She works hard for the money!

I have a job!

I'm the new manager at a local discount/clearance/warehouse type shop. I don't want to say the name because then anyone who googles the store will be re-directed to my blog and I'd really rather not have that happen. We'll call the store PP. ;) (If you know the name, don't type it in a comment either or else it will still direct to my blog!)

Anyways!

Work. I work 43 hours a week--on the schedule. Which means that I'm really working 45+ hrs every single week because you know as mgr you never leave on time, you're always getting called in on the day off, etc. etc. I get every other weekend off and *should* be off by 6pm most days, but have been closer to 7pm most of the time. I'll get better. :)

Something scary happened today. I hope it was just a calculation or computer mistake on my part or else this could be the shortest lived job ever (i.e. I could be fired!) because, when I was balancing the registers at the end of the night (first time closing on my own and it's only my FOURTH DAY. A bit too soon? I think so too.) my calculations said there was $60 too much in the drawer and more than $1400 in debit and credit over-charges. WHAT?!?!?! That's a $1500 discrepancy. What was I doing wrong?? Surely that can't be right. I called the asst. mgr. after counting and counting and counting and re-counting. I'm a really slow counter, really bad with numbers, really thought it HAD to be a mistake on my part, but I know after re-counting that many times my numbers are spot on. Now, as far as the non-cash discrepancy goes I could have just been entering the wrong # into the wrong box in the computer system so it'd calculated things wrong. I just don't know. The asst. mgr (2IC) told me to just go home (it was 1.5 hrs after the store closed) and she'd figure it all out in the morning. I love my 2Ic. She's really laid back, not in a people-pleasing kind of way but in a truly Aussie "meh! She'll be right!" kind of way. I love that. It's the perfect compliment to my impulse which is to hyperventilate. I need to hear "she'll be right!" Hopefully it will be "right." Hopefully there's not really $1500 in overcharges and hopefully I still have a job in the morning.


I really love this job. I love the freedom. It's a really small store, only 10 employees. The challenge is in that the stock is constantly rotating and, because it's such a small company, there's no such thing as a planogram. (for those of you who've never worked retail, a planogram is diagram showing how to merchandise products) so all of the merchandising is pretty much up to me. I get a few ideas from the regional mgr in my inbox but, other than that, I have to figure things out on my own. This is a little overwhelming at the moment because it's like a contstant game of Rubix Cube. I'm constantly shifting products, entire AISLES of product, to the other side of the store, only to move the same product to a different section of the store two days later. The only way to not feel exasperated about it is to forget that I ever spent 5 hours the week before moving that same product to where it is. Because your first impulse is "UGH! What do you mean "move it?" Really?? I JUST moved that! I JUST got it the way I want it! ""

I just have to ignore that impulse and accept that constant re-merchandising is just part of the job and take each day at a time. Another big thing to overcome is that my staff on Thursday nights (we're open late) and weekends is so frickin YOUNG. 13-15 years old. Seriously. Shoot me. There's no work ethic, lots of attitude. It's like babysitting. I cannot BELIEVE kids that young are all that I have on the weekends. In Australia you have to pay people time-and-a-half on wknds so they use only kids then since their pay-rate is lower. (hourly pay-rate in oz is determined by age) ::Sigh:: I'm having a staff meeting tomorrow to basicially remind them how to to their job. I'm going to be basing their hours on their work ethic and attitude so hopefully when the ones with 'tudes see that they're not on the schedule next week they'll get a wake up call that, if they want to work there, they have to *work* there; not sit on their ass, text on their phone and give mgmt attitude there. :) I have only met 2 of the kids thus-far, but I've heard "things" about a few of the boys. Lets hope they behave for me.

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So that's about my work. :) I feel really good about what I'm doing there and will hopefully remain there until we decide to start a family. It's not hairdressing and I was a bit sad to let that go but this is an opportunity I just couldn't pass up. Our financial situation is 100% relaxed now and the level of savings we'll be able to build up within the next few years is too much to ignore. I really want to stay at this store for as long as I can because, once I have management experience, it will be so much easier to get full time work again in the future when we inevitably move from M'bah. all I needed was someone to give me the chance!

As good as I feel about work, I feel REALLY stressed out about home now. I just don't have time to do anything anymore. I have to schedule dentist, doctor and optometrist appointments, pick up some packages from the post office, hire a cleaner, cook dinner, and on top of those things I'd love to have time to catch up with friends as well. I work from 8-6 5 days a week and only 4 days of the month will my days off be on week days when I can schedule appointments, actually go to those appointments, catch up with friends, do some yard work. I think my life is about to become very micro-managed. I'm at the dawn of becoming one of "those" people who has to pencil you into their schedule a month in advance if you ever want to see hide or hair of them. I hate that... I wish I didn't have to work weekends, but that's part of working retail and at least I don't have to every weekend. :)

It's going to be extremely difficult for me to Skype anyone back in Tx now as well since the only really convenient time to call everyone falls right in the middle of the work day for me. We'll have to start "penciling in" some Skype dates because I don't know how it's going to work out otherwise! I can't promise that I'll be free to chat in the mornings on my days off and that makes me nervouse because I don't want to lose touch with everyone. Unless my friends and family back home are willing to wake up at 4 am when I get off work (ha!) I don't know how it's going to work out. Hmmm.


Okay, it's almost midnight. I really need to get some sleep. Just wanted to update everyone on life!