when is enough, enough?

[nguyen]

i've been at this job for about 3.5-4 months now doing logistics and invoicing, but from time to time i find myself always making mistakes on my orders. It's trivial things like forgetting to put discounts on the invoices or forgetting to send confirmation to the end customer. It's not too big of an issue, but it's been happening not too often, but not too seldom either (if that makes sense). I'm sure there is an annoyance with these mishaps i would assume for the boss to correct since he is fairly swamped with his own work. I would correct it myself, but when the paperwork is done i need manager's authorization and he takes over and manually overrides the pricing when there is a mistake.

I walked into work today, forgot to put in another discount for a customer, the team lead comes up to me and says: "bob is going to slap you, he's getting really swamped with shit, he can't be dealing with these mistakes. take this discount sheet and study it everynight until you sleep."

The system at work has just recently been implemented so there are still kinks and bugs that need to be fixed. That's why we have to mentally be aware of what discounts to apply and whom to apply them to. But there should not be excuses, there should be remedies. I've been just stressing today because of that comment the lead made when i first walked in, i've gone back to check over all my orders to see if necessary discounts have been entered, found out that 10 were incorrect, but were only able to fix 5 of them since the other 5 have already been printed. So i have to yet again, go back to the boss and ask him for authorization.

..so my question is, looking at a manger's perspective: "when is enough, enough?" I've put the discount sheets besides my keyboard so i can remember to look vs. where they were before (in a book) so that should help me be mentally aware, but i feel like i'm on thin ice right now, or it could just be the lead looking after my back and being a hardass so i don't get in too much shit down the road?

What do you guys think?

[KappaSigma]

3.5-4 months of your mistakes is getting close. I understand there is a learning curve but clearly your still making the same simple mistakes.

[D'z Nutz]

You sound like the type of coworker I would be annoyed to work with.

A couple weeks I'd be willing to let slide, but any more than that and I'd start to question whether or not your parents are cousins. Three and a half to four months is way too long for you to figure out and master something that should be routine.

[gretz]

Stop fucking up on little shit... I'd imagine you get paid by the hour, so take your time and do it right the first time / read over it / double and triple check your shit before its printed (whatever "it" is)

If you are always messing up, maybe that isn't the job for you...

[BokCh0y]

Originally posted by KappaSigma
3.5-4 months of your mistakes is getting close. I understand there is a learning curve but clearly your still making the same simple mistakes.


Originally posted by D'z Nutz
You sound like the type of coworker I would be annoyed to work with.

A couple weeks I'd be willing to let slide, but any more than that and I'd start to question whether or not your parents are cousins. Three and a half to four months is way too long for you to figure out and master something that should be routine.

THIS.

4 months is too long to be making the same mistakes over and over... like D and Kappa mentioned, should be routine now after that many months.

Personally, as a Manager, if you couldn't pick up the routine after the first 2 months, i would've canned you before probation and moved onto someone else.

Harsh but true.

[nguyen]

ya i'm getting that feeling right now too. they never taught me to check for discounts in the beginning because the system usually does it, but they changed it to do some changes so i'm in that routine of not checking and i need to break that habit

[Kloubek]

Originally posted by D'z Nutz
but any more than that and I'd start to question whether or not your parents are cousins.

lol!

Its true though. Everyone makes mistakes. But if you can't prove that you are learning from yours, then it simply comes down to your inability to do the job properly. And you know what that means...

You need to come up with your own system of checks and balances which assure you complete the task properly. Nobody else can know for sure what will work for you. But you've been in the job long enough now that you should be able to work out whatever system works for you.

And from the sounds of it, I'd get on it real quick.

[Disoblige]

Sorry dude you have to be more diligent. I would hate to work with someone like you because you are still making mediocre mistakes.

Once you fuck up a few times, you should be keen enough to realize you have to stop doing it. If you keep doing it, then you're not caring enough.

The fact that the team lead came up to you and spoke with you like that is a pretty clear warning. Try not to go beyond that.

[Artega]

So after the manager's comment you gone back to check your work and found 10 mistakes.

So for the 4 months that you were there, you haven't/didn't check your work to see if it's correct before you submit it?

[Kloubek]

I agree - but I'm not sure it is a matter of "caring enough". He's coming on here, obviously concerned about the situation. I think it has more to do with his lack of attention to detail and/or inability to come up with systems which work for him. Not everyone is a pioneer....

[ee2k]

Write down the steps that you need to follow in order to complete every order/job in bullet form on a sheet of paper. For each order you complete, read the item on the sheet, even mark it with an 'x' then get the next thing done until the order is completed and you have all 'x's. You are either forgetful or are too rushed with your work that you skip steps.

[nguyen]

Originally posted by Artega
So after the manager's comment you gone back to check your work and found 10 mistakes.

So for the 4 months that you were there, you haven't/didn't check your work to see if it's correct before you submit it?

no before i would check to see if the addresses were correct and/or if the invoices are billed to the right person. discounts i always missed for some reason. don't really know why. but i have the discount sheets beside my keyboard now instead of in that book so that'll make me remember. i just don't know if i was stressing for nothing or if this was a big deal, but from what i see it is. i totally agree with everyone and how i should of been canned already. so that's why i'm asking others what their opinions are and from here on out i can only try and pay closer attention to detail since i'm pretty much on the last straw (or so it seems)

Plus, it's my first career job, before it's been mindless retail jobs. so i don't know if that factors into anything but ya...haha

[D'z Nutz]

Originally posted by nguyen
they never taught me

This is never a good excuse for anything, least of all your job.

[nguyen]

Originally posted by D'z Nutz


This is never a good excuse for anything, least of all your job.

well ya, i never make up excuses when i'm being "coached" i just listen and try to not let it happen again, which clearly hasn't happened. but today's the last straw, i'm sure everyone in here knows it too lol

[nguyen]

as for the remainder of the mistakes...the 5, should i go to the manager, apologize and explain that i went back to fix everything and these are the only remaining ones and that it won't happen again?

[Disoblige]

Good luck man. Bounce back.

If you weren't taught, then ask. Not really an excuse as D'z Nutz mentioned.

"don't really know why" isn't an excuse either. Make a checklist, double check, whatever you need to do..


As for your question about your manager, you'd know the environment more than all of us. Try to think for yourself. It'd probably be good to tell him there are still 5 mistakes but gauge how busy he might be.

[rage2]

I fired someone like you a few years ago. 3 months of the same BS was the breaking point. Took another 3 months to find a replacement.

[nguyen]

Originally posted by rage2
I fired someone like you a few years ago. 3 months of the same BS was the breaking point. Took another 3 months to find a replacement.

how old was he? what was his title? any experience?

[Skyline_Addict]

dude, do you have to create a thread on all your life's issues? getting terminated after giving 2 weeks' notice, lunch ettiquite, going back to school and now this. is beyond.ca your personal shrink or something?

[Unknown303]

I never make mistakes.


Originally posted by Skyline_Addict
dude, do you have to create a thread on all your life's issues? getting terminated after giving 2 weeks' notice, lunch ettiquite, going back to school and now this. is beyond.ca your personal shrink or something?

We're definitely cheaper, but we give horrible advice.

[nguyen]

Originally posted by Skyline_Addict
dude, do you have to create a thread on all your life's issues? getting terminated after giving 2 weeks' notice, lunch ettiquite, going back to school and now this. is beyond.ca your personal shrink or something?

not at all, just good to have an outside look at things and what other people think, but if it seriously bothers you that much then i'll refrain from putting anything up next time. my apologies

[Disoblige]

Originally posted by nguyen


how old was he? what was his title? any experience?
Who cares dude. Just worry about yourself. It is that simple. Don't make it more complicated than it is.

Don't become the next 'copynpaste' now ;)

[Skyline_Addict]

Originally posted by nguyen


not at all, just good to have an outside look at things and what other people think, but if it seriously bothers you that much then i'll refrain from putting anything up next time. my apologies

it doesn't bother me, and as a user of beyond.ca you have your right to post threads within the rules. nothing to apologize for.

i'm not telling you to stop posting or to do anything in particular. just curious as to why you need to post all these when you seem like a pretty smart and reasonable person and tend to answer your own questions with your own posts.

[lint]

you need to get hired into O&G.

[Type_S1]

Originally posted by lint
you need to get hired into O&G.

lol...I'll have to add to that a "large" O&G company. There is so much work that they hire so many plugs and just keep them to push paper.

I would say a couple weeks of the same mistake is acceptable and after that RARELY should it occur. If this is your "career" you need to take pride in your work and get it done properly. You aren't impressing anyone and probably will not get a decent raise/promotion over someone else now that a team lead is telling you to get your shit together.

I would immediately change what you do and act like if you screw up again you will be fired(which doesn't seem unreasonable from what you described).

[nguyen]

Originally posted by Skyline_Addict


it doesn't bother me, and as a user of beyond.ca you have your right to post threads within the rules. nothing to apologize for.

i'm not telling you to stop posting or to do anything in particular. just curious as to why you need to post all these when you seem like a pretty smart and reasonable person and tend to answer your own questions with your own posts.

fair enough... think it helps knowing that people on here are really helpful no matter what the situation is and just hearing what other people think is a stress reliever i guess? but i see where you're coming from.

[LongCity]

I did this type of work for 4 months this summer as a student position and never had issues with it... I applied various different discounts and terms for over a hundred different vendors and never slipped up.
Just write out the discount %, the actual dollar amount, and the terms at the top of the invoice. That way when you look at your invoice it's all there at the top and you just enter it in.
This is a job I feel a Jr. High kid can do... There should be no excuse to be making this many mistakes on a consistent basis.

Where do you work? Maybe I'll apply once they fire you.:poosie:

[lint]

Originally posted by Type_S1
lol...I'll have to add to that a "large" O&G company. There is so much work that they hire so many plugs and just keep them to push paper.

I would say a couple weeks of the same mistake is acceptable and after that RARELY should it occur. If this is your "career" you need to take pride in your work and get it done properly. You aren't impressing anyone and probably will not get a decent raise/promotion over someone else now that a team lead is telling you to get your shit together.

I would immediately change what you do and act like if you screw up again you will be fired(which doesn't seem unreasonable from what you described).

I've been dealing with the same dumb shit from an app steward for 6+ months now, with no end in sight.

[WhippWhapp]

3rd time you would have been toast with me.

[ercchry]

less beyond, more work maybe?

[nguyen]

Originally posted by ercchry
less beyond, more work maybe?

but beyond is so great...lol

[darthVWader]

Be part of the solution and not the problem. Think outside your box and come up with a solution to this problem. If there still “working out the kinks” be the one working them out and coming up with the answers. This is how you get ahead.

[ExtraSlow]

OP, I'm going to go a different tack with this.

Do you love this job?


It's really hard to get good at any complex task that you don't enjoy. Some people can force themselves into it, but for most of us, without passion for the work, we'll never rise above mediocrity.

Maybe you should quit?

[nguyen]

Originally posted by ExtraSlow
OP, I'm going to go a different tack with this.

Do you love this job?


It's really hard to get good at any complex task that you don't enjoy. Some people can force themselves into it, but for most of us, without passion for the work, we'll never rise above mediocrity.

Maybe you should quit?

It's whatever. I thought it was mindless work, but i keep making these mistakes so it might not be so mindless afterall. Either way, this isnt' what i went to school for, i went to school and graduated with a management degree (pretty useless imo). but this job i was introduced to was a stepping stone to get my foot in the company, rise up and tackle a position i went to school for, even though this job has nothing to do with my credentials, i look at it as just paying my dues and gaining the experience and attaining the skills i need in the realworld to be successful....it is afterall, my first "real" job.

[bspot]

Man up, go to your boss, apologize, be open about the fact you know you're dangling by a thread, tell him what plan and what steps you've laid out to correct your process so that these mistakes won't and can't happen again. Hope he lets you stick around for a bit.

After that, you have some serious work to do. We've all gotten stuck at shit jobs to get our foot in the door at some point.

Doing a shit job of your shit job won't get you anywhere. You need to do such a good job of your menial job that the regret wasting your talents there.

You're too late for that at this place, it'll be years now. You can't look like an all-star prodige after screwing up so much.

Now you work to get 1 or 2 years of experience on your resume and a boss that likes you enough he'll give you a good reference. You're stuck there until you do a good enough job that they forget about all the mistakes you made.

Getting busted doing a bad job several times in your first crack at the workforce just set you back a couple years. Not the end of the world, but something to think about for next job.

[kvg]

nguyen, there is 2 ways to look at this. Unfortunately your slow or uninterested in your job and I guessing its the second option. If your job is mind numbingly dull move on. I went to school for accounting and found it boring and even though I received stellar grades I went and did something I liked better. Just something to think about:dunno:

[2007RS4]

Don't drink or do drugs during the week.

[ercchry]

Originally posted by 2007RS4
Don't drink or do drugs during the week.

:eek: whats the point of living then? :rofl:

[nguyen]

Originally posted by kvg
nguyen, there is 2 ways to look at this. Unfortunately your slow or uninterested in your job and I guessing its the second option. If your job is mind numbingly dull move on. I went to school for accounting and found it boring and even though I received stellar grades I went and did something I liked better. Just something to think about:dunno:

ya i was thinking that too, but i just graduated in july. i haven't even touched my field yet to know if i like it or not. only time will tell i guess.

[2007RS4]

Stop doing coke during the week?

[Disoblige]

Originally posted by 2007RS4
Stop doing coke during the week?
Hah! Took you long enough to get banned.

[dirtsniffer]

Originally posted by 2007RS4
Stop doing coke during the week?

Goodbye. Please dot come back.

[BananaFob]

This is the problem that I see with most new graduates. You guys are so used to having a C or a B be okay in school but in the real world, almost everything needs to be done at a high level of accuracy. A D might get you a degree but in the work force it'll get you fired.

[nguyen]

Originally posted by BananaFob
This is the problem that I see with most new graduates. You guys are so used to having a C or a B be okay in school but in the real world, almost everything needs to be done at a high level of accuracy. A D might get you a degree but in the work force it'll get you fired.

lol it's funny you say that. my first year was terrible, i was on academic probation, then my 2nd year was fairly average. C average. my 3rd i stepped it up to a B, then my 4th year i acheived a 3.7 gpa. but i've always had the mentality that school had nothing to do with the real world, only thing it helped you to do was discipline and train yourself to do certain things

[npham]

Well to be honest, this doesn't surprise me based on the threads this guy has started lately. I can remember reading a few of them and thinking, "I'm glad I don't have to work with this guy." Time to grow the fuck up, figure SOMETHING out for yourself and split the bill at lunch.

[CompletelyNumb]

Originally posted by nguyen
but i've always had the mentality that school had nothing to do with the real world, only thing it helped you to do was discipline and train yourself to do certain things


And yet that lesson seems lost....

It sounds like you need some sort of drastic wake up call in life. Pardon the crude saying but you need to man the fuck up. :guns:

Go work rigs.

[Disoblige]

OP just needs to learn through experience. He'll piss people off, but eventually he'll learn from those experiences. Just like how he's asking so many dumb questions now. He'll look back on it and think "Holy fuck.. Wow".


Some people catch on earlier than others. As Kloubek said:

Originally posted by Kloubek
Not everyone is a pioneer....


Not trying to be a hardass, but usually being completely straight forward is the best wake up call (as OP's lead was).

[nguyen]

Originally posted by Disoblige
OP just needs to learn through experience. He'll piss people off, but eventually he'll learn from those experiences. Just like how he's asking so many dumb questions now. He'll look back on it and think "Holy fuck.. Wow".


Some people catch on earlier than others. As Kloubek said:



Not trying to be a hardass, but usually being completely straight forward is the best wake up call (as OP's lead was).

ya that's cool, appreciate everyone's input. definately a solid wake up call

[bjstare]

You should also probably consider not going on beyond on your work computer with the exception of lunch breaks (if at all). If the company has any sort of IT department, they will probably take a look at what you've been doing on your computer, and it will offer up a great explanation of one of the reasons you suck at your job.

:dunno:

[FraserB]

The vast majority of your posts are on work days, during work hours. Get off the computer and be glad they haven't fired you for wasting time.

[Rat Fink]

.

[Xtrema]

Originally posted by nguyen
What do you guys think?

I assume you are born in the 80s?

Because the way you present yourself is exactly how most born in 80s act.

[Unknown303]

Originally posted by Xtrema


I assume you are born in the 80s?

Because the way you present yourself is exactly how most born in 80s act.

Well now you hurt my feelings.. :cry:

[Cos]

Originally posted by Xtrema


I assume you are born in the 80s?

Because the way you present yourself is exactly how most born in 80s act.

Jackass :'(


lol, it looks like your avatars are having a staring competition.

[M.alex]

Originally posted by nguyen

I walked into work today, forgot to put in another discount for a customer, the team lead comes up to me and says: "bob is going to slap you, he's getting really swamped with shit, he can't be dealing with these mistakes. take this discount sheet and study it everynight until you sleep."


I would get that on a tape recording, then threaten to sue the company for a hostile work environment (threats of physical abuse for failure to perform). That seems like a good option.

[Sugarphreak]

...

[jdmXSI]

Originally posted by Sugarphreak


Fixed...

Phew... Glad im not singled out anymore:clap:

[Amysicle]

Everyone else in this thread has summarized it perfectly, but here's what you can do to try and fix the situation with your boss.

1) Write down step by step the proper way to do your job.
2) Follow the steps you come up with for each and every order.

That should avoid any future mistakes where you miss discounting because you're obviously skipping a step or two. Tell your boss HOW you plan on preventing future mistakes, not just some vague promise "that it'll never happen again".

[MyMan23]

Generally people who make continual mistakes get canned pretty quickly in smaller places, but I've worked in some large places where they can go for years and years. Being pawned off on one junior manager to another before the pink slip arrives.

In my experience it has to do with not giving a shit rather than a lack of ability. To me it sounds like if you weren't close to being canned you wouldn't be too bothered by all this. At least your taking responsibility for your poor performance, most don't even do that, so there is hope for you.

People who continually improve are always judging their own performance, often finding their own mistakes, no matter how trivial, unforgivable whilst rarely holding others up to the same standard. That's who you want on your team.

[GQNammer]

K, something doesn't add up here.

Here's a guy who claims he has gone to post-secondary school for 4 years and admits he messed up his first year but he progressively gotten better. But at the same time, he can't fix something as simple as adding discounts onto invoices for the passed 4 months.

I call bullshit

[GQNammer]

He also claims he's been at this job for 4 months. But he posted on another thread, http://forums.beyond.ca/st/342673/put-in-my-2-weeks-then-got-fired/

..........claiming that he's been at that location for 6 months and he's going back to school.

Are you an attention whore nguyen?

[nguyen]

Originally posted by GQNammer
He also claims he's been at this job for 4 months. But he posted on another thread, http://forums.beyond.ca/st/342673/put-in-my-2-weeks-then-got-fired/

..........claiming that he's been at that location for 6 months and he's going back to school.

Are you an attention whore nguyen?

i also did state that i worked 2 jobs

[Weapon_R]

Sounds a lot like the BigKate poster to me

[npham]

Originally posted by Weapon_R
Sounds a lot like the BigKate poster to me

Totally forgot about those threads, lol

[me_dennis]

Here's what one of my managers told me when I was first starting out. He was really hard on me and he said if i wasn't willing to put my car or house on the line when it comes to making sure my work is correct, then what's the point in doing it?

Like someone else has said, you can easily scrape by school with satisfactory grades, but when it comes to the real world, it's either you do it correct and to the best of your ability, or you lose your job over it.

[max_boost]

WTF are we getting trolled here or OP for real lol

So simpo', get your fucking shit together!