stressful job..any advice?

[mdog]

Right now, I currently work at the front desk in a hotel. I have been there since the middle of may. For the most part, I enjoy my job so far. I mean, it is not my dream job, but the pay is good and I still like it. My problem is I let this job get to me sometimes.

 

So, first off it is a very stressful job. Like most jobs, I have my good days and my bad days. I love the feeling of coming home from this job knowing I did the best I could and making as many guests happy. Which makes me think that this job is for me! Also, I have my bad days where I let little stupid stuff get to me. Either a guest did not get something they wanted or you know fixing a co-workers problem because they promised the guest something. Those nights I usually have a major headache and coming home is not the greatest feeling in the world and it kind of makes me wonder if the hospitality industry is for me..

 

On top of that, I have a manager who wants me to have confidence on what I am doing. So far, I have been doing the best I can each and everyday! I look at my accomplishments so far and I have improved tremendously, but my manager believes I should be better! Another thing, I walk in there having a positive attitude and smiling, but yet if my manager is feeling frustrated..she kind of takes it out on me. She does say sorry afterwards and wants to chat but at the same time I feel annoyed by it all.

 

The work itself is not stressful. The job is really simple, now that i have done it for 3 months, but its a learning experience each and every day. My problem, is if I mess up on something that i think is minor, the company apparently has the right to take out a $100 out of my paycheck!!!! For example..if the guest is the highest member and if you forget to ask them "would you like an amenity or the points?"..they take out money out of your paycheck. Another is if the guest is guaranteed a king bed or 2 beds in a room..they can take money out of your paycheck. It's something I kind of understand, but taking $100 out of your paycheck is a lot especially when my paychecks are around $450 after taking out almost a $100 dollars for taxes alone!

 

Overall, I still like my job. I like helping guests and bending backwards for any of them. I just hate the stress of being so paranoid about having money taken out of my paycheck. It hasn't happened yet, but that is where most of my stress is coming from.

 

My last thing..and this is more of a rant..

Probably the worst thing that I ever did was accepting my main manager and my assistant manager on facebook as friends. The other day, my main manager told me to not put anything on facebook about confidentiality issuses (such as a V.I.P. guest staying at the hotel, etc), otherwise i could be written up or fired. Which, I totally agree and in fact I have not put anything about work just because these days putting something on your facebook could get you in major trouble at work.

 

Today, my assistant manager IM'ed me (while at work) through facebook about this guest from last night. She asked me "quick question.. do u remember checking this person in?" I replied back saying "yes i remember, why whats up?" She didnt reply back, which kind of makes me think it was not a big deal. But at the same time, if it wasnt a big deal, then why did she say anything?? Granted she has done this many times before and I was paranoid about it and it ended up being nothing, but it seemed very unprofessional on how she did it. It would have been one thing to call me and ask me question about work, it is another to IM me on facebook about something work related. You may think that I am crazy, but the last time she did this I got a verbal warning for doing something wrong.

 

Sorry you guys for such a long post. I have tried everything in the book. I have looked on the internet on how to stay confident. I first pray to god everyday before work. I stay positive when I go to work and I am trying to be confident while I am at work. I mean, I have honestly improved from when I first started working there and my main manager has noticed, but she thinks I need to be better!

 

Any advice or comments on how you guys get through a stressful job?

[Ariel85]

You're not dealing with anything unusual for someone's first job. Hospitality isn't stressful in that no one's going to die if you make a mistake, but front desk clerks take a LOT of abuse from guests, which is hard. Guests show up cranky and pissed off about other things, and take it out on the clerk. Not an easy job, but I wouldn't call it stressful.

 

And yes...you can't NOT ask a platinum if they want the points or the amenity. Generally elites are flagged before arrival, so when you come on shift, why not double check your arrivals and make a cheat sheet of who's coming in so you don't forget to ask? Eventually it will become very routine to you.

 

As for adding your managers to FB, yeah, totally bad idea. You could always put your account on hold for a few weeks (hide it), and tell them you've cancelled your account, so they don't take the defriending personally, then put your profile back up later, and keep it hidden from searches, so they won't know you're back on. Definitely not a good idea to give your bosses access to your personal life.

 

The thing about the hotel business is that there is ALWAYS an opportunity to remedy a mistake, so take it as a personal challenge to find ways to make unhappy guests content.