Believe & Receive! Attract & Allow!
I'm thrilled it's my "weekend." Weekends for me are Monday & Tuesday in my life right now. I've gotten accustomed to two whole days off a week, and am finally ready to hang up my hat at Ralphs after working once or twice a week on my day off or after working the "new job" these last 7 months. People ask, "Why do you still work here?" when I show up at Ralphs. It's a complicated answer and boils down to one thing: People. I love the customers. I love (most) of the people I work with. It's also fun, fast and furious. The time, most of the time, flies by. Today, I'm working a short 4-hour shift from 1-5p. I told management, "I'm totally fine NOT being scheduled. Only schedule me if you 'really' need me to come in." An enviable spot to make that request, for sure. On weeks I don't work, it upsets the Union. And I also show up on some 0-Hours Worked Report. Apparently, neither are a good thing. So throwing me a 4-hour bone makes both somewhat pacified. For a long time I "needed" to work both my great new job that pays really well AND Ralphs AND AirBnB and and and... to make ends meet. Luckily, I'm doing great at work. Luckily, it's spring and AirBnb (at my new higher springtime rate) is delivering guests week over week. In making a conscious effort to find a 'normal' work-life balance, it becomes more clear each week it's ok to finally let Ralphs go. A little nostalgia and a lot of gratitude go into making this change as they made it possible for me to pay rent and eat (in the same month!) for a period in my life I really needed someone to take a chance on me. Ralphs did. And I delivered - perhaps over delivered at times - in their expectations of me. As a reward, they put me on the cover of their employee magazine in my first 4 months with the company. They promoted me 5 times in 9 months. And I faithfully delivered even when I wasn't feeling my best or it was 3a and I would have preferred being in bed asleep. Sometimes, you have to do 'stuff' at work you don't want to - that's why it's called a job. My time with Ralphs taught me an important lesson - every single person, every single job is vital to the success of the operation. No job is too small or too big. The contributions every person makes every day make the store hum like a well oiled machine. I've taken that lesson to my new role where I'm a consultant for potential residents. Yes, I lease the home to them. Though I also pitch in where needed - helping existing residents, my fellow associates, our technicians - if it needs to be done, I'll do my best or find a resource that can make it happen. And I do my best to do it with a smile, because excellent service is always the best way to paint the picture of loving what you do. I do. How are you celebrating the start to your week? How will you paint the picture of your week this week?
