7 ms·

Being a landlord, hiring people, working directly with the general public (retail, food service) are eye opening experiences. I watched my father be the kind o

Being a landlord, hiring people, working directly with the general public (retail, food service) are eye opening experiences. I watched my father be the kind of land lord anyone would hope to have just to watch some people destroy his property and treat him with hostility. Now I know why your landlord treats you like he expects the worst from you. I hired people for work they cared about (non profit), treated them well, the earned prestige and leadership experience they couldn't have had in their previous jobs just to watch them turn on me and spread lies and toxicity and try to destroy the organization because I praised someone else's work too. Now I know why companies treat people like they expect the worst from them. I worked at a Taco Bell and Starbucks. People yelled at us and treated us like scum for the offense of working for minimum wage. Apparently people who make more than minimum wage automatically have more intrinsic human value? I'll never know. But I know I'll excuse a lot with retail and food workers because my life is roughly 30x times better than theirs.

draw_down 10y ago
> Apparently people who make more than minimum wage automatically have more intrinsic human value? I'll never know. Oh, in America at least that is certainly the case. We hate and ridicule the poor.
manyxcxi 10y ago
I don't know about people actually believing they have more intrinsic value because they make more than minimum wage, I just think the problems comes from a few areas: - They were/are getting treated like shit and are transferring the energy on - People are increasingly 'busy' leading to higher levels of stress and anxiety that just have them snapping easier - There's a lot more of us than there used to be, so even if the percentages stayed constant, there's a lot more f%cking twats running around out there Especially with younger people I professionally interact with (I'm 34), but also with age peers, I've noticed that a shockingly large percentage have never had that job experience of working at a place that was crappy, for minimal pay, bad hours, tough work, etc. Generally they didn't work at all until maybe a couple of internships in college, or some other form of light entry into the workforce. I think it really does something to create a lack of empathy for those people not in a situation exactly like ours. My personal belief is it doesn't matter what our two situations are, being an asshole is being an asshole. If you're going to be a jerk to someone who's working a random lunch counter, you're probably just generally a jerk the majority of the time. Wealth, status, fame, are no excuses for a lack of human decency.
- ryanmarsh 10y ago
  > being an asshole is being an asshole. If you're going to be a jerk to someone who's working a random lunch counter, you're probably just generally a jerk I'd take it step further. You should be gracious to a fault to the person at the lunch counter. Their life categorically sucks.
  - gm-conspiracy 10y ago
    Wow.
  - 67726e 10y ago
    > I'd take it step further. You should be gracious to a fault to the person at the lunch counter. Their life categorically sucks. That's awfully fucking judgmental. I've got friends who have been working in the service industry their whole life. Many of them are much happier than I am. Just because you have some high paying office job doesn't mean your life is automatically better.
    - learc83 10y ago
      I worked retail customer service and then tech support for years before I got a high paying office job. Money doesn't makes life your life automatically better, but it does make it many times easier. It won't solve all your problems, but solves a heck of a lot of them. I try to treat service employees well, not because of some patronizing sense of responsibility, but because I empathize with their position. They have a crappy job and low pay. Dealing with the stress of computer generated everchanging schedules, rude customers, and management that treats you like a child is bad enough. When you couple that with barley making enough to survive, it's a pretty tough existence (realitive to my own).
      - 67726e 10y ago
        > They have a crappy job and low pay. Dealing with the stress of computer generated everchanging schedules, rude customers, and management that treats you like a child is bad enough. When you couple that with barley making enough to survive, it's a pretty tough existence (realitive to my own). It's possible to make quite a nice living working F&B, a customer service job, in a tourist town. Don't just assume everyone working a role is beneath you and living some kind of shit existence.
e40 10y ago
Yes, a good percentage of people suck. They are nasty, selfish and, TBH, just assholes. The best thing you can do in life is to surround yourself with good, honest, hardworking, thoughtful people that you can care about. Excise toxic people from your life/business as soon as they are discovered. That is all you can do.
fiatjaf 10y ago
You are totally right, and everyone who has been a landlord or hired people will agree, but all the others, including the majority of people here on HN, will say you have a problem, you only see the worst of people blablabla.
lowmagnet 10y ago
> I worked at a Taco Bell and Starbucks. People yelled at us and treated us like scum for the offense of working for minimum wage. A good manager at a Taco Bell* or Starbucks would put a stop to that. It's so frustrating when you're just trying to get along and have to go along with the a-holes of the world. * I worked at a Taco Bell in the 90s that was fortunately managed by two of the best managers in the region.
username223 10y ago
> Now I know why your landlord treats you like he expects the worst from you. I'm glad not to be a landlord. People's lives are messy and complicated, and as a landlord, you're forced to be exposed to some of that. As a tenant, I try to be quiet, leave the place like I found it, and not socialize with the owner. Rental contracts are great for drawing boundaries in what could otherwise be an extremely awkward relationship: "I don't trash your place, and you don't look into my life."
tlow 10y ago
I'm glad you mentioned working at Taco Bell and Starbucks because it makes my comment less off topic. I was wondering, if there are certain industries which give you a "real" insight into the human condition. I think being a landlord is an excellent example and another one that I have some experience with, enough to know that other people see a lot, is Bartending. I think that industry, with enough experience, could be a really enlightening look into the "true nature" of people. Does anyone have an idea of what some other good examples might be?
- patmcguire 10y ago
  Anything that everyone uses. Everyone eats, just about everyone has a landlord at some point. Daycare, grocery stores, emergency medical care.
specialist 10y ago
My prism for the whole world is punching up vs punching down. I've had the shit jobs, lived hand to mouth. I never grief the help. I don't condone people being dicks, ever. But I cannot abide by those who prey on the weaker.
deleted 10y ago
[deleted]
objectivistbrit 10y ago
The many issues involved in being a landlord throw doubts on the theory that too much money is being made by "rentiers", at the expense of "real entrepreneurs".
objectivistbrit 10y ago
The many issues involved in being a landlord throw doubts on the theory that too much money is being made by "rentiers", at the expense of "real entrepreneurs".

draw_down 10y ago

> Apparently people who make more than minimum wage automatically have more intrinsic human value? I'll never know. Oh, in America at least that is certainly the case. We hate and ridicule the poor.

manyxcxi 10y ago

I don't know about people actually believing they have more intrinsic value because they make more than minimum wage, I just think the problems comes from a few areas: - They were/are getting treated like shit and are transferring the energy on - People are increasingly 'busy' leading to higher levels of stress and anxiety that just have them snapping easier - There's a lot more of us than there used to be, so even if the percentages stayed constant, there's a lot more f%cking twats running around out there Especially with younger people I professionally interact with (I'm 34), but also with age peers, I've noticed that a shockingly large percentage have never had that job experience of working at a place that was crappy, for minimal pay, bad hours, tough work, etc. Generally they didn't work at all until maybe a couple of internships in college, or some other form of light entry into the workforce. I think it really does something to create a lack of empathy for those people not in a situation exactly like ours. My personal belief is it doesn't matter what our two situations are, being an asshole is being an asshole. If you're going to be a jerk to someone who's working a random lunch counter, you're probably just generally a jerk the majority of the time. Wealth, status, fame, are no excuses for a lack of human decency.

ryanmarsh 10y ago
> being an asshole is being an asshole. If you're going to be a jerk to someone who's working a random lunch counter, you're probably just generally a jerk I'd take it step further. You should be gracious to a fault to the person at the lunch counter. Their life categorically sucks.
- gm-conspiracy 10y ago
  Wow.
- 67726e 10y ago
  > I'd take it step further. You should be gracious to a fault to the person at the lunch counter. Their life categorically sucks. That's awfully fucking judgmental. I've got friends who have been working in the service industry their whole life. Many of them are much happier than I am. Just because you have some high paying office job doesn't mean your life is automatically better.
  - learc83 10y ago
    I worked retail customer service and then tech support for years before I got a high paying office job. Money doesn't makes life your life automatically better, but it does make it many times easier. It won't solve all your problems, but solves a heck of a lot of them. I try to treat service employees well, not because of some patronizing sense of responsibility, but because I empathize with their position. They have a crappy job and low pay. Dealing with the stress of computer generated everchanging schedules, rude customers, and management that treats you like a child is bad enough. When you couple that with barley making enough to survive, it's a pretty tough existence (realitive to my own).
    - 67726e 10y ago
      > They have a crappy job and low pay. Dealing with the stress of computer generated everchanging schedules, rude customers, and management that treats you like a child is bad enough. When you couple that with barley making enough to survive, it's a pretty tough existence (realitive to my own). It's possible to make quite a nice living working F&B, a customer service job, in a tourist town. Don't just assume everyone working a role is beneath you and living some kind of shit existence.

e40 10y ago

Yes, a good percentage of people suck. They are nasty, selfish and, TBH, just assholes. The best thing you can do in life is to surround yourself with good, honest, hardworking, thoughtful people that you can care about. Excise toxic people from your life/business as soon as they are discovered. That is all you can do.

fiatjaf 10y ago

You are totally right, and everyone who has been a landlord or hired people will agree, but all the others, including the majority of people here on HN, will say you have a problem, you only see the worst of people blablabla.

lowmagnet 10y ago

> I worked at a Taco Bell and Starbucks. People yelled at us and treated us like scum for the offense of working for minimum wage. A good manager at a Taco Bell* or Starbucks would put a stop to that. It's so frustrating when you're just trying to get along and have to go along with the a-holes of the world. * I worked at a Taco Bell in the 90s that was fortunately managed by two of the best managers in the region.

username223 10y ago

> Now I know why your landlord treats you like he expects the worst from you. I'm glad not to be a landlord. People's lives are messy and complicated, and as a landlord, you're forced to be exposed to some of that. As a tenant, I try to be quiet, leave the place like I found it, and not socialize with the owner. Rental contracts are great for drawing boundaries in what could otherwise be an extremely awkward relationship: "I don't trash your place, and you don't look into my life."

tlow 10y ago

I'm glad you mentioned working at Taco Bell and Starbucks because it makes my comment less off topic. I was wondering, if there are certain industries which give you a "real" insight into the human condition. I think being a landlord is an excellent example and another one that I have some experience with, enough to know that other people see a lot, is Bartending. I think that industry, with enough experience, could be a really enlightening look into the "true nature" of people. Does anyone have an idea of what some other good examples might be?

patmcguire 10y ago
Anything that everyone uses. Everyone eats, just about everyone has a landlord at some point. Daycare, grocery stores, emergency medical care.

specialist 10y ago

My prism for the whole world is punching up vs punching down. I've had the shit jobs, lived hand to mouth. I never grief the help. I don't condone people being dicks, ever. But I cannot abide by those who prey on the weaker.

deleted 10y ago

[deleted]

objectivistbrit 10y ago

The many issues involved in being a landlord throw doubts on the theory that too much money is being made by "rentiers", at the expense of "real entrepreneurs".

objectivistbrit 10y ago

The many issues involved in being a landlord throw doubts on the theory that too much money is being made by "rentiers", at the expense of "real entrepreneurs".