Rudeness doesn't get you very far in the customer service world. As someone who used to answer phones to help out my company's customers, the ones who opened the call with raw fury rarely saw me go above and beyond to help them. Nobody wants to go out of their way to help someone who's going to act like a meany pants.

When an employee leaves a company, there's a duty-vacuum that opens up in their wake. All of the responsibilities that that employee once did are now left to the devices of those left behind. Usually, it's simply a nuisance until the higher ups hire someone new, but for some, that opens a door of opportunity into a promotion. Right?!

A long time ago I was working for a small company in a niche industry. I represented 50% of the sales team and between me and my coworker, we balanced and managed a company making millions of dollars a year in sales revenue. Despite the herculean efforts between myself and my other coworker, we both took home a meager salary and made peanuts to the dollar. How is it normal that companies– even small ones –can finagle their team out of money that they're earning simply because of their title?

Is it illegal to discuss your salary with your coworkers? Technically no, but it can make some waves in the workplace that some employees– and management –definitely don't want to address. Perhaps some people get awkward about their financial privacy and don't want the soccer moms in the cubicle next door that they CAN DEFINITELY afford to sponsor their child's next fundraiser.

Since humans are creatures of preparedness, unemployed folks will often rehearse potential interview question responses, attempting to put their best foot forward in order to score a new job. But sometimes, an interviewer will throw in a saucy question (or two) into an interview in order to get an honest reaction out of a prospective employee– to which, most of the time, nobody has the right answer.

Struggles of the common man

When you've been loyal to a company for a while, it may seem like a betrayal to put in your two week notice. Even though you're following standard resignation protocol, priceless employees are impossible to replace– thus, throwing your ex-boss into a lurch. You may feel a sting of regret for a moment when you break the news, but if your boss throws an all out tantrum against you for making choices that improve your personal life, it makes it a heckuvalot easier to walk away.

Karma is a beast. What goes around, certainly comes back around one day. For those of us who have ever dealt with a coworker's bad behavior– whether they're bad mouthing other employees, stealing lunches from the communal fridge, or just generally being a narc –it's rewarding to see them fall from graces a bit.

The bean counters in the top floor offices with polished floors and ergonomic chairs don't understand what it's like to be out in the streets actually doing the labor of the company. As every blue collar employee or door-to-door salesman knows, when you work out in the real world it's going to be utter chaos– and nothing like how the office employees expected it would be.

Put your money where your mouth is.

We all get a little nervous to ask for a raise. Even when an employee is due a salary increase, it's still a strangely awkward encounter to try and negotiate an improved wage with the higher ups. It just feels illegal. No matter who you are, there's always a tiny voice in the back of your head that spreads doubt. I'm pretty sure that's called imposter syndrome, right?

Getting fired is a huge bummer– that is, if you actually like your job. If you work for a crass, loser boss, it might be a blessing in disguise when you get the boot.

Childless adults get a pretty bad rep amongst people who have children, especially in the workplace. Perhaps we're just not ready to have grubby fingerprints on every surface of our home and Cocomelon playing on loop, but for some reason, Stephanie in accounting seems keen on weighing in on our lifestyle choices.

Working really hard at your job only to be rewarded with more work has to be one the hardest career lessons to learn. We would all like to believe that in a just world, doing your best at your job and becoming irreplaceable warrants a raise, but in the real world, it doesn't work like that.

More work equals more money. It's the golden rule of business, but in most company environments, this simple equation gets over-complicated with variables like pizza parties, ‘company culture’, and bosses saying that you're a family.

Anonymity gives people a false sense of superiority. From behind the screen of their computer or when talking to someone on the phone, insolent customers can feel their audacity levels ramp up to the maximum, spewing rudeness, entitlement, and general inhumanity at whomever stands in their way. Unfortunately for many customer service reps, call center workers, and online banking troubleshooters, their entire career is spent talking maniacs down from the seat of their high horse...