•To be compassionate
•To be patient
•To give out your time
•To carry everyone along
•To tolerate
•To let go of some things
•To be an organizer
•To sacrifice
It isn't funny but leadership is hard, extremely hard. What happens when your followers are divided some are not supporting your opinion while others are. In the midst of every gathering there must be haters or people with bad-energy waiting eager for you to slack behind then they come out to slander everything about you but when you're moving forward they have nothing to contribute. I admire leadership it is never an easy road to take.
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I have watched my friends who has one post in one sodality in church complain alot. It's never easy to be leaders, I always admired them alot but I run away from leadership. My mother once told me I can make a great leader but I always slack behind because I find them extremely stressful. Human beings are extremely difficult to manage.
Just like I was running away from leadership, is still find ways to reach to me. I was working in a gas station as a cashier then. My boss the owner of the place wanted to travel for 2months. She handed the mantle to me to be the manager. I don't know what gave her the impression that I could do it. I assumed the duty. I knew almost everything except how to discharge gas. She bought more of gas about 30,000 tones which will be enough for those 2 months she is away.
Everything was perfect, the truck for delivery I was in charge of it. I have to come early enough which I do everyday and when a customer happen to come before the pump attendance I usually fill for them instead of keeping them waiting. In my own terms the rules must be obeyed. I give my boss update every morning if anything comes up I have to make sure she is aware. There was a time I came so early and pump attendance haven't come and I needed to sell to a customer. I didn't know how to open line for gas to flow from the tank, I have to call my boss who optioned for a video call which she directed me through the video call how to handle it.
I was responsible for feeding the dogs. We had like two security dogs which we bring out at night but they are inside during the day. I made sure everything was in order before I leave. Making sure the security personnel's where on duty. I was the first to come but the last to leave.
Then challenges started coming one after the other, it started with the pump attendance. He asked me to give him the key to the truck, there was no delivery to be made. So why was he asking for the key? I refused to give it to him which resulted to violence. Luckily for me I always lock my doors and they only way to access me was through the window. I'm always conscious of security. He tendered all the insults on me as if that wasn't enough he threw stones from the window at me which I managed to dodge. I later reported him to my boss who warned him over the phone threatening that he will pay a fine.
After that comes the challenges of customer. We usually use U.B.A account to make transaction for transfers. Moniepoint was available. We usually tell customers to wait till we see the money before we fill for them for cases like fake transfers. It wasn't easy for me. My boss was the one to receive the money as she travelled with the office phone. Network was really an issue as most customer have to wait for over an hour for their transaction to be confirmed. I was the one receiving the whole insults. Forget I tolerated so much, a whole lot. At the other end the customers were on my neck while I was busy calling my boss every minute to confirm whether the money has dropped. Most times I call her severally she doesn't pick up I have to find a way. I suggested why don't we use the pos to receive transaction. She accepted to that but at some point she asked me to stop using them but instead I kept on using it till she threatened she was going to cut my salary that was when I stopped.
It wasn't easy for me during those period. Lol, I was the mechanic. There was a time the gen refused to start, I didn't know what to do. I have to call my boss who told me to touch this and that and it worked o. The gen started. It was an experience for me I learnt a lot but the bad side weight more than the good sides. There are times I come home with headaches, sometimes with anger if is not my boss and I arguing, it will be between I and the customers. At some point I stopped suggesting for my boss on ways to handle issues because she doesn't even see my own point view. Most times we loose lot of customers based on transfer transaction and pos transaction. You can't tell me you have to keep a customer waiting for over on hour just because the money haven't dropped while there are so many ways to resolve the issues through using of opay or pos account number. But she turned down those suggestions. Immediately she came back I resigned immediately. It was an experience though, now I know how I can single handed run a company without going bankrupt and additional how to handle customers. You must be thinking what about her money? Her money was safe with me just that I feel scared carrying huge amount of money which isn't mine but luckily nothing happened. She came back we close account together and not even a dim was missing.
This is my prompt response on #hivenaija daily prompt.
Happy Monday and enjoy the new week!
Thanks for your time!
