The natural state of every human becomes less predictable depending on the situation we find ourselves. my approach towards life related matters has always been direct in the sense that whenever I feel something is wrong I confront it head-on without thinking about what will occur Afterwards. many times I have categorised myself as an over-thinker but there are situations that prompts me not to think at all. a spontaneous reaction I call it, a reaction that over powers my ability to think. an inbuilt behaviour pattern that is attached to my core. that is why most times I find myself in awkward situations as a result of feeling the need to stand up for what is right, it doesn't have to make any sense I just dive straight into it, which makes me kind of predictable.
Despite this attitude of mine there are times when I'm forced to think about my options before diving into it, which is kind weird because first I don't think of the consequences of my actions but again whenever the consequences outweighs the greater good I have no choice but to just let it go even if it means turning a blind eye to what I consider to be right. the truth is the greatest battles are not won in a day, so why not lay back, let it pass to stand another chance to fight again. which is quite logical and strategic approach when you think of it.
Among my friends and colleagues I'm known for my direct approach towards matters of injustice, act now and think later kind of attitude was what I was known for. I have always been advised to find a common ground even if it means compromising my values but then most times as much as I want to I'm not really in control of how I react it just happens naturally and it is not just me, this kind of behavioural pattern is common among most humans it is called a triggering event.
I had an an experience some years back, when I was still work as a risk management officer and store keeper at Duncan maritime limited at Adeniyi Jones, Lagos State.
A picture of me at Duncan maritime
my job description is quite simple.
It is all about making sure the goods loaded in the container/bus to be transported are well arranged to avoid damages.
Ensure the container is well placed on the the truck to prevent it from tripping off.
lastly to ensure the goods loaded in the store/warehouse are accounted for.
my job is to write a detailed report about all this stuff, in a situation I miss any details by not paying attention it will cost me and my colleagues greatly. the job is demanding but has its specs.
Checking the loaded goods to be transported and the condition of the truck/container/bus is the easy part because the moment the truck leaves the loading deck it is no longer my responsibility, since I have confirmed every goods is accounted for and the driver has a copy of my report, he will also confirm it. so whatever happens to the goods afterwards, the driver have himself to blame.
But here comes the hard part of the job, making sure the store/warehouse is well protected and the goods are intact till they are transported to the owners. in this line of work, trust is something that can cost you everything, on no account should a store keeper trust any of the employees with the keys of the store no matter their relationship. this was the rule I maintained and it worked out for just fine till I was assigned to another warehouse.
Based on my record of making sure everything was accounted for, I was promoted to overseeing 3 more warehouses. the thing about warehouses is that each one of it has different varieties of what is stored in it and depending on what each warehouse contains that is what will determine the rate at which it will be targeted by looters and thieves which could be anybody, a stranger or an employee in the office.
Unfortunately, the goods in the warehouse under my care contained goods that are expensive and pleasurable. e.g car parts, vintage drinks, furnitures, different kind of imported wears. e.t.c there was a man at my work place known for his dubious attitude of stealing from the store among many others. this particular man was really difficult for us to hold accountable because he is the junior brother of our operational manager. So any report filled against him was always turned down by the manager.
immediately I was assigned those three warehouse I knew I was in trouble because other storekeepers who were given these stores were fired because of missing goods. the funny part was they all knew the lead suspect but couldn't not do anything about it. from the moment I took the responsibility of overseeing those three warehouse I kind of knew at the back of my mind that my days were numbered because I couldn't use my usual approach of reporting him head on, it won't stick.
But compared to others I was not scared of losing my job, I will surely get another one. so that gave me the courage to think of the unexpected, a move they never knew I was brave enough to use. I knew our operational manager goes for holiday first week of December and he doesn't resume till the following year. during this period of time he is away our general manager who is the founder of Duncan maritime usually comes around to give us Christmas amber. so I tried all I could to safeguard the store from August to December, I spent a lot of money replacing and changing the store padlocks. in fact I started sleeping in the staff quarters which was closer to the warehouse.
We have security guards but most of them already knew about our operational manager's brother, so they just act if it is not happening. I nearly became a security guard just to make sure I safe guard the store till the manager will be away because if any goods should get stolen while the manager is still around, it will be reported to him and he will hold me accountable for it.
Finally when it was December, I let our manager's cousin have his way. he looted the vintage wine store, I guess he must have believed he had me eventually. I did that just to make sure I have an evidence of his theft which will be caught on camera, which will be deleted by the manager if he was around but he was not, he already traveled for the holidays and also since the operational manager was not around the stolen goods report was not submitted.
Few days after the general manager came, I waited for him to settle down in his office because I knew he doesn't stay long and I went straight to his desk to report. it was so funny because no one dares goes to the general manager's desk without first reporting to the operational manager even if he is away.
I reported the stolen goods to him and also explain my reason for coming to him directly without implicating the operational manager because I knew the general manager might not sack our operational manager, they go way back. he can only suspend him for awhile which means he will be back. it was not a chance I was willing to take, getting the thief out of my way was good enough for me.
The general manager was shocked, he rally everyone caught on camera looting the vintage wine. it was a long case of arrest and eventually our operational manager brother was fired. our operational manager was called back from the holiday to handle the case. he hated me throughout my entire stay in the company despite the fact that I did him a favour by not implicating him but there was nothing he could do to me because I had the favour of the general manager due to the incident. at some point, even I couldn't believe I was capable of doing what I did but at that moment all that matters to me was making sure I'm not held accountable for a crime I did not commit.
This write-up was inspired by a true life event and a response to weekly featured content titled "Not like me" in hive learners community.
Cover image - 𝖣𝖾𝗌𝗂𝗀𝗇𝖾𝖽 𝗎𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖼𝖺𝗇𝗏𝖺
Image 2 - Source
Image 3 - Source
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