Dear Customers,

First of all, you are greatly appreciated for picking the establishment we work at. We know you have a lot of options, so it does mean a lot that you chose to spend your time and money with us.

Something I think some of you forget is that we are people, too. Just because we wear a uniform and a name tag doesn't mean that we're any less important than you are. In fact, without us, you would't be able to buy those things you need so desperately at 9:03 a.m.

We work in the store, so we have a pretty good idea of what's going on most of the time, but we still make mistakes. Again, we're human. I apologize for all those times I've said the item you were looking for was in aisle 14 when it was really in aisle 15. It must've been excrutiating having to walk down that extra aisle.

It's really interesting how despite our name tags, you think our names are items. The amount of people that come in and scream "batteries!" or something else at me is astonishing. That's not my name, but they're in aisle 8 if that's what you were wondering.

Also, just because our name is on display doesn't give you permission to come up with your own nickname for us. That's weird.

For all those times you've stood at the register for .002 seconds waiting for me to walk to it from the aisle directly across from it, I'm sorry. Here is where I'd like to put a friendly reminder that patience is a virtue.

Something else you all should know: we don't pick the layout of the store, we don't pick the prices, we don't know how every single product is or works, and we don't know every single sale of the thousands of items in the store. This is where you come in. You get to actually walk around the store and look for the things you want and see what's on sale. We do have some handy tools to help us check, but forgive us for not knowing everything off the top of our heads. Again, we are normal people with real lives outside the store just like you.

Here is another friendly reminder to read the sale signs carefully. You just might (and probably do) need a store card to get the sale.

Listen to us when you use the chip reader! Yes, it's new. Yes, it's confusing. Yes, it's frustrating for us all. But things will go a lot easier and faster if you just listen to us when you use this device. When you don't, you freeze the register, which results in this whole process taking even longer. There's also a potential that the register might have to be restarted, which means everyone in line now has to wait even longer just because you refused to listen.

The most important thing all cashiers want their customers to know: "It didn't scan, so it must be free!" is not a funny joke. We are paid to be polite and therefore pretend to laugh. But please stop saying this. Please.

Also, don't tell us to smile. It's very creepy having old men telling underage girls to smile. We have to be polite, not your best friend. Most people don't stand around smiling 24/7 either. We just might smile if you're nice to us, so maybe try that and see what happens.

To those of you who come in and treat us like we aren't dirt below your feet: thank you. Thank you for being kind. Thank you for being understanding. Thank you for being you. You are the highlight of a cashier's day. We genuinely hope you come back.

Sincerely,

Your Cashiers