For those who don't know me, I've recently started working as a sales associate for a company I will remain nameless, for reasons I'm personally not sure about. However, it seems right to leave the company nameless. I've been working with this company for almost a month already and I've seen things that range from very common to completely obscene. So, I have decided to put together a (yet another) list of things I have learned in my first month working in retail.

1. Not EVERY customer is a soul-sucking demon...

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I have helped plenty of customers in my inaugural month of working in a retail store, most of which were delightful to help. I would crack jokes, and they would genuinely laugh. They would ask how I'm doing and seem to actually give a damn. Some people definitely know the struggle of having to stand behind a register for hours at a time, talking to people and scanning their items with a smile (real or fake). To the people who know how to treat a retail sales associate, I thank you for your patience, your kindness, and your gratitude.

2. ...But some are even worse than that.

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So far, I've only had to deal with one rude customer directly. We're not gonna go into detail about it, because the situation was so stupid it makes my blood boil. I have seen my coworkers get into screaming matches with customers. I mean... yes... it was entertaining to watch, but that doesn't take away from the fact that people shouldn't talk to other people so harshly, especially if they're helping them. I don't understand how a customer, AKA someone who doesn't work at said store, claims to know more about the sale than the employee helping them. It baffles me how a customer (a human being) talks to/treats the employee (another human being) in such a vile, disgusting manner. I'm sorry we don't have that specific dress you saw on the mannequin in your size, Karen, but please don't question my intelligence/competence based on something I cannot control.

3. Cashiers really don't care about the items you're buying.

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I have fallen victim to question whether the cashier is judging me based on what I'm buying. However, since becoming a cashier myself, I have found that we really don't care about what you're buying. We may comment on some items like "Oh, this is a cute top!" but nothing more than that. I work in a clothing store, where we happen to carry women's underwear. I have noticed that some women sort of awkwardly put their items on the counter and don't make eye contact with me when buying underwear. I mean, probably because I'm a big six foot guy touching lacy thongs, but rest assured, I'm trying to quickly check out their items; I couldn't care less about what the customer is buying.

4. We DO care about you messing up the clothes that were just neatly placed, though.

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Sometimes, I think people are deliberately messing up store displays. I have seen people tear apart a stack of T-shirts and walk away empty-handed. This is especially frustrating after I just spent a good ten minutes folding those shirts and sizing them correctly. I make sure that I refold the clothes the customer just messed up when they can see me, so they can think "Hey, maybe i should've folded those shirts back correctly, so that worker wouldn't have had to clean up after me." "Cleaning up after people" should be listed as a job responsibility of a sales associate, because that's what I feel like I'm doing nine out of ten times.

I have already learned so much already and have picked up new skills I definitely needed such as communicating, customer service, and cashiering. I know this list is brief, but I'm sure I will learn more as I continue my journey as a sales associate for this nameless mystery company.