workin' 9 to 5, what a way to make a livin'
I turned in my two-week notice this morning.
In a way that I do not fully understand but am not about to question, I have somehow landed myself a M-F 9-5 job with a group of awesome docs at a surgical clinic here in town. I interviewed on Monday, got the job offer on Wednesday and waited until this morning to hand in the notice so the Powers That Be would have the weekend to brood and sulk and get over it all by Monday.
W.R.O.N.G.
I handed it to the CRNA, who is my immediate supervisor. She, in front of several other employees, read it and sort of shrugged it off. Then she asked where I was going, and when I told her she scoffed at me and said, "Oh, and you think it's better THERE? Ha!"
Beeyatch.
Then all hell broke loose. First she got mad at me for "standing around with everyone and talking about it." Then she stopped me in the hallway and said that she had to notify the COO and the doctor "immediately" because that's company policy. THEN she radioed me and asked me to come into the kitchen, where she was on her cell with the COO (much yelling could be heard) and started hyperventilating and crying and had to be calmed down by ME.
*le sigh*
Once she calmed down a bit, she said they were pissed at HER because I was quitting, that they blamed HER for not telling them that I needed more hours and that they had been "secretly working on a solution" before I "slapped them with this notice."
Again, I say, *le sigh*.
And then the doc arrived. He immediately chewed her out, stopping only when he saw me to say, "YOU are not leaving. SHE may be leaving, but YOU are not leaving."
Niiice.
And it went on from there...all day long...
The doc, for the most part, was nice to me. For a man who's had maybe 20 words to say to me in the past 3+ months, he was suddenly much more chatty and demanded to know why I wanted to leave. I stammered around, then said that I just didn't think we were a good fit, that I gave it the customary 90 days and that I need more hours, more money, etc. He then said that he was REFUSING to accept my notice, to which I responded, "So I can leave now then?" Harumph.
Then I had to meet with the COO (who just happens to be the doc's fiance), and she, my friends, was not as nice. She snapped that my notice was "certainly a surprise," and that she has been "working her butt off to find me more hours." Her solution was to bump another nurse on my day off and give me the nurse line for half a day. I responded that while I appreciated the thought and effort, that still wouldn't give me a consistent paycheck, nor would it help me when he takes three whole weeks off during the next month. She told me that the docs were EXPECTED to take about 8 full weeks off per year (not counting the one day off per week they each take already, nor does that count the sick days, court dates and "I-just-don't-feel-like-coming-in" days). When I hemmed and hawed and finally busted out with, "I just think it's time for me to leave," she gave me a look that would cut glass and said, "Fine, if you're not willing to do the work we've found for you to do, then maybe you should go."
Yes, maybe I should.
All of my coworkers' responses weren't negative, though. The accountant high-fived me in the hallway, saying, "I've been telling them for months that they needed to do something. Congratulations on getting in with such a great group." The front office staff begged me to take them with me, and one of the other girls said she would gladly give me part of her salary if she thought it would convince me to stay, but that she certainly understood why I needed to leave.
Who knew quitting in a professional manner could be so stressful?!?!
In happier news, I start the new job July 5; I will be working a few miles closer to home, in an office downtown that's mere blocks from my mom's office and several miles closer to Maggie's daycare. I've been offered the same hourly wage, so with 20 more hours per pay period, that should give me a nice little raise. The new place has six docs instead of just one, which means that even if one calls in sick or goes on vacation, there are still five more to show up and keep the place going.
The hours, as I mentioned briefly before, are 9-5 Monday through Friday, though technically we close at 2 on Friday and one "team" stays one Friday per month to answer the phones for the last three hours. In August, a physician's assistant will be joining the office staff, so they explained that even if I feel a little overwhelmed for the first six weeks, I should always bear in mind that more help will be arriving soon. :) I'm tentatively excited, not because the situation I've been in has been horrible, but because the one I'm going into sounds so much more like what I was expecting from the first one. I keep telling my soon-to-be-former coworkers that I'm not leaving angry, but that I am, in fact, the 23rd clinical employee they've had to leave in a year and a half and that perhaps they need to look into that. I'm just sayin'.
Another thing I like: during the interview, the office manager pointed out that a job is just a "means to a paycheck, but it's not your whole life." Then she sort of stopped herself and said, "Well, maybe I shouldn't say that, because we want you to ENJOY your time here, but at the same time we realize that you have a life and a family outside of this office and we feel that family comes first. Your child will only have ONE kindergarten graduation and it doesn't take them long to grow up; we know that and we don't want you to miss a thing...we're a team here and we all know how it is."
Thankyouverymuch.
She seemed pretty honest: she admitted that since it's an office full of women that tensions get pretty high at times, but she also pointed out that everyone has been there for YEARS (6 years, 12 years, 16 years, 30+ years) and that they're like one big family there. For my second interview, I had to meet with the "girls" to make sure they approved of me before I could be offered the job. I like that, and I've never really had anyone have me sit down and meet with the entire staff face-to-face for a real conversation during the interview process. They told me some good things and some bad things about the office--which I thought was good because it didn't seem like they were there just to blow sunshine up my ass--and everyone seemed pretty nice and laid-back.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed...wish me luck!
(And on that note, I'm off to bed...I'm exhausted and we have a big weekend ahead of us!)
In a way that I do not fully understand but am not about to question, I have somehow landed myself a M-F 9-5 job with a group of awesome docs at a surgical clinic here in town. I interviewed on Monday, got the job offer on Wednesday and waited until this morning to hand in the notice so the Powers That Be would have the weekend to brood and sulk and get over it all by Monday.
W.R.O.N.G.
I handed it to the CRNA, who is my immediate supervisor. She, in front of several other employees, read it and sort of shrugged it off. Then she asked where I was going, and when I told her she scoffed at me and said, "Oh, and you think it's better THERE? Ha!"
Beeyatch.
Then all hell broke loose. First she got mad at me for "standing around with everyone and talking about it." Then she stopped me in the hallway and said that she had to notify the COO and the doctor "immediately" because that's company policy. THEN she radioed me and asked me to come into the kitchen, where she was on her cell with the COO (much yelling could be heard) and started hyperventilating and crying and had to be calmed down by ME.
*le sigh*
Once she calmed down a bit, she said they were pissed at HER because I was quitting, that they blamed HER for not telling them that I needed more hours and that they had been "secretly working on a solution" before I "slapped them with this notice."
Again, I say, *le sigh*.
And then the doc arrived. He immediately chewed her out, stopping only when he saw me to say, "YOU are not leaving. SHE may be leaving, but YOU are not leaving."
Niiice.
And it went on from there...all day long...
The doc, for the most part, was nice to me. For a man who's had maybe 20 words to say to me in the past 3+ months, he was suddenly much more chatty and demanded to know why I wanted to leave. I stammered around, then said that I just didn't think we were a good fit, that I gave it the customary 90 days and that I need more hours, more money, etc. He then said that he was REFUSING to accept my notice, to which I responded, "So I can leave now then?" Harumph.
Then I had to meet with the COO (who just happens to be the doc's fiance), and she, my friends, was not as nice. She snapped that my notice was "certainly a surprise," and that she has been "working her butt off to find me more hours." Her solution was to bump another nurse on my day off and give me the nurse line for half a day. I responded that while I appreciated the thought and effort, that still wouldn't give me a consistent paycheck, nor would it help me when he takes three whole weeks off during the next month. She told me that the docs were EXPECTED to take about 8 full weeks off per year (not counting the one day off per week they each take already, nor does that count the sick days, court dates and "I-just-don't-feel-like-coming-in" days). When I hemmed and hawed and finally busted out with, "I just think it's time for me to leave," she gave me a look that would cut glass and said, "Fine, if you're not willing to do the work we've found for you to do, then maybe you should go."
Yes, maybe I should.
All of my coworkers' responses weren't negative, though. The accountant high-fived me in the hallway, saying, "I've been telling them for months that they needed to do something. Congratulations on getting in with such a great group." The front office staff begged me to take them with me, and one of the other girls said she would gladly give me part of her salary if she thought it would convince me to stay, but that she certainly understood why I needed to leave.
Who knew quitting in a professional manner could be so stressful?!?!
In happier news, I start the new job July 5; I will be working a few miles closer to home, in an office downtown that's mere blocks from my mom's office and several miles closer to Maggie's daycare. I've been offered the same hourly wage, so with 20 more hours per pay period, that should give me a nice little raise. The new place has six docs instead of just one, which means that even if one calls in sick or goes on vacation, there are still five more to show up and keep the place going.
The hours, as I mentioned briefly before, are 9-5 Monday through Friday, though technically we close at 2 on Friday and one "team" stays one Friday per month to answer the phones for the last three hours. In August, a physician's assistant will be joining the office staff, so they explained that even if I feel a little overwhelmed for the first six weeks, I should always bear in mind that more help will be arriving soon. :) I'm tentatively excited, not because the situation I've been in has been horrible, but because the one I'm going into sounds so much more like what I was expecting from the first one. I keep telling my soon-to-be-former coworkers that I'm not leaving angry, but that I am, in fact, the 23rd clinical employee they've had to leave in a year and a half and that perhaps they need to look into that. I'm just sayin'.
Another thing I like: during the interview, the office manager pointed out that a job is just a "means to a paycheck, but it's not your whole life." Then she sort of stopped herself and said, "Well, maybe I shouldn't say that, because we want you to ENJOY your time here, but at the same time we realize that you have a life and a family outside of this office and we feel that family comes first. Your child will only have ONE kindergarten graduation and it doesn't take them long to grow up; we know that and we don't want you to miss a thing...we're a team here and we all know how it is."
Thankyouverymuch.
She seemed pretty honest: she admitted that since it's an office full of women that tensions get pretty high at times, but she also pointed out that everyone has been there for YEARS (6 years, 12 years, 16 years, 30+ years) and that they're like one big family there. For my second interview, I had to meet with the "girls" to make sure they approved of me before I could be offered the job. I like that, and I've never really had anyone have me sit down and meet with the entire staff face-to-face for a real conversation during the interview process. They told me some good things and some bad things about the office--which I thought was good because it didn't seem like they were there just to blow sunshine up my ass--and everyone seemed pretty nice and laid-back.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed...wish me luck!
(And on that note, I'm off to bed...I'm exhausted and we have a big weekend ahead of us!)