To be sick of being forced to interact with irresponsible, undependable flakes?

[TurnsOutIQuit]

I'm surrounded, it feels like! Why can't people just do what they have committed to - I feel like this shouldn't be a big deal.

Or am I alone in feeling that if I say I'll do something I will follow through to the best of my ability, or at least discuss with the other party why, and come up with solutions?

Give some examples.

An old lodger leaving stuff behind, refusing to collect it.

A nearly 18yo dc who ignores me.

A boss who let me down with false promises of a promotion, stringing me along for months.

Lodger is easy - text, say "we don't have the space for your things, please pick them up tomorrow otherwise they're going to the tip on Monday" and then actually do it.

Boss - similar approach "we've discussed a promotion multiple times now and nothing has materialised - I've reached the stage in my career where progression is important to me, and if there isn't a possibility of promotion here in the next six months i need to know, so i can plan accordingly" and then start job searching.

Kid, less simple - if your adult child is ignoring you, i think you need to take a look at your relationship and your history together and work out what went wrong. Have a discussion, and see if it's possible to bury the hatchet and start fresh.

Generally, in life, if you're being repeatedly let down and taken advantage of, it's because you're not putting your foot down hard enough.

Bit old at 18yo to be ignoring you. Is dc in the same house as you?
Dump the lodgers shit, you’re not the Yellow storage company.
Agree about confronting your boss and giving a timeline.

Did you want an honest answer?

If you act like a rug, people will walk all over you. Stuff left behind goes in the bin on the deadline (and I wouldn't have allowed it to be left anyway). !8 year old does as told or there are consequences - and if they don't like the consequences they can move out. And if the boss doesn't deliver on a promotion that is promised, there are other jobs.

What they all said. ^

Binning lodger's stuff is not this easy, sadly there are laws which are on the lodger's side, so be very careful with this, OP.

I used to be in a work environment where just about everyone was hard working, well educated, motivated and dependable.
It was such a shock when I left after many years and I've almost had to train myself to a) expect flakiness and b) not be so concerned about being 100% dependable myself, especially when it comes dealing with those in the a) category.
I agree that setting strong boundaries helps, but, my goodness, it's exhausting.
I try to surround myself by people more like me, but adjust expectations when it comes to the flakey brigade (who seem to be growing in number). I think there are a few factors.
Fewer people seem to have been brought up to value thoughtfulness and good manners.
Also lots of companies now seem to employ staff who've suffered from poor educational standards or who just aren't very capable (no doubt being paid terrible money). Many seem to struggle with basic speaking skills and comprehension. I've noticed this more and more in the last decade.