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Has RUOK? jumped the shark?

Walking past a Hungry Jack’s yesterday I saw two large banners with RUOK? on them, hanging under the menu. It made me wonder if asked they asked if you wanted a large size meal for 50c more they would ask if you are ok? Of course, their involvement in the RUOK? campaign is to raise awareness and that’s a good thing.

My concern is that their involvement and the involvement of other businesses encourages us to ask the question of someone so we can tick the box that we have done our bit for another year. It makes it too easy. Asking how someone is is not always easy but it is vitally important.

Asking if someone is okay is not about ticking a box,. It is not about you. It is about asking the question and listening to the answer and engaging in a conversation. The question itself is about much more than RUOK?

I am concerned that the commercialisation of RUOK? as I’ve seen at Hungry Jack’s runs the risk of diluting the importance of asking a friend, partner, an employer or an employee if they are ok.

I get that having a day focuses attention and cuts through interns of media coverage. It also makes it a billboard you quickly pass and forget. This is where we as individuals and, more important, as employers need to play an on going role – checking in with those with whom we work and those we employ. We need to engage in conversations that go beyond the slogan RUOK? and ask how people are doing and engage with them beyond a question.

Talking with someone about how they are is a conversation, often several conversations. It is not one question and an answer. This is important way beyond one day a year. It is important way beyond standing in line to order a burger. While I applaud the Hungry jack’s promotion of the campaign, I wish it was not part of a menu. I wish their involvement was more about funding support and education in places where we can engage with people about mental health – like workplaces.

In our newsagency channel mental health is a serious issue for employees, customers and for newsagents. Indeed, many newsagents straggle daily because of personal and business circumstances. Maybe for us today ought to be a reminder to check in with a colleague to ask how they are doing and to listen to their response and explore any conversation that flows.

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  1. h

    Sadly, the story of the farmer who shot his wife and three children and then himself is selling our local paper today. As front counter jockeys, we spend a lot of time listening, and having had 2 cancers in 6 yrs my husband is talking to a LOT of men about cancer too.
    But this doesn’t cut it in the commercial world where people want cheap and quick.
    The local shopping centre is slowly fading away and its replacement is a txt msg saying RUOK. Not my world, but that is where the younger generation want to go.

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  2. Carol

    We regularly get customers just wanting a chat and its not always easy. A young mum new in Australia just seemed to want confirmation that what she was doing with her bub was OK. She thanked me for talking to her when she left. We have to be friendly and hopefully make peoples day that bit happier.

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  3. michelle

    You are both so right… in a small country town our role seems to include keeping track of our oldies, everyones health challenges and apparently we are the lost property depot. We seem to be the place people come to for information of what is going on in the town (I dont mean gossip although there is some of that too and we have a strict policy about gossip we hear but never pass on). In fire season those not on line call us for updates so we have the CFA website always up on the POS in background and our local CFA keeps us informed of what is going on. We also seem to have become the pound for lost/ injured animals. Sometimes our customers of all ages just want to know that there is someone outside of their family/friends that knows their situation (tragic and sad as it may be) sometimes they seem to just need to connect. It is difficult at times balancing all of their needs as well as being a professional retailer but in our situation it is an integral part of what we do. I am still not sure how we morphed into this role but we all take it very seriously and with good humor. The key word I think is trust maybe it simply comes from seeing a person every day. I hope from that trust we gain our customers loyalty too.

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  4. Mark Fletcher

    These are terrific responses and insights. More examples of why we need to not dilute talking with people about how they are feeling to a glib and now commercial catchphrase. I love reading these comments.

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