Kan Smoot claims to be a boring person.
“I am boring,” insists Mrs. Smoot – or Young, as her coworkers call her. She lists her interests. “I love my home. I love my family. I have a great cat.”
“I don’t need to do exciting things,” she says, laughing.
Young may view her life as simple, but despite the fact that she doesn’t “do exciting things”, as she claims, there’s no denying that she has a passion for life and for others that shines through in her work.
Roxanne Miller, Project Manager at The Wilburn Company, can testify to that. “Young comes in every day with a positive, ‘life is great’ attitude,” she says. “Her first concerns are always, ‘Are the clients happy?’ and ‘Am I cleaning like I would at my own house for my own family?’”
“She truly loves what she does for the company and the tenants in the buildings,” Miller continues. “That has shown in speaking to the managers of the buildings and the employees who have had the pleasure of working with her.”
A Standout Employee from the Beginning
Young’s buoyant passion for life and work has always been obvious to those who have witnessed her at her job. In fact, Young was first recruited to The Wilburn Company when a manager witnessed her working passionately for another firm.
“I remember, eight years ago, I was working (at another company) and the building’s cleaning manager came up to me and said, ‘I’m hiring you,’” recalls Young. “He had seen my performance as an employee and thought I was doing a good job, so he wanted me to join his team.”
Young made the switch to The Wilburn Company for several years after that. She enjoyed the work and was able to build good relationships at the company. Eventually, however, her building’s contract ended, and there wasn’t a spot for her to continue working without a green badge clearance. So, she looked elsewhere for employment – but, again, Young’s managers made it clear to her that they wanted her as part of the team as soon as she acquired her green badge.
She got the badge soon after and was promptly rehired, to the delight of her coworkers.
Today, Young thrives as a day porter, cleaning three different areas in The Wilburn Company’s daytime cleaning cleared portfolio. It’s a role that Young enjoys for a variety of reasons.
A People-Person
“My favorite part of the job,” explains Young, “is saying good morning to people. I talk to them, and they talk to me back. I like that.”
Yet, although she’s a noted people-person, Young also enjoys the way her role enables her to focus carefully on her work. “The other thing I like a lot is vacuuming,” she laughs, “because I can zone in and nothing will bother me.”
Despite the fact that Young enjoys eliminating distractions and zoning in on her work, her joy shines through most in her interactions with others.
Roxanne Miller has seen that firsthand. “(Young) recently spend a week training one of our newest employees,” Miller says. “After speaking with him, he confessed she really took the time to show him exactly the ins and outs of cleaning for our company.”
“(Young’s) passion and attitude can be seen in the way he speaks about her,” Miller observes.
A Bright (Not Boring) Future
While Young has certainly made an impact on the people she’s worked with, she maintains that she’s just doing her job and taking things as they come.
“I don’t make very long-term plans,” she says. “I take things one day at a time and do the best I can.”
“I told you,” she laughs again, “I really am boring!”
The truth is that everyone else would disagree.
“(Young is) a wonderful employee,” says Roxanne Miller. “It is a blessing to have her as part of the team!”
We’ll take Roxanne’s side on this one. At The Wilburn Company, we’re honored to have Kan Smoot on our team. It’s people like Young who make our great service possible, and we’re incredibly proud of the passion and excitement she displays in her work and life – even if she won’t admit it.
Thank you, Young!