Today I happened to run into someone who is in the helping professions, and our conversation quickly turned to the state of the economy. “It’s getting bad,” he said, “and it’s going to get worse.” We both admitted that we’re feeling the pressures in our jobs — it feels like there’s an increased demand for everyone in the helping professions, while at the same time given the economic situation we’re all worried about funding cuts (not so much cuts in our salaries, but cuts in programs we manage or depend on).
Almost immediately after that conversation, I happened to be talking to someone else who said she has noticed that people are becoming less polite and less courteous. It feels, she said, as if people are a little on edge. Or maybe, I said, as if they’re angry. Yes, angry, she said. This economic mess we’re in is enough to make anyone angry.
Just because I’ve had these two conversations doesn’t mean my feelings have a firm basis in reality. So tell me what you think: Is the economic situation getting to people? Are you noticing a diminishment in politeness? If you’re in the helping professions, are you feeling a little more stressed than usual?
I guess I qualify as being in a “helping” profession – and yes, yes, yes, YES! Politeness seems to have completely gone out the window.
Last night we had a phenomenal program at the library (an internationally respected act), and a patron who was attending with her 4 kids dared to get pissed off at me and yell at me (and then gossip loudly and nastily about me with other people attending the show) because her children were on the waitlist for tonight’s event, a showing of the movie “Wall-E.”
I was stunned by this reaction: getting to see an expensive, talented performer for FREE wasn’t enough for her. And she had total disregard for how hard I’ve worked to bring two events to the library two nights in a row.
And this wasn’t the only negative experience with impolite people this week. I went to bed last night feeling very discouraged and disrespected, and wondering why I work so hard for people who appreciate it so little.
I guess I don’t really have sympathy for people being angry or impolite just because the economy sucks. Life isn’t all about money. Being a kind, decent, happy person counts for more than anything in this world.
Thanks for giving me a spot to vent!
At our UU church yesterday, the meeting and sermon were about giving, using the Little Drummer Boy as the starting place. The basic message was that even in these horrible economic times, even people who have nothing have a lot to give, namely their kind and loving presence. That includes manners, grace, and thankfulness. There is never an excuse for being rude. -L