Some Thoughts

Post #28,912 by gdaustin 2/19/02 10:33:52 AM Reply	Some Thoughts 1. You're in training, right? Training will probably end in just a few more weeks, and I'll bet dollars to donuts that you're not going to be on the first shift when you get out of training. My wife's work is an example. Just about everyone on 2nd or 3rd has a bid in to get to 1st shift. Most of the new hires start on graveyard, progress to 2nd, then finally (after years) get to 1st shift. 2. Ask for 2nd shift. If your wife is caring for kids and everything, then try to get 2nd shift and use the time during the day to look for another job. My bet is that you're going to be the guy calling us at 6:30pm at night asking us to switch our long distance... (Just kidding) 3. Try another $9 an hour job with more time flexibility? Maybe retail in a mall, bookstore, movie theatre? Unless you're in a really depressed part of the country, it seems to me that there should be quite a few $9 an hour jobs out there. Again, 2nd shift would help you out even finding another $9 an hour job. Most employers will be understanding (I think) about your current job situation. Heck, even being a supermarket checker makes $9 an hour and it sure is more flexible than a call center. 4. Find yourself a job-hunting support group. A bunch of us IWETHEY guys have been right where you are. Some even worse. Heck, I remember 1 1/2 or 2 years ago, sending money to someone on this board. I was laid off about 9 months ago, myself. It doesn't pay as much, but I have a job I enjoy a lot more than consulting. I had a friend who was laid off and he started a job hunting group in his church, because of the large number of laid-off folks. They would get together every Thursday night, brainstorm ideas, talk about job leads, and then they would each pray for a job. A couple of months ago, they disbanded the group, because all of them had found a job! 5. Finally, Norm, where do you live? KC? St. Louis? I seem to remember that you're in the Midwest somewhere?
Post #28,917 by gdaustin 2/19/02 10:54:26 AM Reply	More Thoughts If you're in KC, you might look at IBM. They just opened a DB2 call center there. If you are working for Sprint in a DSL call center, then I would look for another job. There's been a lot of press the last few days that Sprint will be closing 3 call centers, and there was an article this AM on Yahoo that Sprint's debt may be "reviewed". If you are working for SBC in St. Louis, well, at least they are a stable company. If you can tolerate the life in the call center, then, over time, you might be able to bid for an IT job through internal postings, in a year or so. At night, you might want to do some research on the company you are working for, and try to figure our their financial strength and where they are as far as profits, losses, and such. If the company is stable, I should would try to stay with a stable company. But, if the company is teetering on the brink of collapse, then there's really no point to subject yourself to this kind of abuse. Like I said in the earlier post, there are a LOT of $9 an hour jobs out there. Heck, some local computer store, Best Buy, Staples, etc. might even pay $9 an hour. Since you're in the $9 an hour range, you might look at government jobs ( local, county, city, school districts ). Many school districts have money from the federal government to wire the schools for Internet, but they have no qualified staff to do it. With a city/county/school district, you would get a low salary (but better than $9 an hour), and health insurance. Some call centers don't even do that much for their employees. Glen Austin
Post #29,001 by nking 2/19/02 8:59:25 PM Reply	I am in STL doing DSL for a helpdesk company with the local TELCO as a client. As far as the customers are concerned, we are the TELCO (the first lie we are supposed to tell them. I am uncomfortable telling lies.). Today was my first day on the floor on the phone. They paired me up with another agent, who wouldn't let me document the call (he did the documentation) and took the call before I could speak up (he cut in about a milisecond after the beep). I was very nervious about taking the calls, but I was only able to get in for one call. My trainer said that the other guy was supposed to let me take the calls and coach me through them. Most of the calls were from customers who wanted DSL before their due-date (when billing fills out the worksheet paperwork and turns on their signal, and gives an billing request for them to use the online registration or phone in a registration. Before that happens, we cannot get them to surf yet.) I did learn by listening to him, he knew what he was talking about. But I would have done some things differently. He didn't always follow the script, and sometimes took shortcuts. But I guess that some of the calls from the same area had almost the same problem, so he was guessing they all had the same issues? How do you other helpdesk guys handle the situation? I am like suffering from social aniexty disorder or something here. What do you guys do to counter that? "Will code Visual BASIC for cash."
Post #29,041 by boxley 2/20/02 9:10:24 AM Reply	pocket pool helps me "I'm selling a hammer," he says. "They can beat nails with it, or their dog." Richard Eaton spy software innovator

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