Sherry Kerr, the owner of a small public relations agency, hired a recent college graduate to be her assistant and was confronted with an acute case of smiley face overload.
They were on the picture frame, clock, mouse pad, screen saver and a decoy on the monitor. "The desk space itself was really dreadful," says Kerr.
But it didn't end there: She also put smiley faces next to her initials and every single place she signed her name -- including the company's tax forms.
Kerr tried to talk to the assistant about presenting a more professional manner in person and on paper. Her response? "She looked at me with these big round smiley face eyes and said, `It is a part of my signature,'" Kerr remembers.
Kerr eventually had to let her go, for unrelated reasons, but, Kerr says, "I have to confess that I was happy about not seeing smiley faces anymore."
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