"The customer is always right." Just about everyone knows this renowned adage or however you want to categorize it. It's been repeated over and over again, and passed down as retail "knowledge" of some sort through generations. Unfortunately, it couldn't be more off base and absolutely wrong. Most people who work in retail for a long time obviously love their job, or else they wouldn't have stayed in the industry so long. They view this as their career and more power to them. Clearly, even though I languished in this business for longer than I could have ever imagined, I wasn't cut out for it. Part of the reason is the customer. A lot of people genuinely want to help people make good decisions about what they put on their bodies. Whether it be clothes, shoes, accessories or makeup. I was one of those people. I really, truly enjoyed helping customers pick out the right item for them, although some people are so picky they have a lot of difficulty finding what that is. When you're working, day after day, a large amount of the people walking into the store are nice people. They are gracious with the help they receive and provide you with a great interaction while you're trying to do your job and perform to the best of your ability. On the other hand, there are those customers who will have none of it. They are so narcissistic, self-involved and rude, they represent people who refuse help because it will bruise their own hubris, and those are the customers who are so miserable they take out their anger on those in retail. This is what I have also referred to as a weird form of escapism for them. They take out their insipid anger and frustration on retail workers because they are unable to express in any other forum, even though there are plenty out there. These are the people who try and rob you of your natural joy for the day and like to lay waste to it. Even if you have a fabulous day filled with great customers, there is that one experience that will try and soil the rest of it. This occurred many a time throughout my retail career, and especially at the shoe store. Also because this became such a toxic environment because most of the staff operated on a high school level. Starting your life uneducated and devoid of common sense and reason cannot make your career a successful nor fun one. It precipitates every problem and issue you ever had in your life. These people were managers also, not just sales associates, and even the most seasoned of them could not handle the rudest of customers. Even the most loving and maternal of them were unequipped to deal with some of the spoiled, entitled monsters that came in the store, though they certainly tried, just to no avail. And that is why I must end with "Whoever said the customer is always right has never met the customer, right?"