Black Friday: The one day of the year that retail workers prepare for months in advance in order to open the doors the midnight after Thanksgiving.
This was my third year working in retail for Black Friday. Have I ever had a good time working during this shopping rush in which some people call a "holiday"? No. My answer is no. Not in the slightest bit. To make it even better, do you understand how challenging it is to run around a small clothing store filled with hundreds of people after you consume pounds of mashed potatoes and turkey? It is not easy.
What is so awesome about black Friday? Sorry to burst everyone's dream of saving all that money, but for the most part most stores do just sneakily raises prices up before black Friday, and then drop them back down for the shopping extravaganza. Sorry (not really though)!!
"Work in retail", they said! "It will be great", they said!
Yeah, okay sureeee. Retail has taught me many people skills but, really has gotten rid of my filter towards people. I was never really an angry person, but after repeatedly being yelled at by customers for problems that I did not start, nor can solve gets really annoying, really fast. Working on that cash register for twelve hours straight so people can come rip apart the store I work in just so they can get buy one get one free t-shirts is not worth it. Being screamed at because I do not have a certain size shirt in what customers in the back room is very tiring. The back room is about the size of a shoebox, it is not Narnia. If I do not have your size pants, I can not simply become a magician and pull it out of a hat. When you call me stupid or a horrible employee because I was right when you tried to argue with me, it really grinds my gears that I am not able to do anything about it. "Just sit there and smile", yeah okaaaay. My regret for working in retail is quite strong.
Thanksgiving is to spend time with your family and loved ones. What is more important? Being with the ones that care about you, or getting into a fist fight over the last diamond studded Michael Kors bag? Think about it. Do you think us retail workers like having to end holiday festivities early just so you can go out and shop? Stay home. So while you prepare for the "best shopping day of your life", stores worldwide prepare for the worst. I praise stores that have fought for the privilege to not have to open for the Black Friday Rush.
Black Friday 2015: A Black Friday worst than the previous year. This was my third time working the Black Friday shift, and I can honestly say, it was my last. We could not even open both doors before customers started pouring in. I started cashing customers out at 12:10 a.m. - ten minutes after midnight, and did not leave my spot at my register until around 7:30 a.m. Seven hours of straight ringing with no time to breathe or even turn my back from a customer for two seconds. I was tired, and I was complained to by customers. Phrases such as "Do you know how long I was waiting in line?", and "I am so tired!" My internal response being: You do not HAVE to be here. You have the choice to be in bed right now, I do not. Twelve hours of torture, lack of sleep, and hunger equaled a pretty horrible Black Friday Shift for 2015.
I leave everyone with one question: How do we transform from a human that is "thankful" for what we have, never taking anything for granted...to a shopping monster that is willing to trample fourteen people and stop at nothing in order to get that last HD television in the matter of minutes?
