Hello Lovelies,
Since I was 14 years old I have been employed, minus school season and relocating to another state. Finding a reliable employer at 14 was no easy task so I was offered a position I could never turn down. Over my summer break I would help pick watermelons and load them into a white Dodge Ram pickup truck that later in life ended up being my first running vehicle. When the truck was full, we would head down to the local truck stop and sell them to locals. Working on a watermelon farm and selling the delicious fruit with my great grandfather was my dream job. We would have buyers travel from different states to purchase the watermelons. They were guaranteed to be the best watermelon you ever tested and we never had a single complaint. One day, we had just begun our morning at the truck stop when a gentlemen walked up and offered to purchase the entire truck load. It surprised the hell out of me and my grandfathers just made a little chuckle. I will never forget those summer days, my hands were dirty but my heart was content. I was paid a fair wage for the hours I worked and even got a Sonic Shake at the end of each day. It was every kids dream job and I wish it lasted longer than two summers.
A large majority of my employment history has been in the customer service industry and each employer had the pleasure of hearing my Minnie Mouse voice for at least a solid sixteen months. Until our move to Oklahoma there wasn't a single job I could say that I didn't enjoy at sometime or another which is why I committed to them for over a year. When I did begin to look for other employment is was only because I was looking for more income or growth within the company. When we relocated to Oklahoma I came face to face with an resume nightmare. I started working for a retail store part time for about three weeks and everything hit the fan. From the beginning of the hiring process there were read flags but I tried to give it a chance. I was promised full time hours during my interview however after accepting the job offer I found out I was actually a part time employee. The manager told me that he would fix it and the following week would have full time hours so I brushed it off. My first week of working I was called in three times for two or three hour shifts or woke up to voicemails saying I needed to be there in 15 minutes because another employee called out. When I would call and tell them that I had just woken up and lived 30 minutes away, they would tell me my job was on the line. It was my day off so why was I being punished for someone else's choices. The second week I not only had part time hours but I was also working less hours than the week before. To say I was mad was an understatement, I immediately located my manager and questioned my new schedule. He told me that because I had just started it wasn't fair to offer me full time hours when they couldn't offer those hours to veteran employees. At this very moment is when I decided I was done and lucky for me I received a phone call the next morning asking if I was still interested in a Dispatcher position at a local casino. The following week I gave my week notice and never worked another shift, their choice not mine.
It was one of the best decisions I had made in my work history, I worked for that local casino for almost three years when we made the decision to move back to Arizona. In June we packed up our house and said our see you laters to our friends and family. For three weeks I waited to start my new position with a tech support company and I was so excited. I was offered a great tech support position with great pay and benefits. A week into the training which was six weeks long, I learned that I had been mislead. The company I thought I would be with for at least twelve months became my worst nightmare. The training was very chaotic and had a lot of pressure attached to it. We were tested on a weekly bases and each week our jobs were on the line. Before starting each weekly test we were warned that if we made lower than a 80% twice our termination paperwork would be printed out. It was the most stressed out I have ever been in my life and that includes when I planned a wedding for 150 guests. After two weeks of making it through four weekly exams, we were told that our list of available schedules would be given to us and our test scores and attendance determined our ranking in the shift bid. Luckily I hadn't missed a single day and my test scores weren't too bad. At the end of our third week we were given our final exams and list of shift options. I wasn't happy about it at all and did not like what my heart and mind was telling me. Before signing my offer letter, I was told that inconsecutive days off were not an option for the company but the available shift schedule I was given showed other wise. Week four my schedule was selected and I was on the phones helping customers with their technology. I had my doubts about the company because I had already been mislead and stressed out but my hopes were high for the weeks to come. My first week on the floor couldn't have been worse, I had difficult customers and my support system was demanding and unhelpful. I was yelled at for not doing certain things even though I wasn't aware I was supposed to do them. I was still in training yet my training support was unapproachable and rude when asking for help. One of my calls made me burst out in tears because the customer was using profound language to describe me and when I reached out for help I was brushed off and later told that I was the one who made a mistake. When I explained that I was following company policy by reaching out to a lead to take a hostile customer who was threating to seek legal action, I was later targeted in a team meeting in front of everyone. I felt uncomfortable, stressed out, targeted, and unwanted. Something I have never felt before in my work life and I wasn't about to live my life for a company who didn't appreciate me enough to stop the actions being made by my upper leadership.
I eventually was offered another position with a growing company that I have grown to love over the last few weeks. It is one of the best companies I have worked for so far, they value their employees opinions and do not allow the bad employees to determine the success of the good employees. I have not been mislead or lied to once, and the level of support is unreal. I can literally shake hands with the owner of the company or express concerns with some of our biggest managers. Over the last 10 business days I have been asked twice how the company can make improvements and how I am feeling with the training environment I have been given. Now a new week is about to begin and I couldn't be happier to start each work day with a smile on my face. So why am I pretty much writing my entire work experience down in this post that is supposed to tell you why you may be wanting to quit your job? I am trying to make a point.
Employees stay with companies for longer periods of time when the management is understanding, passionate, reliable, and concerned for their employees mental and physical well being. When an employee feels alone and stressed out, they are more likely to throw in the towel. If you have someone calling you out and making you feel uncomfortable, say something. If nothing is done, move forward with life and don't let others determine where your happiness is with your employment. If your heart is telling you that you need to move on, go find yourself a better opportunity. Every bad company has its lessons to be learned and every good company will make an impression you will never forget.
Since I was 14 years old I have been employed, minus school season and relocating to another state. Finding a reliable employer at 14 was no easy task so I was offered a position I could never turn down. Over my summer break I would help pick watermelons and load them into a white Dodge Ram pickup truck that later in life ended up being my first running vehicle. When the truck was full, we would head down to the local truck stop and sell them to locals. Working on a watermelon farm and selling the delicious fruit with my great grandfather was my dream job. We would have buyers travel from different states to purchase the watermelons. They were guaranteed to be the best watermelon you ever tested and we never had a single complaint. One day, we had just begun our morning at the truck stop when a gentlemen walked up and offered to purchase the entire truck load. It surprised the hell out of me and my grandfathers just made a little chuckle. I will never forget those summer days, my hands were dirty but my heart was content. I was paid a fair wage for the hours I worked and even got a Sonic Shake at the end of each day. It was every kids dream job and I wish it lasted longer than two summers.
A large majority of my employment history has been in the customer service industry and each employer had the pleasure of hearing my Minnie Mouse voice for at least a solid sixteen months. Until our move to Oklahoma there wasn't a single job I could say that I didn't enjoy at sometime or another which is why I committed to them for over a year. When I did begin to look for other employment is was only because I was looking for more income or growth within the company. When we relocated to Oklahoma I came face to face with an resume nightmare. I started working for a retail store part time for about three weeks and everything hit the fan. From the beginning of the hiring process there were read flags but I tried to give it a chance. I was promised full time hours during my interview however after accepting the job offer I found out I was actually a part time employee. The manager told me that he would fix it and the following week would have full time hours so I brushed it off. My first week of working I was called in three times for two or three hour shifts or woke up to voicemails saying I needed to be there in 15 minutes because another employee called out. When I would call and tell them that I had just woken up and lived 30 minutes away, they would tell me my job was on the line. It was my day off so why was I being punished for someone else's choices. The second week I not only had part time hours but I was also working less hours than the week before. To say I was mad was an understatement, I immediately located my manager and questioned my new schedule. He told me that because I had just started it wasn't fair to offer me full time hours when they couldn't offer those hours to veteran employees. At this very moment is when I decided I was done and lucky for me I received a phone call the next morning asking if I was still interested in a Dispatcher position at a local casino. The following week I gave my week notice and never worked another shift, their choice not mine.
It was one of the best decisions I had made in my work history, I worked for that local casino for almost three years when we made the decision to move back to Arizona. In June we packed up our house and said our see you laters to our friends and family. For three weeks I waited to start my new position with a tech support company and I was so excited. I was offered a great tech support position with great pay and benefits. A week into the training which was six weeks long, I learned that I had been mislead. The company I thought I would be with for at least twelve months became my worst nightmare. The training was very chaotic and had a lot of pressure attached to it. We were tested on a weekly bases and each week our jobs were on the line. Before starting each weekly test we were warned that if we made lower than a 80% twice our termination paperwork would be printed out. It was the most stressed out I have ever been in my life and that includes when I planned a wedding for 150 guests. After two weeks of making it through four weekly exams, we were told that our list of available schedules would be given to us and our test scores and attendance determined our ranking in the shift bid. Luckily I hadn't missed a single day and my test scores weren't too bad. At the end of our third week we were given our final exams and list of shift options. I wasn't happy about it at all and did not like what my heart and mind was telling me. Before signing my offer letter, I was told that inconsecutive days off were not an option for the company but the available shift schedule I was given showed other wise. Week four my schedule was selected and I was on the phones helping customers with their technology. I had my doubts about the company because I had already been mislead and stressed out but my hopes were high for the weeks to come. My first week on the floor couldn't have been worse, I had difficult customers and my support system was demanding and unhelpful. I was yelled at for not doing certain things even though I wasn't aware I was supposed to do them. I was still in training yet my training support was unapproachable and rude when asking for help. One of my calls made me burst out in tears because the customer was using profound language to describe me and when I reached out for help I was brushed off and later told that I was the one who made a mistake. When I explained that I was following company policy by reaching out to a lead to take a hostile customer who was threating to seek legal action, I was later targeted in a team meeting in front of everyone. I felt uncomfortable, stressed out, targeted, and unwanted. Something I have never felt before in my work life and I wasn't about to live my life for a company who didn't appreciate me enough to stop the actions being made by my upper leadership.
I eventually was offered another position with a growing company that I have grown to love over the last few weeks. It is one of the best companies I have worked for so far, they value their employees opinions and do not allow the bad employees to determine the success of the good employees. I have not been mislead or lied to once, and the level of support is unreal. I can literally shake hands with the owner of the company or express concerns with some of our biggest managers. Over the last 10 business days I have been asked twice how the company can make improvements and how I am feeling with the training environment I have been given. Now a new week is about to begin and I couldn't be happier to start each work day with a smile on my face. So why am I pretty much writing my entire work experience down in this post that is supposed to tell you why you may be wanting to quit your job? I am trying to make a point.
Employees stay with companies for longer periods of time when the management is understanding, passionate, reliable, and concerned for their employees mental and physical well being. When an employee feels alone and stressed out, they are more likely to throw in the towel. If you have someone calling you out and making you feel uncomfortable, say something. If nothing is done, move forward with life and don't let others determine where your happiness is with your employment. If your heart is telling you that you need to move on, go find yourself a better opportunity. Every bad company has its lessons to be learned and every good company will make an impression you will never forget.
No comments :
Post a Comment