I see now why CCAs tend to quit.

Look, I'll give it to you straight, since you're a veteran. They're shit-testing you. It's like basic. They want to push you to your best, and make sure you're neither crazy nor a screw up. They want to know how you'll respond to stress while they can still tell you on a whim to take a hike.

That's all it is. You'll get better at it. You'll learn how it really works. You'll get better at it again. And that cycle continues for twenty to thirty years. No kidding; there's that much to learn and practice.

I can tell you what you really need to ask yourself as a combat veteran. It's not this stuff you sweat over now; you've dealt with drills, so you can handle pressure from leadership. It's not the job itself. You know how to condition your body and mind for delivery.

Before the first time some rabid hambeast gets in your face and screams at you because you won't let their dog bite you to deliver their anime figurines where they want you to, you need to honestly evaluate whether you'll go apeshit on them.

Let me be honest. You'll see me say this a lot, because it is absolutely the single most challenging aspect of this job. Some customers are absolute saints. You can't, but you'll want to hug some of these people. Some of these reprobates are poster children for retroactive abortions, and you have to be able to serve them with every bit the professionalism and smiles you'll give everyone else.

That's the big deal. That's the challenge. That's the biggest reason why you'll get shit tested. It's a good career, if we make it that far. I'm a CCA too. Everything else gets better. The work gets easier. You grow to like your unit more... usually (there are some problem stations out there). The bureaucratic calculus eventually becomes ABCs. But you have to be able to handle moments where you're miserable, God's mistake is making your life hell, and you're still required to be professional, courteous, and friendly.

/r/USPS Thread Parent