When you go into something, it is very unusual not to be aware of the cost.
Very few people don’t know whatcould happen in their day when they decide to show up.
You shouldn’t be surprised that if you work the return counter at a retail outlet that you’re going to hear some pretty silly stories and meet some very angry people.
The key to all of this of course and the lesson to be learned in order to to have a productive day is to respect the cost.
Take teachers for example.
Along with their regular duties of covering the approved curriculum they are legislated to supervise a colleagues class when they are away, for about twenty seven times during the school year. On the surface this is not a big deal and it isn’t. It is most reasonable. It makes sense to make sure all students are supervised at all times. What’s fascinating however is that the process itself becomes or degrades into a game of sorts. A teacher never knows when they will have to cover their next class and so every morning, they have to wait for the hammer to drop. Sometimes the administration is not very competent and coverages are handed out at the last possible minute, or they are late and changed in the middle of the day.
You can imagine the dread of living this every morning. You can imagine how pleasant this all can be but it doesn’t have to be like this.
It’s nobody’s fault really. Nobody’s fault that this silly game is played in the first place. It is impossible to figure out when it started but it is certain that it will never come to an end. Schools are factories and games are best played in factories, because they are efficient and keep the widgets churning.
I am sure you have your own set of games you choose to play at your workplace. You have your own share of costs you need to pay in order to get to do what you do. That’s just the cost of doing business.
The key to all of this is to respect the cost and pay dutifully, however, you have to stand on guard to not let it ruin or effect the rest of your day.
It’s a terrible process each and every morning because teachers have grown accustomed and hate covering each other’s classes. It’s a necessary evil. A contractual obligation. It’s a small part of being a professional.
It’s dehumanizing.
Most of the fault rests in the game and the game makers, but I think teachers make it worse by not respecting that its just the way things have to be.
There is no use complaint about it. Bitching won’t solve anything. There is no use correcting it. Nothing will change because a factories, especially public service ones, are not interested in the right way, but only a seemingly efficient way.
This is why its important to know the cost.
It’s important for you to resign yourself to pay the cost.
It’s important to never let the cost seep into the rest of your life, or ruin your day.
When the hammer falls, take it.
Don’t see the never ending bureaucracy as a game.
See it as a cost.
See it as a thing.
Like a bowel movement.
It’s not something you really look forward to, but it makes moving and living a whole lotmore pleasant.
Cover photo generously provided by photographer Heather Zabriskie via unsplash.com