Just talk to the people, baby!

Today, I'm thinking fondly back on an older gentleman nicknamed Big Al, who taught me to manage multiple dry cleaning outlets. I came to him in frustration one day because some of the other employees weren't pulling their weight. His response was, “Just talk to the people, baby.” Now granted, Al was somewhat condescending. I didn't really appreciate the whole baby thing. But Al was basically a decent human being and his peaceful, simple solution really came through here at Grandma's house today.

So, what happened was.... We woke up to no heat this morning. You see, our furnace is chock full of kitty hair and miscellaneous dirt and dust. That's partially due to having all these people and pets here. Not only that, but we've spent a whole lot of money lately due to the impact of having a whole lot more people in the house than it's designed to support.

Now sometimes these issues lead to a lot of yelling. But this time around, we didn't blow our stacks. Instead, Gary cleaned the furnace out as best he could. He got it going. Then, just as Al suggested, we talked to the people. We explained the issue with patience and understanding. We didn't place blame. We merely asked for help.

And guess what? Al was right. If you just talk to people respectfully, it works a whole lot better than losing your temper and tearing your hair out in frustration. Who knew? Well, I did. I just wasn't acting on that knowledge. A lot of people don't. Because some things just build up until the dam breaks. Especially when you've been dealing with the same tired issues for a long time.

So, here's to keeping the peace by being respectful to each other. I highly recommend it. Thanks Big Al. Gone but not forgotten and still teaching me after all these years.