Life, Work, and Not Dead!
It occurred to me awhile months ago, that I haven't posted about my current life status in a long time. So ... here it is.
I'm still alive!
For anyone who has seen the news about Texas flooding, yes, there is water everywhere. Yes, Dallas and parts of Austin were that bad. While I do live around Austin, I don't live in the area that's been on the news. My area just has a lot of puddles and thunderstorms. >.O But yeah, the weather has been hot and wet lately; just the kind of summer we need! x.x
They've been offering unlimited overtime, so I've been going in an hour early every day. It's pretty much just enough extra money to cover the taxes I would normally have taken out of my checks, but it helps. But working 9:00-7:00 five days a week with angry people on the phone? Yeah, I don't feel up to talking much when I get home. If at all. >.<
But there are good changes for work, too. For one, I HAVE A PERMANENT JOB NOW. -Cries- I was hired on permanently in the end of February and flipped The Worst Temp Agency I Have Ever Worked With off on my way out. Not literally, but I was sorely tempted. While I'm still working in a contact center for the state, we're employed by a much, much, bigger company that is all kinds of amazing. I got almost a dollar raise, great benefits, all sorts of fabulous company discounts for various things, and am no longer genuinely concerned about what might happen if the subject of my girlfriend comes up at work because this company is *very* LBGT supportive. I may never want to leave this company. Like, seriously. I'm REALLY happy to be working for them.
My job itself? -Makes strangled dying/angry noises- I handle a lot of different topics for people who call, which is a good thing on a resume, but not a good thing to deal with. And two of them deal with stuff that gets screwed up a lot, which means I spend a lot of time explaining things and/or trying to calm someone down. (Which does not always work. >.<) I'm better at it now than I was; I can handle most of the issues I used to panic on (YAY ME!), and while I have ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA why, random other people I work with ask me for help when they have weird questions. (People who have been there longer than me. People who were in the same training class as me. SUPERVISORS. Because I take good notes and remember things I guess? IDEK. It's kind of creeping me out.) So it is getting easier to do.
But I hate it. I hate each day I have to go to work. Because I'm constantly tired and stressed out, and last night I actually went to one of my favorite restaurants specifically for the Bailey's Irish Cream Shake I informed Shi-chan I wanted for dinner - at noon. (I don't really drink much, for the record. Reasons.) Because there's been a big, important thing that had to be updated for everyone we deal with every day by the beginning of this month, and well, not a lot of people knew. Or their stuff wasn't updated. Or they sent in the wrong stuff. Or someone told them to send in the wrong stuff. It's been hell.
So last month at the urging of my AMAZING new supervisor ♥, I applied for a different position. I had a phone interview and was told I'd hear back in two weeks, but um, it's been three now. And my e-mail for an update just got me a 'They haven't made a decision yet.' >.< I'm giving it one more week (because there's other things I have to do this week), and then I'll try applying for something else. But I will be sad, because I really want off the phones, and this is the position several co-workers encouraged me to go for. I'm not giving up on getting the hell out of the contact center, though; I refuse!
So, back in ... January, I believe, my old supervisor got a new job in a different department. Everyone else was sad to see him go. I ... was not. I don't hate the guy or anything, but he wasn't the right supervisor for me, to put it nicely. I always kind of felt like getting his attention or assistance was a popularity contest that I was on the losing end of.
We ended up with a temporary supervisor who was pretty new, but he was *fantastic*. He was constantly asking people if they needed anything, checking to make sure we were okay, always on top of things. He had his own team *and* ours, but he still took the time to check on each individual person. He was the kind of supervisor people *wish* they had around here. I had an issue when I was hired on permanently that I was having trouble getting an answer for; he had it resolved in TWO DAYS. He is still one of my favorite people there. ♥
And then in April, we found out we were getting a new, official, permanent supervisor. Not everyone was thrilled with this, because we hadn't realized the temp supervisor *was* a temp, and he was going to be a really hard act to follow. I resolved to reserve judgement, as I'd gone from a -Coughs- Less Than Stellar Supervisor to an awesome one, and I wasn't thrilled about it.
Then Shi-chan's car broke down.
There was something wrong with the axel, which meant it needed to be towed to Carmax to be looked at to make sure it was under warranty. I found out while at work the day she discovered it, so I managed to get a ride home from someone and went to tell Awesome Supervisor what was going on, and that I would likely not be at work tomorrow, because we needed to get it towed. He was totally cool about it, because he's Awesome. Amazing Supervisor, who I'd just met a few days before, was there too. She gave me her cell phone number to let her know in the morning if I for sure wasn't coming in - and she wasn't even actually my supervisor until the next week.
It was really, really hard not to like her immediately; my old supervisor finally remembered to give me his cell number right before he left, despite the fact that I'd actually needed it for a team gathering at one point.
Long story short on the car, it turned out some asshole hit it in our parking lot hard enough to bend the axel and ran away. Luckily there was no other damage and insurance got us a rental car for a week, but it was still a $500 deductible we shouldn't have had to pay. >.<++ There were also issues with getting the right tow truck because the person I talked to didn't understand that 'the tire is bent, it's not drivable, we need a tow' means we needed a FLATBED truck, and it took three tries to establish that. But because AAA is also AMAZING, they took my complaint feedback seriously and took it off the count of my free tows for the year.
But anyway, Amazing Supervisor earned my begrudging respect for that escapade.
Then she became our actual supervisor. After knowing me for a week, she asked me if I was happy in my job. *No one* had bothered to ask me that, let alone noticed I wasn't. And when I said no, she encouraged me to apply to other positions and offered to see what she could do to help me. She noticed other people tend to ask me questions for their calls, and started asking me, too. When it came out that I am somewhat tech-savy and good at troubleshooting, she started asking me for help with computer issues. She actually bragged about me to a supervisor that I'm well aware doesn't like me, and constantly thanks and praises me. It's mind-boggling what a difference she's made. Not just for me, either - other people on the phones have started coming to her instead, because she's super nice, gets stuff done, and she doesn't play favorites. (All issues with other supervisors. >.<)
In the two months she's been here, I've gone from being the quiet person who sometimes chats with two of the guys on my team when we're slow, to being the team's tech support and go-to person. We've got yearly reviews due at the end of the month, and I ended up being the one coaching people through it because I was the first to figure out how. There's a bunch of new agents on our team, and they've started consistently asking me for help. All because *one* person took the time to realize hey, I don't talk when I don't feel like anyone's listening. It's mind boggling how much has changed since she came.
I still hate this job, but I feel more capable about doing it these days. And I've now been told three times - by three different people - that they don't want me to leave. Which ... puts me in a much better mindset about work now that I'm typing this up. I know Monday is going to be hell, but I feel a lot better about hanging in there than I did when I started this.
-Takes a deep breath- Wow. Uh. Yeah, I have Work Feels. I won't be hurt if anyone skips over that. c.c;;;
In other news, I will be even busier next month! PR Day signups will *hopefully* be up by this weekend. Still deciding on various deadlines due to various Life Drama distractions, but yes, it will happen.
I will also be moving into a bigger apartment in twenty-four days! \0/ With the new job and our lease coming up, Shi-chan and I agreed it's time. I WILL FINALLY HAVE MY OWN BEDROOM. -Cries- In the meantime there is packing and utilities to start up/shut off and stuff to go through or throw out and OMG SO MUCH STUFF. x.x But IT WILL BE WORTH IT. ♥
As for this weekend, I intend to play some World of Warcraft with a friend, and *hopefully* get more work done for Changing Tactics/Ruigi. Hopefully; characters are being difficult. But mostly I am going to relax. Because OMG WEEKEND. x.x
I'm still alive!
For anyone who has seen the news about Texas flooding, yes, there is water everywhere. Yes, Dallas and parts of Austin were that bad. While I do live around Austin, I don't live in the area that's been on the news. My area just has a lot of puddles and thunderstorms. >.O But yeah, the weather has been hot and wet lately; just the kind of summer we need! x.x
They've been offering unlimited overtime, so I've been going in an hour early every day. It's pretty much just enough extra money to cover the taxes I would normally have taken out of my checks, but it helps. But working 9:00-7:00 five days a week with angry people on the phone? Yeah, I don't feel up to talking much when I get home. If at all. >.<
But there are good changes for work, too. For one, I HAVE A PERMANENT JOB NOW. -Cries- I was hired on permanently in the end of February and flipped The Worst Temp Agency I Have Ever Worked With off on my way out. Not literally, but I was sorely tempted. While I'm still working in a contact center for the state, we're employed by a much, much, bigger company that is all kinds of amazing. I got almost a dollar raise, great benefits, all sorts of fabulous company discounts for various things, and am no longer genuinely concerned about what might happen if the subject of my girlfriend comes up at work because this company is *very* LBGT supportive. I may never want to leave this company. Like, seriously. I'm REALLY happy to be working for them.
My job itself? -Makes strangled dying/angry noises- I handle a lot of different topics for people who call, which is a good thing on a resume, but not a good thing to deal with. And two of them deal with stuff that gets screwed up a lot, which means I spend a lot of time explaining things and/or trying to calm someone down. (Which does not always work. >.<) I'm better at it now than I was; I can handle most of the issues I used to panic on (YAY ME!), and while I have ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA why, random other people I work with ask me for help when they have weird questions. (People who have been there longer than me. People who were in the same training class as me. SUPERVISORS. Because I take good notes and remember things I guess? IDEK. It's kind of creeping me out.) So it is getting easier to do.
But I hate it. I hate each day I have to go to work. Because I'm constantly tired and stressed out, and last night I actually went to one of my favorite restaurants specifically for the Bailey's Irish Cream Shake I informed Shi-chan I wanted for dinner - at noon. (I don't really drink much, for the record. Reasons.) Because there's been a big, important thing that had to be updated for everyone we deal with every day by the beginning of this month, and well, not a lot of people knew. Or their stuff wasn't updated. Or they sent in the wrong stuff. Or someone told them to send in the wrong stuff. It's been hell.
So last month at the urging of my AMAZING new supervisor ♥, I applied for a different position. I had a phone interview and was told I'd hear back in two weeks, but um, it's been three now. And my e-mail for an update just got me a 'They haven't made a decision yet.' >.< I'm giving it one more week (because there's other things I have to do this week), and then I'll try applying for something else. But I will be sad, because I really want off the phones, and this is the position several co-workers encouraged me to go for. I'm not giving up on getting the hell out of the contact center, though; I refuse!
So, back in ... January, I believe, my old supervisor got a new job in a different department. Everyone else was sad to see him go. I ... was not. I don't hate the guy or anything, but he wasn't the right supervisor for me, to put it nicely. I always kind of felt like getting his attention or assistance was a popularity contest that I was on the losing end of.
We ended up with a temporary supervisor who was pretty new, but he was *fantastic*. He was constantly asking people if they needed anything, checking to make sure we were okay, always on top of things. He had his own team *and* ours, but he still took the time to check on each individual person. He was the kind of supervisor people *wish* they had around here. I had an issue when I was hired on permanently that I was having trouble getting an answer for; he had it resolved in TWO DAYS. He is still one of my favorite people there. ♥
And then in April, we found out we were getting a new, official, permanent supervisor. Not everyone was thrilled with this, because we hadn't realized the temp supervisor *was* a temp, and he was going to be a really hard act to follow. I resolved to reserve judgement, as I'd gone from a -Coughs- Less Than Stellar Supervisor to an awesome one, and I wasn't thrilled about it.
Then Shi-chan's car broke down.
There was something wrong with the axel, which meant it needed to be towed to Carmax to be looked at to make sure it was under warranty. I found out while at work the day she discovered it, so I managed to get a ride home from someone and went to tell Awesome Supervisor what was going on, and that I would likely not be at work tomorrow, because we needed to get it towed. He was totally cool about it, because he's Awesome. Amazing Supervisor, who I'd just met a few days before, was there too. She gave me her cell phone number to let her know in the morning if I for sure wasn't coming in - and she wasn't even actually my supervisor until the next week.
It was really, really hard not to like her immediately; my old supervisor finally remembered to give me his cell number right before he left, despite the fact that I'd actually needed it for a team gathering at one point.
Long story short on the car, it turned out some asshole hit it in our parking lot hard enough to bend the axel and ran away. Luckily there was no other damage and insurance got us a rental car for a week, but it was still a $500 deductible we shouldn't have had to pay. >.<++ There were also issues with getting the right tow truck because the person I talked to didn't understand that 'the tire is bent, it's not drivable, we need a tow' means we needed a FLATBED truck, and it took three tries to establish that. But because AAA is also AMAZING, they took my complaint feedback seriously and took it off the count of my free tows for the year.
But anyway, Amazing Supervisor earned my begrudging respect for that escapade.
Then she became our actual supervisor. After knowing me for a week, she asked me if I was happy in my job. *No one* had bothered to ask me that, let alone noticed I wasn't. And when I said no, she encouraged me to apply to other positions and offered to see what she could do to help me. She noticed other people tend to ask me questions for their calls, and started asking me, too. When it came out that I am somewhat tech-savy and good at troubleshooting, she started asking me for help with computer issues. She actually bragged about me to a supervisor that I'm well aware doesn't like me, and constantly thanks and praises me. It's mind-boggling what a difference she's made. Not just for me, either - other people on the phones have started coming to her instead, because she's super nice, gets stuff done, and she doesn't play favorites. (All issues with other supervisors. >.<)
In the two months she's been here, I've gone from being the quiet person who sometimes chats with two of the guys on my team when we're slow, to being the team's tech support and go-to person. We've got yearly reviews due at the end of the month, and I ended up being the one coaching people through it because I was the first to figure out how. There's a bunch of new agents on our team, and they've started consistently asking me for help. All because *one* person took the time to realize hey, I don't talk when I don't feel like anyone's listening. It's mind boggling how much has changed since she came.
I still hate this job, but I feel more capable about doing it these days. And I've now been told three times - by three different people - that they don't want me to leave. Which ... puts me in a much better mindset about work now that I'm typing this up. I know Monday is going to be hell, but I feel a lot better about hanging in there than I did when I started this.
-Takes a deep breath- Wow. Uh. Yeah, I have Work Feels. I won't be hurt if anyone skips over that. c.c;;;
In other news, I will be even busier next month! PR Day signups will *hopefully* be up by this weekend. Still deciding on various deadlines due to various Life Drama distractions, but yes, it will happen.
I will also be moving into a bigger apartment in twenty-four days! \0/ With the new job and our lease coming up, Shi-chan and I agreed it's time. I WILL FINALLY HAVE MY OWN BEDROOM. -Cries- In the meantime there is packing and utilities to start up/shut off and stuff to go through or throw out and OMG SO MUCH STUFF. x.x But IT WILL BE WORTH IT. ♥
As for this weekend, I intend to play some World of Warcraft with a friend, and *hopefully* get more work done for Changing Tactics/Ruigi. Hopefully; characters are being difficult. But mostly I am going to relax. Because OMG WEEKEND. x.x