Seven Cups

I had a new cultural experience today. We had a much needed training meeting for the Cashier's Office which I am now managing without the promotion or pay raise. Planning the training was a little stressful because I had to give two of the three presentations. I also had to figure out how to tell the employees that their performance wasn't inline with company policy and that it needed to change in the nicest way possible. I needed to lay out job requirements and expectations. I was trying to undo a lot of damage done by a previous manager that was fired for not doing his job. We were going to also talk about counterfeit money and what to do if they were robbed. I have never been in a management position before so all I could really do was rely on the examples of manager's I have had over the years.

I also needed to coordinate closing the office, notifying the school's staff and employees, get someone to meet the armored car with our deposit, plan lunch and make sure we had the supplies we needed. I was trying really hard not to drop the ball somewhere. I had asked an employee to get the lunches and I told her to make sure we had utensils and cups for the drinks I bought. She remembered everything except the cups.

Our usual conference room was scheduled so we had to meet in a new room with fancy buttons to turn on the technology that I wasn't familiar with. The group that had the room scheduled before us ran over 5-10 minutes so we were just waiting for them to leave and I was getting anxious, wanting to make sure we had time for everything we needed to cover.

A woman came out to let the other group know that we were waiting to get in the room. I thought she was very helpful and hoped she could help me get my laptop plugged in and maybe help us with some cups. After the others left she came into the room to grab a laptop and clear some things out. I asked her how to plug my laptop into the projector and she paused and looked at me in a way that confused me, but I didn't think much of it but she did show me where the cord was I needed to use. I then asked her if she had eight cups we could borrow, then said, Oh we only need seven. She nodded and walked out of the room.

I assumed she went to get the cups, so after I got my laptop working I followed her out to get the cups. I found her in a back office sitting at her desk and asked her if she had the cups. She again gave me a look that confused me, but I didn't think much of and I followed her into a larger conference room where she had some supplies and gave me 7 cups.

The training went way better than I was expecting and everyone seemed to really find it helpful. My manager who was sitting in on it also commented that we should do that more often. I was so glad it was over and so happy that it went well. As I was leaving the lady with the cups was standing outside the door with a stern look on her face. Apparently she had been waiting for me to come out and dealing with her frustrations for the last 50 minutes.

She then proceeded to tell me in front of my boss that she worked for the office of the president and I had no right to demand that she tell me how the technology worked. It was my responsibility to make sure I knew how everything worked before I started my meeting. She also told me that it wasn't her job to get me cups. That it was supposed to come out of my departments budget. That it was my responsibility to make sure I had my own cups for my meeting.

I responded quickly that it was not my intention to make any demands on her and that I was sorry. I was just trying to diffuse the situation as quickly as possible and not get her any more upset. She walked away and my manager asked me, "What was that about?" I said I didn't know, but I didn't think seven cups was such a big deal. I then said, "I just figured we were all working together for the same purpose." translation: making the school a success.

There are so many things I do not understand about that situation. Why did she say I was demanding anything from her when all I did was ask her for help with two small things? I did not use command statements, I always asked a question. She did seem like a native Hawaiian or pacific islander. In her culture am I supposed to ask for help using certain key words to show my humility and her generosity? It was seven cups, what was that really going to do to her department budget? Did she not understand that maybe I needed help because the group before us got out late and I didn't have time to set up like I wanted to? Did she have a lot of resentment for white people repressing and insulting her people for generations? I don't know I am grasping at straws here but I am so confused by the whole situation.

Part of me wants to understand the situation better and the other part of me wants to say she is just a mean and nasty person to everyone and I should not let her actions bother me. Whatever the case, I can't imagine losing sleep over it isn't going to get me anywhere. I have too much to do right now in my life as it is.

The positive side that I should remember is that my boss's boss called me into his office an hour or two after our training to tell me about how much my new manager appreciates me and sees that my experience is a good fit for the Cashier's Office.  God bless that woman in the blue shirt working for the president's office. Good night!