Hello, I blog!
I share all my sporadic and toilet thoughts in here, because I am random like that.
Dear NSRCC Management
To whom it may concern,
I am writing in feedback to the behaviour of the overseer in charge of NSRCC Sea Sports Centre on the night of 23-24th January 2012.
My family has had a car parked in the premises of NSRCC Sea Sports Centre while patronizing NSRCC Resort on the evening of 23rd January 2012. Seeing that there’s a huge sign on the gate which read ‘open to the public’, as well acknowledging the carpark operates up to 12.30am, we made a plan to head home at approximately midnight.
When we returned to retrieve the car at 12.05am however, the gate to NSRCC Sea Sports Centre was locked. Attempts to contact anyone yielded no response (there was no direct contact on NSRCC’s website), and even the security guards on duty at the nearby NSRCC resort were unhelpful. Later on, a guy appeared from within NSRCC Sea Sports Centre (his exact designation is unknown – but he was the only person around at that time so we spoke to him) and we attempted to negotiate with him.
But he was adamant that he will not open the gate because it is “company policy”, that the carpark is only for the use of “customers only” and that we parked our car there at our own risk (well, this is true). Subsequently, he pointed at us directly and said “we wait for customers to leave before we close the gate (sic). You not within the area, so you not our customer (sic). So we close the gate. You want, you come back tomorrow.”
His tone to us certainly wasn’t polite, and we pointed out to him that closing the gate before 12.05am was not in line with the operation timings stated on the sign either – which was up to 12.30am.
He then pointed out a smaller sign further in from the gate which stated that the carpark was for the use of “customers only”, and even opening the gate to let my uncle walk in to take a look at it, with stern instructions that he’s not allowed to retrieve the car. (This smaller “customers only” sign was very much in contrast to the easily misunderstandable “open to the public” sign plastered on the gate.)
Further negotiations only resulted in him quoting “company policy” and “if you want, you come tomorrow and speak to my boss” repeatedly. And it cumulated in him requesting for us to pay him $50 to open the gate and retrieve the car, which we refused to pay. This is because (1) we don’t know who the money is going to – him? or the management? (2) there was no sign anywhere stating a fine of $50 to open the gate after operating hours (which technically, 12.05am is still WITHIN operating hours since the carpark only closes at 12.30am) and (3) it’s a matter of principle, isn’t it?
Let’s review the current situation, shall we?
It’s dead in the night, and our family needed to head back. We’re way out in a deserted area – next to the airport runway, by the beach – where hardly anyone passes. Far away from the reach of any form of public transport – be it buses, trains or taxis.
It wasn’t as if he didn’t have the key to open the gate. If he didn’t, we would have understood perfectly. But, he did. He even let my uncle in briefly to ‘review the “customers only” sign within the carpark but chased him out quickly after that.
Granted, we utilized the carpark of NSRCC Sea Sports Centre to patronize the NSRCC resort next door, and this guy wants to enforce this “company policy” so strictly largely to save his own ass from further trouble. Fine. But must a policy be enforced to the point where it endangers the very safety and well-being of the people affected?
In our case, we were lucky in the sense that we were accompanied by some other family members who had cars, and they could send the affected members to somewhere more accessible. However, what if it was a situation whereby it was just the affected people alone, unaccompanied? Who is going to account for them?
I await your response on this matter.
Best regards,
Brenda Nicole Tan
———-
P/S: Apparently, no feedback email address exists for this place and I had to go through a traditional ol’ contact form.
What a bad end to our Chinese New Year celebrations.
Managing people
I never thought I was someone who’s good with people. I talk a lot, yes. But being mildly extroverted does not mean I’m a natural at dealing with people.
Take me, for example. I’m hypersensitive. I take offense easily. But this also inevitably leads to me worrying too much about offending other people. This is both good and bad.
What’s ironic is despite how I tend to worry about offending people, I still speak my mind. Sometimes, way too liberally. But I often try to structure my sentences in a way that brings my point across without coming across as too rude or harsh. (May not be successful all the time, but at least I try.)
There’s also the occasional time where I become a bit too passionate about what I’m talking about and end up speaking in a highly exaggerated, agitated manner – leading people to think I’m mouthing them off when actually, I’m not.
Then again, that’s because I’m too highly strung about how other people think.
The reason why I’m now watching my interpersonal relationships more closely is my change in career environment.
I’ve been with this startup company since the beginning of the year. I’ve an awesome partner in crime in one of my favourite fields of work which is UX design. But I also have to oversee several fresh faces in the team who are completely new to the startup scene and the tech industry.
Given my perfectionist nature, I wanted everything to be in its place and up to speed at all times and yet give ample room for the freshies to grow.
I never liked micromanagement and dictatorship. I’ve been at the receiving end before at a previous job. I know how it’s like to be belittled. I know how it’s like to be looked down upon. I know how it’s like to simply carry out the desires of others with little room for own input. And I can honestly tell you, the feeling sucks.
So, when it came to my turn to oversee people in a fresh new environment, I didn’t want to make the same mistakes. I don’t want to stifle. I don’t want to belittle. I want to give constructive criticism and yet still make people feel empowered with new knowledge.
It isn’t easy, and I still occasionally feel like I’m stepping on toes.
Like how I occasionally get too animated when trying to provide feedback or constructive criticism. Thankfully, my hypersensitive self tends to pick up hints of annoyance or when a person is getting demoralized – sometimes hints that are not even there – allowing me to react accordingly. But I still feel bad afterward.
I want to be the type of person that offers gentle yet firm guidance and support.
It ain’t easy. Because human nature causes us to constantly want to be one-up above others. But it crushes, disheartens and discourages. And after what I’ve been through before, damn right I don’t want that to happen to anyone.
Managing people can feel like rocket science. But I’m willing to invest time and energy in this kind of rocket science. The gains from having positive team morale is absolutely priceless.
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