“How people treat you is their karma; how you react is yours.”

I've been thinking a lot about karma lately... and how it relates to my work place. I have to work with a lot of different personalities in my office, sometimes they're funny, sometimes they're demanding, sometimes very sweet, but definitely all very interesting.

For example, an agent (which I will remain nameless for their own good) called to get some postage information. The question was about the postage rate for postcards being sent by bulk mail. I asked around, no one knew the answer. While trying to tell the agent to go to a website for the information, he kept cutting out because of their cell phone coverage. Thus I kept repeating myself so they could hear, then was blamed for cutting out on my part and they blamed it on my headset (mind you I'm on a landline and I have never ever had problems before). I insisted it was not my headset but their cell phone. When they finally could hear me I explained that I did not know the bulk mail rate but they could go to usps.com to find out the--- then they rudely interrupted me and said,"Well have you ever mailed a post card before?!".......... I took a deep breath and responded, "Yeees...." and they asked, "Well how much is it?!" I told them the correct postage and they said thank you and quickly hung up.

What a bastard.

Needless to say I was PISSED. How rude of someone to call and interrupt what I am doing, ask a stupid ass question, and then when I try to help they treat me like I'm an idiot? Fuck you very much.

I think the main problem is that for agents, I am their source for all information, kinda like 411. They don't need any books, no looking it up on the internet, no effort at all really. All they have to do is dial a number and have someone else do all the work. Kristen, what's the number to the Board store? Kristen I need you to fax me something... Kristen could you unlock my office, get a cover sheet, fill it out and send it to this guy and then when they fax it back scan and e-mail it to me and give me a call when you do that so I know when to check my e-mail, or my favorite, Kristen there's no paper in the copy machine, or Kristen I need helping printing, blah blah blah. I just want to smack them and be like, "Do you have a brain?" I only graduated high school and I'm smarter than all your dumb asses!

Another example, an agent that rarely comes into the office came in one day needing to prepare a CMA report. I was in the middle of a closed door meeting when I hear *knock knock knock* Who could that be? This dude interrupts my meeting to ask me to make him a piece of paper with the words "SOLD LISTINGS" and another one saying "ACTIVE LISTINGS." My immediate thought, "What are you, retarded? You really don't have a clue how to type 2 words and print it?" I gave him the benefit of the doubt and said my over used response, "No problem." I gave him the 2 pieces of paper, and he was disappointed. He wanted it in red, and bolded, and then a border around it.

Are you f-ing kidding me?

Whatever, I bolded the stupid words, changed it to red and added a damn border. In addition, I saved both of the documents under the agents file AND e-mailed them to him. 20 minutes later he asks me to print off another one saying, "EXPIRED LISTINGS." .....I had enough of this bullshit. I told him he is very well capable of doing that himself. I told him all he needed to do was hop on a computer, open the file and type it in. "But I have to go nooooow." So cry me a river!! I told him I was now in the middle of a listing and that he needed to do it himself and that I had faith in him that he could do it. After he left I typed a message to my office manager saying what a douche bag this guy was being. She seemed to understand what I was talking about.

He shortly left all happy and I congratulated him on figuring it out. He smiled, said thank you, and walked out.

Little did I know.... after I sent him away he went to bother my office manager and asked her to do it!!! WOOOOW. The nerve of some people amazes me. Turns out, he didn't know where his file was, how to open a file (meaning not knowing how to double click), or TYPE for that matter! He had her do all of it. I'm sorry, but you cannot go around depending on other people to do everything for you and still be a professional. I wouldn't want a Realtor that doesn't know how to type, let alone know what the hell Microsoft Word is! IT'S 2008!!! I mean, take a class or something! Educate yourself! Half the time learning is doing. If you never try you will never learn. Gawd.

It sounds like I hate my job. I really don't, I thoroughly enjoy helping people, helping them out with their business, and providing great customer service. What I don't like is being taken advantage of. I learned very quickly that I had to toughen up and stop being such a pushover when I first started working here. Or in Hailey's words, I had to grow some balls. And I did! And it feels great. It takes a lot of patience and understanding to deal with all of it but at the end of the day I feel I am a great part of my company and I feel I have accomplished something and made a difference in peoples lives.

Alls I gotta say is that Karma will take care of it, and as long as I'm putting my good energy into the universe, only good Karma will return back to me.