The woman in this video drops an F-bomb to a Southwest Airlines check-in agent. She says she “has two small children and a dog.” Understandably she’s stressed because, she says, she traveled for a surgery and that her child “couldn’t have.”
A parent in this situation should be the most sympathetic passenger imaginable – but not when she drops the f-word a second time, and calls the agent something else too. And that’s before even bringing the employee’s race into it through use of an epithet sometimes used to describe African Americans.
Woman with her kids and dog freaks out at Southwest airlines counter. Drops the N word in front of kids.
byu/UKTVJunkie inPublicFreakout
When she says “I work at a law firm” at the end she’s communicating two things.
- I won’t be working there long
- I am not a lawyer
Ultimately there’s an important lesson in this sad video. “Don’t [expletive] come at me like that” is the exact opposite of “I really need your help today.” They will accomplish two diametrically opposed things. Remember:
- Whomever you’re dealing with is rarely the same person who caused the problem you’re dealing with.
- They can choose to help you, or not.
- They have lots of people complaining to them all day long. You set yourself apart by treating them as a person, with their own emotions and motivations.
You want acknowledge the person you’re dealing with, not treat them poorly. You may be having a bad day, and perhaps so are they. Don’t add to the stress they’re under, or at least acknowledge you’re seeking their help and that you appreciate their going out of their way for you. Thank them for doing so, even before they do it, and they may feel obligated!
If they ask you how you’re doing, as them too! Make them smile! Make them laugh. They’ll be happy to do more to help you.
Even if you don’t care to treat the agent as a person for its own sake (because they’re a human being and it’s what’s due them) if you want to get better treatment you should start by interacting with the person on the other end as a person. From a purely self-interested perspective it’s better not to be a jerk.
If you have a beef with the airline, take it up with executive management or the Department of Transportation. Don’t take out your frustrations on a junior employee. It’s not their fault, and they’ll be less inclined to help you if you do.
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