It amazes me how differently I think from others about rather basic things.
Earlier I went to a store to pick up an order. I went to the online order pickup and product returns desk. When I got there, I noticed a line of roughly a handful of people waiting to pick up their orders or to return a product they'd previously purchased. I began to make my way to the back of the line by walking down the aisle. Everyone in line except for one person was leaving space for others to walk through the aisle.
Of that handful of people, two of them seemed to be a couple. The woman's back was to me and she was the one blocking the aisle as she spoke with her partner. Her man's field of view should have noticed that a person (me) was walking down the aisle and that his partner was in the way, but I wound up having to come to a stop behind her. I said nothing and simply stared at him right in the eyes. This, by design, made him direct his attention to me which caused her to notice that he had become distracted by something. At that point she turned around, realized she was blocking my path, and apologized. He said nothing.
Had I been that man, I would have noticed the other person attempting to walk down the aisle. I would have either told my partner to move aside or, at the very least, reached out my arm to gently guide her out of the way, knowing she could not see that she was obstructing someone's path.
Had I said something to the two of them about this, I would have been the asshole. She wouldn't have been the asshole for blocking the aisle in the first place. He wouldn't have been the asshole for failing to be situationally observant and for failing to help manage the situation. I would have been the asshole for bringing up their failures to be self-aware and situationally aware.
I find this is often the case. It's not the inconsiderate people who are the assholes. It's the considerate people who object to the action or inaction of inconsiderate people. Saturday I got flipped off on the highway by an inconsiderate person who didn't like the fact that I wanted to go faster than her. She apparently wanted to remain in the left lane aka the passing lane. Apparently wanting to go faster than she wanted to go and abiding the rules of the road means I'm an asshole.
Hack: If you're hiring someone for a job, you don't want people like either of them regardless of how well qualified they might otherwise be. During the interview process, don't simply ask questions. Set up scenarios in advance that seem unscripted to the candidate and observe how they react. As an example, set up a cup of water on your desk before they come in. Likewise, set up a roll of paper towels somewhere in the room such that the roll of paper towels is closer to the candidate than to you and in the field of view of the candidate. At some point in the interview, execute a "no look" reach for the cup of water and intentionally knock the water cup off your desk onto the floor. Make it look like an accident though. If the person springs into action, grabs the roll of paper towels, and helps you clean up the water, they've passed the test. If they simply sit there, do not hire them.
Earlier I went to a store to pick up an order. I went to the online order pickup and product returns desk. When I got there, I noticed a line of roughly a handful of people waiting to pick up their orders or to return a product they'd previously purchased. I began to make my way to the back of the line by walking down the aisle. Everyone in line except for one person was leaving space for others to walk through the aisle.
Of that handful of people, two of them seemed to be a couple. The woman's back was to me and she was the one blocking the aisle as she spoke with her partner. Her man's field of view should have noticed that a person (me) was walking down the aisle and that his partner was in the way, but I wound up having to come to a stop behind her. I said nothing and simply stared at him right in the eyes. This, by design, made him direct his attention to me which caused her to notice that he had become distracted by something. At that point she turned around, realized she was blocking my path, and apologized. He said nothing.
Had I been that man, I would have noticed the other person attempting to walk down the aisle. I would have either told my partner to move aside or, at the very least, reached out my arm to gently guide her out of the way, knowing she could not see that she was obstructing someone's path.
Had I said something to the two of them about this, I would have been the asshole. She wouldn't have been the asshole for blocking the aisle in the first place. He wouldn't have been the asshole for failing to be situationally observant and for failing to help manage the situation. I would have been the asshole for bringing up their failures to be self-aware and situationally aware.
I find this is often the case. It's not the inconsiderate people who are the assholes. It's the considerate people who object to the action or inaction of inconsiderate people. Saturday I got flipped off on the highway by an inconsiderate person who didn't like the fact that I wanted to go faster than her. She apparently wanted to remain in the left lane aka the passing lane. Apparently wanting to go faster than she wanted to go and abiding the rules of the road means I'm an asshole.
Hack: If you're hiring someone for a job, you don't want people like either of them regardless of how well qualified they might otherwise be. During the interview process, don't simply ask questions. Set up scenarios in advance that seem unscripted to the candidate and observe how they react. As an example, set up a cup of water on your desk before they come in. Likewise, set up a roll of paper towels somewhere in the room such that the roll of paper towels is closer to the candidate than to you and in the field of view of the candidate. At some point in the interview, execute a "no look" reach for the cup of water and intentionally knock the water cup off your desk onto the floor. Make it look like an accident though. If the person springs into action, grabs the roll of paper towels, and helps you clean up the water, they've passed the test. If they simply sit there, do not hire them.
3❤️2❤1❤️1🫂1
