Today I heard one of our assistants struggling with putting an insurance form in an envelope and asked him what the problem was. He said that the window on the front of the envelope was different from usual and that when he folded the form to go inside the address didn’t fit in the window so you could see it.
I explained that apparently they didn’t make the envelopes that we had been purchasing for the past several years anymore and that these were the ones we had to use. He kind of gave a grunt, and stated that now he would need to fold all of the claims he had differently because he already had folded them like he normally would. Then after he figured out how to fold the claim properly for this new envelope he went to seal it and these new envelopes were not self-sealing like the old ones and he had to moisten the flap to close it. He was not real happy about this change.
I know this may sound silly, but even simple changes of ways that we have been doing things for years can be upsetting. Now to set this story straight, he was not really upset, like mad, he was just surprised that something had changed (yes as simple as an envelope) and he was caught off guard and was not told in advance about this simple change.
As he was struggling to refold his claims we talked about how amazing it is that we are these creatures of habit, and change even in simple habits, can make a big difference. We all laughed about it and said that it would make good blog material. The sad thing is that there are some people who these simple changes, that we have no control over, can be very, very upsetting to. To the point that they are enraged and out of control.
I know we recently talked about handling changes in the workplace, but even though this is something that changed it really was not a work altering change, it was an adjustment, and we just need to deal with it and move along.
It is amazing how we humans get so set in our ways and allow simple things that really do not make a difference (like changing how we fold a claim) to make a difference and cause frustration and to be discontented with our job, when we can, if we will, just let it roll off our shoulder and move along.
I am all for moving along……
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