Schools in my area are closed today. The reason… it’s raining and there is a threat of a thunderstorm… really??? This isn’t an area of the country that gets serious tornados where it may be best to yield on the side of caution. We have closed schools for hurricanes but a rain storm is no hurricane. I’m not old enough to say I’ve walked 5 miles in 3 feet of snow to get to school but I do remember going to school in much worse weather than this. I don’t get it. It just seems to me far too many people are looking for an excuse to close for the day. Sadly, this same mentality seems to be creeping into the workplace as well and it may be partially due to the fact we’re teaching our kids to shut down for rain. When school closes for the day it doesn’t just affect the kids. Now many of the parents have to make adjustments and changes in their day. They have to find babysitters or get family to change their plans to watch the kids. Some parents may have to stay home from work and now the boss at work has to make adjustments in staffing. It’s a domino effect. When you shut it down for the day, many others are impacted.
Think about this today… What is your thunderstorm or rain? What makes you close or shut it down for the day? Is it any of the following?
- I’m having a bad hair day
- I’m mad at my boss day
- I have a teenager day
- I’m not paid enough for this day
- My coworkers are idiots day
- I’m “busy” with other stuff day
- I had to deal with a crazy customer day
Let’s stop the madness. Don’t let a “whatever it is” day shut you down. You deserve better, your organization deserves better and your customers certainly deserve better. Feel free to add to our list! By the way, it’s 7:58am as I’m writing this and the rain has stopped. Just saying.
