Today is the first day of the rest of my life.
As most of you already know, I received a promotion last week to be a District Manager for Abercrombie & Fitch. I have worked for this company since 2007. Throughout college, I worked part time and in January of 2011, I became a part of the manager and training program. In march of 2011, I became an assistant manager. In July of 2012 I was promoted to be the store manager at South Hills Hollister and in December of that same year I was promoted to be the store manager at Ross Park Hollister. Instead of running a single store, I will now have seven throughout the state of Maryland.
This promotion is the most amazing thing that has ever happened to me. I love this career and this company more than anything in the entire world. Over the years, I have created friendships with colleagues that will undoubtedly last a lifetime.
Sometimes, life throws you for a loop (or two, or ten).
If you would have asked me how my life was going two months ago, three weeks ago, and yesterday: I would have different answers every single time. I won't reflect on the negative events or people because it's not worth my breath or my typing but I will say that, ultimately, everything worked out exactly the way it was supposed to.
When I was younger I used to watch One Tree Hill. In one of the episodes, Peyton poses the question: "Imagine the moment in your life when all of your dreams come true. It's the greatest moment of your life. Who is standing next to you?"
So, there I was, experiencing the moment when all of my dreams came true. The most important people in my life were standing next to me. I wouldn't have had it any other way. I am so grateful for every single one of you. I can't even describe it. All of you (and many more) have become members of my family. Every one of you has influenced me to succeed.
The fact that I got to spend my promotion day with so many members of my anf family was absolutely amazing and I am so thankful that everyone was able to celebrate with me.
Over the last couple of weeks, I have received countless cards (which I LOVE), from a wide variety of people that have worked with me over the last couple of years. Each one of these cards is packed in my suitcase to take to Maryland with me. These will remind me that change is good (often times GREAT) and sometimes, all someone needs is a little bit of inspiration to succeed just like we have. To me, it's almost funny that everyone writes out cards thanking me for what I've done for their career. Truly, you all need to be thanked by me. Each one of you has been one portion of the rock that has held me down even when times got tough. I am eternally grateful for the friendships that we have made and I know that you guys are all going to do amazing things.
I received a new phone this week with a new number, so if you guys do not have my information yet just send me a text on the old number. My calls and texts are being forwarded for the next couple of days. Just because I don't live in Pittsburgh anymore doesn't mean that you can't call me for any miscellaneous questions that you may have.
Off to Maryland I go! I'm taking all of you with me in my heart! <3
Here's to embracing change,
accepting challenges
and exceeding expectations
Xoxo
Happy Monday and happy September!
It has been nearly a month since I last posted a blog and I am sincerely sorry. To those of you reading this right now, please forgive my neglect. Allow me to explain myself...
As mentioned in my previous blog, the month of August brings about a very strange time of the year for those of us that work in retail. Now, as most of you know, I adore my job. I love going to work each morning more than most yinzers love Kennywood. To most people, it doesn't even make sense how much I enjoy this career. However, the month of August, and the back to school season has literally sucked the life out of myself, my wonderful assistants, and my 80 employees. I cannot even begin to thank every one of you that stood beside me for any portion of this season. Thank you for not giving up on our business.
Last week, I posted a link on Facebook to an article entitled "Maybe You Get Bad Customer Service Because You are a Bad Customer." This article was published in the Huffington Post by a writer named Matt Walsh. If you happened to miss this amazing piece of journalism, please read it here.
Now, I don't work at a fast food restaurant, but I do open my doors (and porch cabana) to the general public every day. Every morning during the month of August, I opened those doors with a positive attitude, and every evening I left feeling defeated and trying to gather one or two positives interactions to get myself through the next day.
You see, with the back to school season comes increased business. The business, we can deal with. After all, that's what we are there for. We are not there; however, to be verbally abused by anyone that is having a bad day. That we cannot handle and we shouldn't have to.
See, a lot of my friends poke fun at me because I know nearly everyone whom works in the mall; food court employees, the workers at the nail salon, the woman at the Sweets from Heaven, etc. The reason that all of these people say hello to me is because at some point I was nice to them. At some point, my smile and "have a great day" stuck out to them enough to form a relationship with me. You may think that this is cute, but this actually speaks volumes about the way that the general public treats the people that wait on them. I, though, know this feeling. There are about five customers that come into my store frequently that stand out in my mind as friendly human beings. They are always happy, but the reason that they stand out so much is because nearly every other person that I encounter is absolutely 100% miserable.
I won't harp on everything that happened to myself and my staff during this back to school season but I will pinpoint a couple of instances. On one occasion, we found a used tampon on the sales floor. You know, because that is where self-respecting human beings dispose of those things. A woman told me that "if I wanted to work anywhere other than the mall, I would need to acquire some actual skill." A man told me that I would be personally be paying for his gas money to get back to South Hills Village. A woman insisted that I immediately fire one of my 17-year-old associates on the spot because she forgot to take the sensor off of one of her items. When I say "told me" I actually mean that I was verbally abused by a screaming lunatic until I lost interest or they ran out of breath.
Now, I am not telling these stories to gain anyone's sympathy. I am telling these stories so that each one of you takes a step back before they treat anyone, especially a stranger, like a piece of garbage. When someone scans something at a store and it rings up incorrectly, it can be rectified, it's just a lot easier to fix when you aren't screaming your head off. Take a deep breath, please.
I'd be lying if I said that I didn't get to my car at the end of a few August days and cry with my head on the steering wheel. But, I'd be failing myself if I let one or multiple miserable human beings ruin the career that I love. So, I'm not going to do that.
I am going to face this new month and this new season with a new state of mind-- letting go of all that was the month of August and the angry people that I was faced with day in and day out.
I encourage all of you to begin this month with a new outlook on the way that you treat the situations in your life and, more importantly, the way that you treat other people. It doesn't hurt to smile or to be friendly to a stranger. If you are in a bad mood, stay in your house. Don't plague anyone else's existence. If you feel the need to scream about something, scream into a pillow.
We are all human beings; it's about time we start acting like it.
Additionally, to those of you that have friends, boyfriends, girlfriends and acquaintances that don't treat you the way that you deserve to be treated; do yourself a favor and eliminate them from your life. You'll thank me later.
Here's to treating others with the respect that they deserve,
Or preparing to lose them,
Xoxo
