Working with Family

I’m glad I was asked to be a part of this Blog series and the topic I was told I should do is “Working with Family”.

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It sometimes is the first question I get asked when I tell people I work at The Queen’s Cups, “how is it working with family every day?”

I can answer that in several ways… it’s awesome, it’s difficult, it’s fun, it’s stressful.  Although the best way to answer the question is “I wouldn’t change it for all the tea in China!” Don’t get me wrong, I really loved my job at Blackstone Valley Tech and I really do miss the kids at school and coaching but being able to see my daughter thrive, grow and mature into such a successful business person and small business owner is just really something that is hard to put into words. I also get to work with my husband and friend daily. I love watching him interact with and teach the young staff, It’s great to listen to them say how much he makes them laugh and that they love him like he was their father too. The only thing that would make it even better would be to have my two sons here too.

Don’t get me wrong, it is not always sunshine and rainbows.  We have our days where I am glad there is a wall that separates us from each other and we don’t have to be side by side. We do our best to not bring our issues into the shop with us and we work together as a team. It is also helpful at times that we can pull each other aside and say you are acting like an a** so knock it off.  You can do that with family without worrying about being out of line with an employee.  We may not like it, but we get it.

The most difficult part of my day is when my boss (daughter) is upset because she received a negative review, or someone wasn’t happy with how something came out. She works so hard to put out a great product that is made fresh daily, with fresh ingredients and looks good.  It is hard to please everyone but knowing that does not make it any easier and things that are said can be hurtful to even the strongest of people.  I am a Mom first before anything else and my first reaction is to defend her, to protect her and to reach out and say something to that person who hurt her.  Anyone who knows me knows that my family comes first, and it doesn’t matter how old my kids are, they are my children and it’s not a good idea to mess with them.

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After all this, what I am trying to say is, yes, working with family every day is the best decision I have ever made.

-Barb

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