'How about you hand me 10,000 bucks? Then I'll smile from ear to ear': Janitor struggling with financial issues is criticized for not smiling on the job

Author image for JR Atkinson
JR Atkinson • Writer and Editor
Dec 23, 2024 3:00 PM EST

One of the most annoying things you can hear is "Why don't you smile more?" No sentence in the English language is less likely to make me smile. Smiling should be an involuntary reaction. You're happy. You're spending time with someone you love. You're listening to a good song. You're in a good mood and you're greeting a stranger. You're hearing a funny joke. These are all wonderful reasons to smile. Smiling while performing a possibly unpleasant task, like cleaning a toilet or mopping the floor? Probably not something that comes naturally. But unfortunately, we live in a world where sometimes we have to pretend like everything is hunky-dory even when it's not. 

The least we can do, though, is let other people be who they are, and express their emotions how they'd like to express their emotions. One woman didn't quite internalize that, though, and told a janitor to smile. The comment sparked an interesting discussion about how we project happiness in the workplace. Read on for the details.

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    Cheezburger Image 10444720896
    via Unsplash+ (Getty Images)

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

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    Im a janitor. I just got criticized for not smiling
    via u/Maleficent-Talk6831
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    Exactly what it says. I have a lot of things to worry about, money included. I'm in my early 30s with nothing to show for it. I've spent my life struggling with various mental health and financial issues. I've tried to succeed at more lucrative positions, to no avail. So im left to do what I do best: clean other peoples' filth.
    via u/Maleficent-Talk6831
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    As I was sweeping up after a customer, she said "you never smile. You even look mean sometimes". The absolute gaul of this person. Just assuming that I have something to smile about. How about you hand me 10,000 bucks? Then I'll smile from ear to ear.
    via u/Maleficent-Talk6831
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    Being a janitor in and of itself is honorable work. It isn't a reason to feel down about oneself But being a janitor who doesn't get paid well, and is expected to smile my way through it just to make others feel comfortable...that's humiliating.
    via u/Maleficent-Talk6831
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    Thankfully, I am close to getting a somewhat better paying night janitor job at a school. I don't want to see a single person if I can help it.
    via u/Maleficent-Talk6831
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    Bean- • 18h ago. Last time someone said similar to me while I was emptying a bin I just said "That costs extra", because people do say it to cleaners/janitors because people are judgemental arseholes.
    via u/Bean-*****
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    redherringaid · 18h ago • . Janitor here. I'm living paycheck to paycheck and can't save anything so I can't afford to smile. At least my benefits are good.
    via u/redherringaid
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    ghw93 19h ago. Working as a janitor at a school can end up being very lucrative with overtime. Hold on.
    via u/ghw93
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    Maleficent-Talk6831 OP • 18h ago • I did hear that. And I hope so
    via u/Maleficent-Talk6831
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    V. 18h ago Edited 13h ago. . • You work as a janitor. You clean toilets. You clean up bodily matter. You deal with inconsiderate for a living. Why should you smile? Are you there for their own amusement? If you are happy or unhappy, that is none of their business. They would put a smile on a janitor's face if they were more respectful and appreciative of the work you do.
    via u/Various_Abrocoma_286
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    Particular_Toda... 18h ago • I for one, am grateful for the work you do. Im grateful for all the cleanup people. We wouldn't survive without you.
    via u/Particular_Today1624
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    Snoo-36596 • 3h ago. Exactly I remember when I was still in high school and the janitorial staff couldn't make it on for about a week I saw the limits of human filth in that week
    via u/Snoo-36596
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    throwingwater14 • 18h ago • If you still mask, you might consider getting one or two with a smile printed on it. ;) Good on you for working hard and doing what you can to provide for yourself.
    via u/throwingwater14
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    LandRecent9365 · 16h ago . My dream job, a night janitorial job where I don't have to see people. H Iany job where I don't have to see people.
    via u/LandRecent9365
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    Dino-chicken-n... 18h ago. I hope all goes well with this new opportunity you're looking at. Buildings would go to sh without folks maintaining the cleaning. Nothing could get done. Your job is essential.
    via u/Dino-chicken-nugg3t
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    HOvis 18h ago • I bet they got a penny stuck in the door too.
    via u/H0vis
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    Bobitybobboblee • 18h ago. 'I'm smiling on the inside'
    via u/Bobitybobboblee
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    C. 16h ago Edited 16h ago • • . I'm not a janitor, but another thing I'm sick of people saying is "you look tired". Gee, thanks. I mean, should I say "yes, of course I look tired. I'm over 50, not sleeping much, working too many hours, and you caught me during a brief moment of weakness when I stopped pretending I was fine "
    via u/Coffee4theApocalypse
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    Kok-jockey 18h ago Are we gonna find you doing math problems on the blackboard one day..?
    via u/Kok-jockey
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    123KidHello · 16h ago She is being a total Karen. Janitors don't provide customer service to and individual and neither do they need to interact with customers or employees.
    via u/123KidHello
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    Elman103 14h ago. I'm a night janitor at a school. I have never felt less human than doing this job. I hate everything about the job and the fact that this is where I ended up. FML. I hope you have better luck. F smiling.
    via u/Elman103
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    Twoheaven . 18h ago. If you enjoy cleaning have you thought about starting your own cleaning business? It's pretty lucrative in my area I just hate it. Not saying it won't take awhile to build up to enough clients to make it worthwhile but I've seen it happen.
    via u/Twoheaven
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    Rayzerwolf 17h ago • I was told to chat and visit with people in the offices because some people felt I wasn't friendly, I was literally doing the job of 2.5 people. I had no time to chit chat, but then a few months later we are all told we aren't aloud to stand around the water cooler and talk. I was talking to my coworker about a project we were working on together. Sometimes I hate that place.
    via u/Rayzerwolf
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    technogrind • 14h ago • The irony is the same person who said that to you would most likely complain if you were friendly and tried to engage in chit chat with her because you would then be "ignoring boundaries" and making her feel uncomfortable having to "socialize with the hired help".
    via u/technogrind
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    ShinkenBrown . 11h ago. "Smiling isn't in my job description. Labor is a product, and smiling is labor management isn't paying for. The labor they're paying for is janitorial work. If management decides I should smile, I can facilitate that, but they'll have to add the 'smiling fee' to my paycheck first, I don't work for free."
    via u/ShinkenBrown

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janitor boss antiwork workplace-stories smiling toxic-workplace job bosses work coworkers working reddit story toxic-boss workplace reddit thread bad bosses Reddit smile toxic-work-environment
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