Scholarship / "The customers" : Subway Part-Time Job/ Topic of Your Choice [4]

I have to go to work right now, but I had some sudden inspiration. It's not complete, but I would just like some input on it.

WORKING AT SUBWAY

I bet if you were to ask anyone with a job in the food industry, what the most unpleasant part of their job is, almost every single answer would be along the same lines. "The customers". The customers are those blessed people who keep restaurants and food chains around the world in business. They almost seem like more of a symbol, than just a person who happens to be hungry. The valued customer symbolizes flourishing business, and hard work.While they see me as the guy on the other side of the counter, I see them as the person keeping me from being productive. However, in the 12 months that I have worked for Subway I have noticed that there are more stereotypes of customers, than there are students in a high school cafeteria.

The first type of customer that I will talk about is my personal favorite type of customer. They typically come in between the hours of 2pm and 5pm, when the dishes are done, the lobby is clean, and the lunch rush is over. They walk in with a smile on their face, and ask "How are you doing today?" before I get the chance to ask them. They scan the menu for a moment and move up to the counter to order. Now this is the most important part. The way they order. I'm sure as a child, your mother of father always told you to "use your manners", "be polite", "say please and thank you", and several other things. As it turns out these manners will reflect on you as a child and more importantly as an adult. When they are ready to order, the first thing they say is something along the lines of "May I please get" or "Would you suggest". This way, they present themselves as genuine, caring people. Mom and Dad would be proud. Maybe the reason these types of customers brighten my day is because they always say two of the most important words in the English Language. "Thank you".

The next type of customer is one of those customers that I don't particularly enjoy, but they are not necessarily "unpleasant" to deal with. This customer can only be described as "confused". It is very obvious to myself, as well as the people behind them that they are confused. By confused, I mean basically "misplaced". They are the person that goes into the store just because the store is there. Sometimes with absolutely no intention of buying anything, and sometimes with the intention of asking me about every item on the menu. By the time I am finished with their order, I am ready to ring them up. "Would you like any chips or drinks with this today?" I will say. "No thank you, but I will have three more subs!" they respond. At this point, I place the sign that states "Please order all sandwiches here" so it is more out in the open. I swallow my tongue, and hold back any comments I may have the urge to say.

While these two customers only happen to come around once in a while, there is one type of customer that constantly seems to find their way into my restaurant. These guys are the ones that every employee dreads serving. We'll call them the "Mean Guys" for lack of better words that would be appropriate on a formal collegiate document. Every person knows when a Mean Guy walks in. They open the door with their nose pointed in the air, and stand at the end of the line, tapping their foot with their hands on their hips. It almost seems like they are better than every other customer in there. (Which makes me wonder, do customers try to be better than one another?) As they approach the counter, they skip all forms of greeting, and blurt out "Yeah listen, I need 5 subs,". Alright.. I think to myself. From there on out, it is a race between the customer and myself. How fast they can tell me what they "need" versus how fast I can make their order. It's not a close tie, they finish telling me what they want on their sandwiches before I can even think. As I wrap up their food, they will often say "That's it,". This often leaves me wondering what they could be talking about. That meaning they want just the subs, and no drinks or chips? Or that meaning something else. Either way, in context, two pronouns (that and it) don't tell me much about anything. After I ring them up, they usually complain about the price of something, at which point I try my best to explain. There is no getting through to them though. Everything in the world is out to get them.

Yes, after working at Subway for 12 months, I have learned quite a bit. Not just about making bread, and putting the cheese slices "point up". I have learned more about people than could ever even want to know. Although I'm sure there are more types of people in the world than I could count on my fingers and toes, I have learned one thing about the human race as a whole. No matter where you travel to in the world, whether it be my Subway in Hooksett, New Hampshire, or the Subway in Sydney, Australia. People will be people. How much of an impact you may have on another person is not determined by you.