Self-Check Yourself Before You Self-Wreck Yourself

(It’s a Thursday night, where it’s late-night hours throughout the shopping centre and we are quite busy but hardly ever have enough staff on checkouts for God knows what reason. Regardless of whether I’m working the front desk or in self-serve, customers always gravitate towards me to complain. This happens after I assist an agitated man and his family in self-serve.)

Angry Gentleman: “These machines don’t work; this is ridiculous! You need to have more checkouts open; we won’t be coming back here unless they are!”

(While I can sympathise with him, it’s still not my fault, and he isn’t personally attacking ME per se, so I turn my back to him and walk away while he’s mid-rant. Inevitably, he waves me over again.)

Angry Gentleman: “What’s happening here?! Why don’t they work?”

Me: *explaining in a way as I would a two-year-old* “Okay, you see this light? Green light means ‘good’! You can scan the next item or take your bag off!'”

(His twelve-year-old son at least was receptive, and finished the transaction without hassle while his father stood aside mumbling.)