I was taking a smoke break the other day and I found myself eavesdropping. What? It’s natural! Anyways, a woman was telling her friends about the “craziest shit that happened” to her that week.
She was listing a few new roles she had picked up at work and didn’t care that there was no extra pay, because she loved helping out. “And that’s where you fucked up,” a friend interrupted. Oh these girls were funny. Apparently doing things that weren’t a part of her job description became a recurring thing. It frustrated her mostly because she’d noticed the same pattern in her personal life.
She didn’t realize agreeing to take on this new responsibility without pay was setting a standard for how she should be treated moving forward. By dismissing her own needs they became unimportant to those around her. She said, “Favors are beginning to feel like an energy exchange.”
It was clear she was fed up. She said she called her boss and told him “I no longer have the capacity to overextend myself without proper remuneration.” I remember that because I wrote it down in my notes app like immediately after, it had my jaw on the floor! She said she didn’t need to explain herself because her work ethic said enough.
“His silly big tooth ass is gonna tell me: Huh. That was bold.”
They all FELL out. One asked if he offered a counter. The verdict: more sick days. They screamed. I had to catch myself because I almost laughed too. I admired the way she was assured they’d never get another finger lift out of her.
It made me think, since when did our value become something we have to negotiate? Well. It isn’t, Babe!
Using “bold” as a jab at that woman’s discernment rather than a compliment to her ambition was an interesting choice. I know she will find herself somewhere that offers her more than she had to ask for.
Sources say her old boss ended up using the sick days for himself.