Unit 5 Discussion with students

The first manager that comes to mind as I read this discussion prompt would have to be the one I had several years ago when I was a shift supervisor at a Starbucks in Montana. I will preface this by saying that I learned a lot in that position- mainly that I not only really disliked being in a corporate supervisory role, but also that I wasn't very good at it. I had a difficult time delegating, or rather,enforcingmy delegations because I either didn't want to tell someone to do something I wasn't willing to do myself, or because they knew I had a soft heart so would take advantage and do a half-ass job. However, I was well-liked because of my kindness, reliability and work ethic- so employees would often prefer to come to me with any issues they were facing as opposed to the manager. Likely needless to say, she was not thrilled about this.

She was absolutely a micro manager from hell and had such a lacking level of professionalism and shoddy track record of being fired from various other managerial roles, that I honestly have no idea what sort of bribery she engaged in to even get the position. She was a hard worker, but couldn't handle pressure and would blow her top in front of customers regularly. There was one such occasion that she had a pileup of drinks needing to be made that she could not keep up with (because she sucked at making lattes, just sayin') as she was filling in due to having fired so many people we were short staffed. I was in the middle of replenishing cash drawers with change as I had just finished the necessary daily deposit when, in front of everyone, she began literally yelling at me telling me that she couldn't handle the drinks and I needed to prioritize my time better. Nope, she just needed to learn the barista role because the deposit was a daily priority and needed to be completed by 3 pm. Anyways, with as much professionalism as I could personally muster at the moment, I told her off- noting that she really should never cause a scene in front of customers. (Side note: I recall a few customers in the cafe clapped- which was hilarious). Long story short, she was looking for anything she could to fire me and eventually found an absurd reason (that's a long story- but I got my job back; she, however, was terminated a few months later).

She was the epitome of what a manger or leader shouldnotbe. I believe the characteristics of a great leader are integrity and impartiality coupled with the ability to multi-task while remaining organized and calm under pressure. They also have to know how to talk to people and not have too much rigidity so as to adapt as inevitable changes happen.

- Megan Zupan

2nd I've had four jobs in my life up until today: I used to work at my maternal Grandfather's bowling alley when I was 14 (which he sold a few years later), my paternal uncle at his sports bar for 2 Summers, GameStop by my old college as a seasonal, and now currently at my nearby Walmart for almost three years now. However, out of all of these, I gotta say that without a shadow of a doubt, my greatest boss was my Grandpa when I used to work at his bowling alley. It was my first job and I wanted to make a great first impression. I've learned a lot about customer service there, tidiness, as well as proper organization. I worked there only one day a week on the weekend, as I had to prioritize school. He was a fantastic boss and mentor (even outside of working for him!) His entire life he has been an exceptionally hard, vigilant, and motivated worker. He used to work at a bank (now foreclosed) for about 20 years. He had an extremely brutal boss. Not to the point where he treated his employees like crap, but he pushed them so hard that a lot of them either quit or got fired. My grandpa, however, took it with a grain of salt and wanted to learn and prosper from his boss's methods of leadership. Long story short, working there for as long as he has, he eventually wanted to form a partnership with my grandpa and he became CEO of that bank. It wasn't anything huge like Capital One, TD, etc., but it was still a genuine and ever-growing business (for a few years until shutdown. Sadly, I don't remember why). My grandpa has always had that "can-do" attitude his entire life. Even if he can't figure something out, he'll be everything in his power to get it done, no matter how obscure. He was even born with a defective left arm and shoulder. When he was really young, he had overheard his parents saying how he won't be able to do anything in his life because of his condition. However, in spite of this, he used this as the everlasting motivation and drive he still holds on to to this day. He's currently 69 years old and counting. He's always been a kind-hearted, loving, hard-working man. The bank wasn't even close to his first job, but as I always like to say, "baby steps". Even if it doesn't correlate to your current or future organizational positions, each is still a stepping stone to learn and continue growing to reach every goal you have in mind and desire to conquer!

So, in the end, even though I'm not working for him anymore, I couldn't even begin to count how often I go to him for advice for almost literally anything. He's been a great mentor while working for him almost 10 years ago and he still continues to show me there's no stopping someone who puts their mind to what they want to do. His famous words I'll never forget, "You will always be second place, as there will always be someone ahead of you in something. But that fact should make you want to push yourself to someday surpass them." Great grandpa, friend, and mentor. 69 years old and still kickin' butt!