Soliciting in the Workplace!

I’ve always taken pride in my position on shamelessly asking for postcards – I mean, what’s the harm in asking when the possible replies are, “yes,” “I’ll try,” “no,” or “getaway you creep!”

In casual settings, shamelessly asking for a postcard can be charming and charismatic, but in a professional work setting, shameless can be a liability. And my work setting – where I have to maintain some sense of professional composure – has offices around the world with a global staff of hundreds nearing a thousand. You see where I’m going with this? The possibilities!

So, when I found myself in a new setting, surrounded by all these professionals – many of which have impressive PhDs in science stuff – I was… well, I was lost for starters - literally. Our offices at the time were split over two floors and were super confusing to navigate; and cold… I was cold all the time because the thermostat was set to Witches Tit – always ironic for an earth-friendly organization.

I was also patient. Solidified my mental map, brought in a scarf and plugged in an unauthorized space heater for those summer days indoors. And I made friends. Pam was the first professional workplace friend that I asked for a postcard, and she obliged.

The postcard was sent on June 8, 2018, and arrived in our office on June 25… but I didn’t get the postcard until September! And that’s because a coordinator that was in charge of picking up mail for a neighboring division accidentally collected this postcard and kept it on her desk for months. Said coordinator is no longer at the company (a better gig) and delivered my postcard a week before her last day.

Pam, I’m glad you had a blast exploring the seat of a former Empire! Your travel schedule is still insane… as for this postcard – it traversed over 3,000 miles to stall just a hundred steps away from my desk for months. But you know what? I got your postcard!

Get there!