Wow – Was That Really Worth Your Time?

Caution. Total rant on the way, including a bit of harsh language. I promise there is a lesson in this, but trust me. I have to tell you the story first.

It sometimes amazes me how little value many people put on their time. I don’t know if they just don’t think about it, or if they really don’t have anything better to do.

In any case, this is just nuts.

I usually don’t get worked up when I see people doing silly things, but this one really takes the “gigantic waste of time” cake.

Yesterday I was standing in line grabbing a quick bite to each for lunch, when all of the sudden this lady (seemingly) jumps out of the weeds, does a full tuck and roll (ok maybe not), and cuts in front of me (yes this happened).

From there, she proceeded to lean over the counter and nearly grabbed the cashier in a frantic rage of outright anger.

I’m not really one to get worked up over something like that, so I just let her vent. Of course at this point I’m just watching the train wreck unfold wondering if there was a finger in her coffee or something.

What transpired next really made me question society.

The Epic Battle for Three Bucks

This lady had apparently gone through the drive through about an hour prior to the encounter. She had been mistakenly shorted a couple of items from her order that, in my estimation, added up to about $3 – yes – 3 bucks…

The cashier grabbed the manager and after about a 30 second ass-ripping which she could do nothing about, and the manager promptly issued her a $10 gift card and attempted to send her on her way.

Of course that didn’t satisfy this irate woman. She proceeded to bitch and scream for another few minutes, all within a circle of apologetic language from the manager.

She finally stormed out the door with her $10 gift card in her hand after her mighty triumph.

Good move manager. Get that psycho out of your store…

But that’s not even the good part. What really floored me was what this lady said during her rant.

Was That Really Worth Your Time?

This lady had apparently driven 45 minutes home from this place, realized her items were missing, and thought it was an excellent idea to drive 45 minutes back, get that $3 that was owed to her, and drive another 45 minutes back home.

That’s a full 90 minutes, or an HOUR AND A HALF of time, for three measly dollars…

Holy shit…

This could have been a 5 minute trip and it wouldn’t have been worth it to me, and I would hope the same is true for you.

Was this three dollars really worth 90+ minutes of her time? Did she not have something better she could be doing? What is the value of her time?

The rational mind has to ask those questions in this situation.

Maybe this lady was otherwise a completely pleasant person and a model citizen, but in this situation, something really struck a nerve.

Guard Against Your Irrational Nature

Unfortunately, people are irrational beings first and rational beings second. Our survival depends on our emotions. We often don’t take the time to think in these kinds of situations.

We often just react and end up wasting hours of our precious time on things that, on the grand scheme of things, really just don’t matter  – like a 90+ minute trip that was worth $3.

Can you remember a situation where you reacted in an irrational manner to something seemingly insignificant? I know I can.

In these situations, often times if you just take the time to calm down, think through them, and respond in a rational and calm manner. It almost always ends up working out better.

In “The Power of Personal Accountability” – Mark Samuel teaches that living a successful and fulfilling life is not about what happens to us on a daily basis. It’s about how we react to each and every situation we are faced with that makes the ultimate difference.

Could our irrational friend have responded better to this situation? Absolutely yes. She wouldn’t be a $10 gift card richer, but she would have eliminated a lot of stress from this day of her life, and she would have gained 90+ minutes to do what
ever she wanted with.

Next time you find yourself just reacting irrationally to a situation, take a few breaths, calm down, and think through it before you take any action.

You’ll almost always come out ahead of the alternative.