I was at a retail store yesterday and there was a short line ahead of me. I noticed the cashier was young, vibrant and full of energy. She appeared to be a great ambassador for her employer.
After a few minutes, I could tell there was a problem with a customer. The customer was upset her email address was in the companyβs database and she was unfairly venting her frustrations to the employee. With each passing word, the cashier literally deflated before my eyes. By the end of that transaction, her energy level and enthusiasm was a fraction of what it was.
The cashier remained in a dejected state of mind as she started to process my order. In our short conversation, we discussed the previous customer. I explained the customer was not being fair and it was not her fault.
Unfortunately, there are unhappy people who suck the joy out of everyone around them. They are the joy suckers of the world.
There are a few lessons we can learn from this story.
We are responsible for the energy we bring to every human interaction. Do your best to leave people you encounter in a better state of mind, not a worse one.
When you do encounter a joy sucker, recognize it for what it is. For whatever reason, they are not happy people. Hopefully they are just having a bad day and this is not how they normally are. Do not take it personally and do not let them get you down.
When you see the victim of a joy sucker, do everything you can to build them back up. With each passing word you will see them inflate back to their original energy level. You will see their enthusiasm level rise, too.
Thatβs what I saw in the cashier as I grabbed my bags and left the store.
