Dialogue Direct Vicious and Cutthroat Employer: think twice before you work for them! Portland Oregon

So I'd just like to say, I was hired by DD to work and I got fired on the first day.

They put me on a street corner between Banana Republic and Nordstroms and left me to deal with b*tchy rich people for 8 hours. I was cussed at, harassed, blown off and all around treated like sh*t in 108 degree weather. I am female, 19 years of age and of a very small build. I have a decently thick skin, I'm used to rejection. This was Over. The. Top. Rejection. Frustration is a natural (and I think healthy) reaction to a situation like that and yes, I was frustrated.

Despite this treatment and my own emotional response, I remained outwardly positive the whole day, dancing, smiling, talking to people, being very assertive. I must have talked to 500 people. It's not like I was doing nothing. The supervisors were watching me. I was actually working and trying. I had people offer to give me cash because they really wanted to donate. I had TONS of people complimenting me on my demeanor despite my work environment (mainly the heat) and one lady even gave me a smoothie. I worked my butt off and refused to give up and walk off the job early even though there were several times I was almost in tears near the end, and I now have a peeling sunburn. Apparently none of that mattered. They told me I had 3 days to bring in 9 people at the start, and I didn't even get the other two days.

The reason for letting me go was that I was being "too negative." Apparently I gave off "bad vibes." I was frustrated at the people who blew me off and ran into Nordstroms, I was more than a little stressed out because one of the supervisors actually came up to me and said "if you're not gonna bring in any sponsors why are you still out here?" (And then the other had the balls to defend that and tell me that I shouldn't be upset.)

On top of it I had other team members condescending then telling staff they disliked me. I don't take talk downs well and my self esteem was all but forming sludge in the bottom of my shoes from these things alone. I was doing my honest to goodness best, working as hard as I could, but hey, I didn't get the sponsors so I got cut like a dead fish. This is what your work performance is based on, not on determination or effort. They only care about the sponsors you get. And they certainly don't care about you.

I don't know about you, but I think that is a ridiculous work environment, and to be fired like that on my first day because I didn't quite have the hang of it, is absurd, and to be fired because of "bad vibes" is an utterly asinine reason. Seriously. Most jobs, you have to screw up BAD to be just cut on the first day with literally a two sentence explanation why that comes off as nothing but a load of bullsh*t in a "debriefing" that offered a) no constructive criticism b) no chance to have a say, but oh yeah, you'll get a good reference off of us. What the h*ll is that? Frustration is a very natural thing, I think most anyone would be a little miffed put into a situation like this. But this was ludicrous, and you're not even allowed to properly vent. "Positive stuff only" is what they say, and they expect you to simply sweep everything else under the rug despite their little pep talk about "handling it healthily."

So if you're thinking of working for Dialogue Direct, beware. If you want that emphasis positivity, well, it's certainly positively CUTTHROAT. But that's the extent of the positivity, IMHO.

Chelsea
Tigard, Oregon
U.S.A.