as i walked into work today i told myself that if i do everything completely wrong, let me at least learn as many names as possible. this objective made a lot of sense to me considering how people are just more welcoming and willing to help you out if you make the effort to learn their name. and since i am the new kid, i don’t want to give anyone any reason to not want to offer help if i need it. anyways, to aid my memory, i used some mnemonic devices. there’s “mini matt” and “wild will” to name a few (and by the way we love mini matt...he made me a mocha). no later than eleven o’clock did i realize that the process of learning people’s names can get a little tricky when working with certain foreign-born individuals...i thought that by calling one of my co-workers by the name written on his name-tag would be the safest bet, until doing so resulted in him shaking his head and turning the tag over to reveal his real name. this same gentlemen later asked me where my boyfriend was. not really knowing the answer myself, i simply replied that i didn’t know where my “novio” was. even though i’m a little afraid of what he could possibly ask me tomorrow, he is really staring to grow on me.

almost everything that i learned today was done by either listening to directions (katrina, you’re on break-take off your apron!) or by watching someone do a task and mimic their actions (fold the tissue paper like so and viola! a perfectly wrapped sandwich). i did, however, receive the pleasure of sitting at a computer and taking some online “courses” that the company created for its employees. these courses were auditory, interactive, and even contained short videos and “quizzes” at the end of each section. not a bad approach to try and engage my attention, but i had to laugh at some of the lessons. like how when you drop a knife you really shouldn’t try to catch it. just let it hit the floor. and don’t reach your arm into the bagel slicer for any reason. but what was really amusing was how many times the answer “tell your manager” appeared as the correct choice.

if there is a drunk customer, tell your manager.

if you suspect that a co-worker is taking drugs, tell your manager.

if you think there might be cross-contamination, tell your manager.

if there is any evidence of rodents, tell your manager.

if you are robbed, tell your-GOTCHA! actually, the correct answer would be to sit down by yourself and immediately start writing down what you remember from the incident. you shouldn’t talk to anyone during this time because he or she could cloud your recollection of an important detail. but hey, don’t be sad...after you get robbed and jot down what happened, then you should tell your manager.