Today was the get over the jet lag day. I made it to the office around 1 PM, and basically just assessed were I’m at, and prioritized the work for the next day.
My housekeeper, that I had wanted to change before, had found a new job, and has given me one day notice. Because we have agreed before that she would need to give me at least two weeks notice, she was quite worried that she would not get paid for the month of March. So, I guess to protect her interests, she took the gas cards, water cards, phone cards, apartment access card, and the key, and did not want to return them until I paid her for February.
The solution was quite simple, first, get a new AYI, and to that end. It was nice to be back, because Julia already had interviewed and set up a new housekeep for me. The challenge was how to deal with the, old housekeeper, since I was not very pleased with the fact that she was trying to blackmail me into payment. So, the answer was quite clear for me, and that was to call the police and get on the property back.
Amazingly, as Juliet talk to her about what we will do, she not only offered to come back the next day and return my property, but also had called me, and speaking in Chinese, apologize to me for leaving so early and offered to bring all my property back.
So, it was a little disappointing that, although I had wanted to replace her, I was going to great lengths to provide another employment for, and I was willing to provide two or three months of salary for to look after her to make sure that she was okay. But, when the tables were turned, and, she felt that she was in a power position, her attitude changed so much.
Basically, where we had settled, was that she would train my new housekeeper in the evenings for the next week, and, after she had trained her she would get paid. My only precondition was that all my property would be returned first, and that I would not entertain any further discussions until she corrected her mistake of taking my stuff.
It keeps surprising me, how people change, when they feel they are in a power position, and in a way how having power, truly brings people’s colors to light. As they say in the old cliché, ultimate power corrupts ultimately, this is one of the things that I have to watch for, to make sure that I remain kind, reasonable, and human while the power base increases. For this, look into my core values, is quite useful, as it helps to understand the kind of person that I am, no matter what the circumstances.