# How do you feel about dealing with the general public?



## bifurcations (Jan 31, 2021)

Is it satisfying for you? Is it dissatisfying? Is it worthwhile to you to be in settings where anyone and everyone can walk through the door, down the street, or see/hear your content? Please explain why you feel the way you do and the conditions you are imagining.


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## Rift (Mar 12, 2012)

I know I'm not cut out for most phone/pos sales jobs. yet professionally, I deal better one on one or being left alone / operating independently.

I have no issues walking in crowded neighborhoods but not to keen on flashy events yet would rather deal with a massive group or a small intimate circle than falling somewhere between. I guess preferences are towards less than ten or heading into the hundreds.

more comfortable walking the in the city than the country.


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## cynfalyn (Jan 24, 2021)

It is a pain and a pleasure. You can make lifetime friends when you deal with the public, and you also get to see the worst kinds of people. Some of the best friends I have, I made by doing photography jobs for them and their families over decades. But, a lot of times I was by myself, and it was scary. I had one man come in and stand at the front counter and laugh maniacally for 5 straight minutes, he had gotten out of an insane asylum for threatening to kill his parents.

I also had a man who came by almost every day, checking on his order, and he wanted me to go in the back with him, he wanted to pull his shirt off and show me his muscles. Of course, I declined, and he pulled his shirt off right there where he stood at the front counter. Which wouldn't seem that bad, but he was an exhibitionist and he had modified his chest in a shocking manner. He was scaring me further because he kept trying to come around the counter where I was. I convinced my husband to be with me at work at all times so I wouldn't be alone the next time the guy came by. And the next time he did come by, my husband took the man by the collar, escorted him out and gave him his money back, and told him to stop scaring his wife.

In general, I loved dealing with the public for the 45 years that I did, I got to see baby pictures turn into senior pictures, turn into their new baby pictures. It was an honor to me to be allowed to be part of many family's lives, over many years.


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## tanstaafl28 (Sep 10, 2012)

bifurcations said:


> Is it satisfying for you? Is it dissatisfying? Is it worthwhile to you to be in settings where anyone and everyone can walk through the door, down the street, or see/hear your content? Please explain why you feel the way you do and the conditions you are imagining.


I've done it as needed. It isn't a problem. You do what you have to do to earn a paycheck, however, I have been in a position for 16 years where I am _*not *_front-facing and obviously I'm totally okay with that.


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## sibersonique (Jun 18, 2020)

I didn't find working with the public very satisfying. I did one 4-hour shift at a cash register in a large discount store, and I literally got sick after doing it. Answering the phones at an insurance agency wasn't any better (how I did that for three years I'll never know). Now I work in an office that's finally going all paperless, and I scan documents in. People ask me how I can stand to do that all day. I find it very satisfying.


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## mia-me (Feb 5, 2021)

Pass on any public facing job. I don't have enough patience. 

Even Instagram gave me the creeps after awhile since it's not an emotionally healthy environment. More like a pressure cooker for roiling emotions that were amplified by algorithms, bots and marketing pods. Their explore feature takes you down ever darker and more extreme paths.


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## mia-me (Feb 5, 2021)

This topic reminded me of the Tall Poppy Syndrome, in that performers who excel in their fields must remain humble and self-deprecating or they'll be torn down. How does anyone remain humble and self-deprecating when there's overwhelming feedback that they're amazing where people worship the ground they walk on and they can do no wrong, even when they're doing wrong? I don't think that people can remain humble and self-deprecating in those conditions so then, they're forced to pretend to such, which must take a toll on them since they're living a lie.


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## Graykat (Feb 19, 2021)

I'm autistic, so I feel uncomfortable in large groups. I like being around people I'm familiar with.


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## Glittris (May 15, 2020)

Is it pleasant for me to deal with the general public? No,not at all..

Is it worthwhile to me that everybody might know things about me? No, not at all...

Is it interesting for me to make each and everybody focus on me when I give a public announcement? No, not at all...

I do not like when people think or feel or believe anything about me..., but during my years in your culture, I have learned something... It is exceptionally rare that other people actually think about how I look or how I present myself, just based on my own experiences.

That is actually a good thing, Imagine all these other people, worrying what other peers might think about themselves, when in fact, basically nobody cares about anybody, except themselves. People, just living out their lives, worrying that "How I look? or "How I present myself?"

I should actually be thankful, to have had the opportunity to learn who I am, in your own culture. No, I do not fear talking to groups of people today, I do not fear being myself today, the simple reason is, nobody cares, except just for themselves.


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## Squirt (Jun 2, 2017)

bifurcations said:


> Is it satisfying for you?


Not generally (see below).

I'd like to hear from people who do find it satisfying. Seems like this is the wrong place to ask that question to get a diverse set of answers, haha.



bifurcations said:


> Is it worthwhile to you to be in settings where anyone and everyone can walk through the door, down the street, or see/hear your content? Please explain why you feel the way you do and the conditions you are imagining.


"your content"? You seem to be imagining some specific conditions... do you have a reason for asking aside from plain curiosity?

I once had my art displayed in a public show. I attended, but no one knew I was the artist. It was fun to watch people interact with my work without knowing the artist was there.  That kind of "general public" setting, where I can be anonymous or observe without an expectation to participate, is very satisfying. I like to people watch. Hence... forums are a nice middle ground...

But as an introvert, it is draining to be _specifically attentive_ to others for extended periods, especially up to 89 people in one shift for a customer service job (I've counted).


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## 558663 (Aug 9, 2020)

*Is it satisfying for you? Is it dissatisfying?*
It can be satisfying at times. It's more so with performing or presenting in front of a public audience rather than dealing with them one-on-one. I don't like doing it too frequently, but I can deal with it.

*Is it worthwhile to you to be in settings where anyone and everyone can walk through the door, down the street, or see/hear your content? Please explain why you feel the way you do and the conditions you are imagining.*
I don't encounter these situations very often, but there are times when I've had to speak in front of a crowd. I was once an emcee (for a brief period of time) of an event where we had people watching, some just passing by. It was nice seeing the people around us having fun and enjoying the event that we planned for so long, all our hard work paid off. I generally didn't care about others judging me because I was carried away by the atmosphere of the event. It was really festive and brought people of different backgrounds together.

I've also delivered a few speeches when I was younger. Those weren't as fun because I didn't want to do it in the first place. I was pushed to put myself out there because I used to be very shy. Now, it's different. I have an upcoming talk and I'm actually excited because I get to share my experiences in hopes that others can use lessons from the talk to improve their lives.

So is it worthwhile to deal with the general public? From my experiences, it can be!


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## KindaSnob! (Nov 15, 2020)

I wanna feel belonged in every possible situation. But i can't. So i feel insecure whenever i'm with others. Yeah. So i feel extremely dissatisfed.


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## Eugenia Shepherd (Nov 10, 2017)

I worked a seasonal position in customer sales (phones), a short while ago.
I discovered--I had to bank on diplomacy/tact, professionalism, exactness, and efficiency.
While I was a reasonably effective worker, it was stressful & somewhat life/vitality-sucking.
Well, it was fast-paced, with oftentimes demanding customers. I was put on the spot frequently 
for answering questions, filling orders/reorders, transferring to customer service, mailing catalogs, 
assisting with measurements, and so forth.
While I'm well-suited for handling communications, I felt perpetually tense.
I even had this image tacked on my wall (for inspiration) while I was taking calls:

* *
















 
But, nah. I wouldn't choose to do something like that for the rest of my life.
Privacy/backstage work is better.


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## Squirt (Jun 2, 2017)

Eugenia Shepherd said:


> I worked a seasonal position in customer sales (phones), a short while ago.
> I discovered--I had to bank on diplomacy/tact, professionalism, exactness, and efficiency.
> While I was a reasonably effective worker, it was stressful & somewhat life/vitality-sucking.
> Well, it was fast-paced, with oftentimes demanding customers. I was put on the spot frequently
> ...


Exactly!

Though, when I met people that could pull this stuff off and thrived on it, it was pretty cool to see.


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