I feel crappy today. Sunday I was tired all day. Yesterday I started coughing this really dry cough. Today the cough is a little worse and I have this hollow feeling in my chest. Oh and my muscles are achey, especially my shoulders and neck. But like it always seems to be, I'm just not sick enough to stay home in bed.
I also feel crappy because I just had to make a call and let this really nice older gentleman down. The company that I work for sponsors his club's car show once a month and they are changing the locations of the car show this year after having it at this one restaurant for years. What I didn't know was that my company has loyalties to the original restaurant and so I called the club owner yesterday and let him know that we were all good. Then today I had to call him back and let him know we would not be coming with them. He sounded really let down. But he was polite nonetheless and told me good luck. I should have said it myself but I forgot.
Every once in a while I find myself having to be the bearer of bad news at work. I have built up a resistance to yellow page reps that keeps growing (I have a meeting with my toughest rep in about half an hour), but it's hard to tell the nice guys off. It could be argued that my boss should make these calls himself, but at the same time I think my doing it for him makes me a more valuable worker. I'm sure he doesn't like to do it any more than I do. Besides, I think it is honing my people skills. I am really not good at my wording or diplomacy yet, but I have learned not to back down, so that's progress. My mom is really good at breaking bad news in a way that helps you understand both sides. That's my goal.
This situation and thinking about how much I struggle with "business confrontation" makes me set my eyes on something beyond this job and this time. One day I'll leave this company and take the art of diplomacy with me. That thought makes it easier to be the brute for now.
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