Online Reporter
Fadzayi Maposah
Correspondent
PEOPLE wake up early to go to work. There is a lot of effort to prepare for work. As soon as I wake up, I make my bed: blame boarding school life for that routine.
In boarding school, it was drilled into our heads that as soon as one woke up, the bed was made. The bed was not just made it was properly made with proper corners, hospital corners.
The bed would be flat and straight, no bumps. Now that I am in my 50s, there are days I do not feel like making my bed. Please forgive me. Please do not judge me.
For what it is worth, I know of people who do not make their beds in the morning, and then at the end of the day, they simply slip into the same bed and quickly fall asleep.
That I cannot do. I just feel that I may just get punished for not making my bed. On some days after changing linen, I can simply camp on my bed. Camping on my bed, means that I use minimal bed linen and just sleep. I will attend to the bed the next day when I have time.
When one is happy at work, they just jump out of bed with much energy and you can tell even by the way they get ready for work that they look forward to the day. They can even hum as they prepare to get to their happy place.
They are not pushed to get ready for work, they do it willingly, understanding that there are things to be done and that they add value to the workplace.
What makes people happy at the workplace varies from one individual to the next. For others it is the work environment. They appreciate the atmosphere that is at the workplace.
They feel very much at home at the workplace, and it is like a second home, with many family members that get to see each other on a very frequent basis. For others it is about the workmates. That for this category of people is enough to put a bounce in their step as they get ready to go to work. The workmates are brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, parents.
The work may not be so pleasant, but their workmates allows one to look forward to just being at work.
Each day when I go to work, I see people dressed in similar uniforms standing on pavements waiting for transport. The people chat cheerfully as they wait. They are basically a family. They occasionally will reach out to another group as they have their conversations. When their staff buses or mini buses come to pick them up, some conversations are continued on the bus.
This is the good side of being at a workplace. People are happy. They look forward to their work and contribute as much as they can.
I have had my own share of workplaces since I became employed. One of my first bosses treated everyone like his own child. Those who were close to his age, he treated like brothers and sisters. The workplace functioned like a family. While we were all addressed as Madam or Sir, what bound us together was the fact that we belonged to one school and we all wanted to contribute to our learners passing and leaving the school with happy memories.
Even when I left this workplace, I missed my family members. I was happy and even on days that I did not feel my very best, my colleagues were there to support me.
Work was busy, there were many books to mark, there were lesson plans to prepare, but because we were happy, work became more than an obligation, it was a calling. At the end of each day, my colleagues and I were tired, but we managed to smile as we bade each other farewell and looked forward to the next day.
Why I talk about my “Madam” days is because of how the environment shaped me and I look at life. The learners that I taught had passed through some hands before me and would pass into other hands after I had taught them.
One learner has many imprints on their life left by different teachers. Not doing the best meant that the next teacher had to put in extra effort. It meant that the one who had to do extra work would have less time to take care of their own needs as they tried to figure out what they could do to resolve the situation.
Now away from the classroom set up, as I work I remember lessons learnt from the “Madam” days and always try to do my very best so that I do not drain my colleagues.
As a team member I try to play my part and ensure what I bring to the common table adds value. Just because others do not pull their weight, there are workmates that have developed health conditions caused by overworking, fatigue and failure to be appreciated.
As one approaches the workplace, they sigh deeply as they remember the workload and the high expectations from the bosses. They remember the tight deadlines.
Headaches become the order of the day as pressure mounts. Blood pressure increases. Mandatory breaks are sacrificed to meet deadlines. The body is tired, but is kept awake through many cups of coffee. Meals are ignored or are hurriedly taken to maximise the time one works. Rest becomes an illusion.
Health suffers as deadlines are met. One is celebrated as a workaholic, yet the body suffers.
While workplaces can be changed, the body remains the same. Since others are willing to work without taking breaks, the ones who respect the breaks and the call to rest can be labelled as lazy.
I read somewhere that when the body is not given time to rest, it will be drained. Yesterday was Workers’ Day, a public holiday, yet many people no longer know how to take a break and rest.
It is important to be healthy so that the body can remain productive. All hands on deck, when some hands need to rest, they should not be made to feel guilty.
The workplace should respect health needs and make sure that it is healthy for the workforce to thrive. Think about it, how do you feel when you think of the workplace, do you smile or cringe?
As you go to work, is there a bounce in your step or you pull yourself to get to work?
