Knowing Your Worth 🌻

“Quiet Quitting” kind of makes sense ❤

Have you heard of this trend called Quiet Quitting? According to techtarget.com, quiet quitting:

…doesn’t mean an employee has left their job, but rather has limited their tasks to those strictly within their job description to avoid working longer hours. They want to do the bare minimum to get the job done and set clear boundaries to improve work-life balance.

I understand why this can be misconstrued as lazy, but it’s not. As a young woman, I was constantly taken advantage of at each and every job I held. I was constantly expected to work overtime, even when I told my supervisors that I had to get off by a certain time in order to get to school on time. I was told to “stop whining” about being constantly out of ratio every morning in my preschool class. To put this in perspective, I was allowed to have 12 children by myself at one time. I usually had between 18–26 preschool-aged children every single morning because the owners of the facility didn’t want to hire more help.

Is that f*cked up? It gets worse…

I had a mother walk into the toddler room I was helping in and ask me, “Are you enjoying your big, fat raise?”

My eyebrows hit the ceiling. My “big, fat raise” was a whopping $0.25 per hour. Apparently, the weekly rates for childcare had been raised quite a bit and when the clients complained, my supervisors blamed giving us the “deserving” raises we had rightfully earned.

$0.25 was a cold, hard slap across the face from a daycare that was over-ratio and charged close to $300.00 a week for one child*.

*$300.00 a week was the price about 20 years ago at the facility I worked at. I don’t even want to know what they’re charging now! 😲

If I could go back in time, I would've been more aggressive about my schedule and that getting off on time was a non-negotiable for me. I would’ve called social services every single time I was left in a classroom alone when I should’ve had at least 2 other people with me. And I definitely would’ve raised hell whenever my supervisors failed to defend me from the verbal threats and abuse dished out by “Karen” parents.

Unfortunately I still haven't been able to secure a Tardis, so going back in time is out of the question (for now, anyways). I can’t change what I put up with as a young person, but I can certainly applaud and support this new generation that is well aware of their worth. I cringe to think about my children putting up with the toxic work behaviors I once “sucked up” in the name of hard work and being a team player.

Overtime isn’t mandatory unless it is agreed to at the interview and IT IS IN WRITING! Some jobs need their employees to work overtime and it’s understandable. However, employees need to:

1. AGREE to the overtime.
2. Be compensated accordingly!
3. Not have to worry about repercussions or losing their job if they turn it down.

When something is not your job, answering “Not my job!” is an acceptable response! If you’re working with other adults, then there’s no excuse: you should not be held responsible for completing tasks that you’re not being compensated for or that are assigned to someone else. Let “Debbie” do her own damn copy job and allow “Marty” to take out his own trash.

You are worth the respect you are asking for from your employer. ❤

Tagging those who have helped me feel worthy here on Medium: 🌬️Mitch, Michele Maize (The Sober Vegan Yogi), Jenny Lane, Reece Reid, Nikolaos Skordilis, Ali, Lisa S. Gerard, Marilyn Glover, Iva Ursano, Jan Sebastian, Heather Paz, Ginger Cook, Mike Butler, Margie Willis, Carmellita, Bev G 🧙‍♀️, Jillian Spiridon, Leonora Watkins, Robin Klammer, Yana Bostongirl, Sara Larca, Amanda Laughtland, Gustave Deresse, Carolyn Hastings, Raine Lore, Mona S Gable, Ira Robinson

If I’ve forgotten to add your name, I apologize… this list is long, so I might need to write another “Thank You” post again! 😁❤

THANK YOU so very much for reading and being such an amazing source of encouragement for me! I truly appreciate it and sometimes struggle to put it into words. I hope you know how much you mean to me! ❤❤❤

Remember to take care of yourself: there is only ONE YOU and you are important!

I love you and there’s nothing you can do about it! Love ~ Dani ❤