I got a job once at this little video production company, and everyone was always trying to find pens. I'm pretty sure this one smart ass there was stealing them just because he thought it was funny that no one could ever find one...

Anyway, it was probably my second week on the job and I got pissed off because there were like 10 cups that were supposed to have pens in them at all times and I couldn't find a single one, so I went to the grocery store across the street and bought like 3 boxes of pens and filled all the cups again with the warning that these were my pens that everyone was welcome to use but if they all went missing I would start keeping them locked in my car. Everyone seemed happy to have pens again.

I got hauled into the managers office 2 hours later and questioned as to why I spent my own money on office supplies, why I didn't just requisition more pens, told never to do that again and handed a check for $11 for "stationary supplies".

That was the last time I ever bought anything for anybody at work ever again lol

[–] PythagreousTitties@lemm.ee 18 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago) (1 children)

Haha yes! You did the right thing though. It's all about timing. I knew my team needed the dumb prizes that week/month for the extra goodwill. You knew everyone needed goddamn pens.

How long would it have taken to get that done going through management?

"So I spoke to manager X and they said we'll have pens in a couple weeks" doesn't exactly inspire anything.

[–] MrJameGumb@lemmy.world 10 points 5 months ago (1 children)

People had been complaining about the pens since my first day there lol all the pens I bought were gone after about a month and they all went back to complaining again. I think one of the managers supplied a single 10 pack of pens once the whole time I worked there. I just kept a box of my own in my car for me to use lol

[–] PythagreousTitties@lemm.ee 9 points 5 months ago

"Fuck it, I'll do it myself" is, in my experience, a great way to get ahead at work. No one likes the manager that doesn't look out for thier people.