Creative Thoughts

Archive for the ‘call center life’ Category

I don’t want to forget about my accomplishment for this week, because this is special to me. Every week, our management leaders or sups chooses our agent of the week. From these agent of the week for each week in a month, an agent will be chosen as agent of the month.
For each team, there is a nominee, based on our metrics or performance stats. I always get nominated but I never ever won when it comes to voting. When compared to the stats of others, I would always fall short of it. This was because it wasn’t important to me, at all. As long as I have a job. I also, am not aware of what stats would make me agent of the week.
This time, they revealed the stats and started to send us emails on who is the agent of the week along with the stats. This made challenged and so I tried to monitor my performance metrics such as the length of time I resolve an issue in a call, the time I am on break, attendance, attitude, the time I pick up the phone and most of all, the quality of your call which is revealed in our quality monitoring score. And I was surprised, that finally this time, I was chosen as agent of the week, I really won the voting based on our stats.
Every week, we are monitored twice to ensure that we are delivering the best customer service experience to guests. Being a technical support engineer is really not easy to think that you have to give instructions to people who are not visible.
It has been a real challenge. I am now in my first year as a technical support and I would say its not easy but its not impossible to be a good one. This work has helped me improve my patience a lot. Yes, it requires a lot of patience. Patience, patience and more more patience.
For this week, I got the most number of calls because i resolve issues as quickly as possible, so my available or idle time is high which gives me more calls. So, for that, our manager asked a picture of mine to be posted on our bulletin. And, this is what I used. I printed it out from Kodak so I brought my micro sd from my phone. The photo was taken from SM Mall Cebu.

Hey guys, I have good news, I made it. I passed the Level 1 Certification Test and guess what? i have achieved my goal of being a regular call center agent now. I’m really so happy. Sorry for not checking on you for those days, I was so busy studying. The exam was easy and good thing they did not made it too hard for us, because they really need people right now. I’m now getting closer and closer to my goals. Thanks to God, to my family for the inspiration and to my friends. Thank you to all those who emphatized and wished me luck, may you also succeed in all your endeavors. Thank you for visiting my site, my traffic is generally improving a lot. And that’s all because of YOU. It’s was my dream ever since to be a call center agent. Right now, I have achieved it, and I think I need to step up. Not right now, perhaps someday. Time will tell. I’ll know when it’s the right time. I don’t want to take calls forever. What I like about my job is that I get to practice English a lot. There has been a tremendous improvement and change in my speaking ability. I am happy for that. There are a lot of people who wish to be in call centers, to become customer service representatives or technical support agents, without even thinking of the hardships and challenges of the job. They don’t get information and research about the job, and they just jump into it. During training, they’re so eager, enthusiastic and willing to learn, but when they are already starting to take calls, that’s when reality sets in. They get so pressured that the option they can think of is to back away and find another job. They reasoned, they changed their mind, only to find out that they have applied in another call centers already. I encountered a lot of challenges in this job, I can’t share all of them though. All I can say is I’m proud of call centers agents, specially those who work hard for their family, sacrificing their lifestyle and social life. Yes, I’m a night shift agent and it was really hard for me to adjust. Even until now, I still feel sleepy sometimes, and my body really dropped, because I don’t have appetite due to varying eating schedules and patterns. Another hard part of being a call center agent is to be shouted, cursed and blamed by guests and callers who’s only will is to have their problem solves as soon as possible. Their not pointing the anger to you, its nothing to personal, but it still hurts. And to think that it is human tendency to fight back, it’s really not easy. I salute all call center agents out there, who are trying to make a living and to make the best of their skills. If your planning to become a call center agent, you better start learning how to type fast, how to do multitasking: talking, problem solving, typing at the same time, heck! There are still a lot of things you need to know, but the bottom line is, know what you are getting into.

Graphics and Myspace Layouts at pYzam.com

I will be taking the level 1 certification test already this thursday at 2 pm, along with my batch mates. If I will pass this test, I will now be a regular call center agent here in the new company where I moved. I’ve been waiting for this, since it was supposed to be last month, but it has been delayed for reasons I don’t know. Whew, I really want to stay in this job. If we will not pass, maybe we will undergo probationary again and will be given another chance. I’m excited and hopefully I will be able to make it, because I’ve been comfortable in this job and I learned to love it somehow.

This is a picture of me and some of my batch mates. There’s only one lacking here, she doesn’t like to be pictured. If you take a picture of her, she will hide or turn her back. She’s somewhat like a loner, and she’s very very sensitive. But, she’s my friend and I like her because she’s a good person. That’s me on the leftmost side by the way.

I want to stay in this call center for long, so that I can earn enough money for my family, and also I’d like to be a trainer someday. Shhhh, that’s just our secret okay? I never shared that with anyone. It seems far as of now, but I will be working on it, and I know someday I will get that. I love to teach and I think I’m really good when it comes to teaching and explaining lessons.
As for now, I will be on day off for two days again, and I will be studying at that time. My sister also asked me to write a project for her. She is a doctoral student now, and she is at New York, studying at a school there, I just forgot the name. She always ask me to do her work, because they have lots of projects and she can’t do it by her own. Aside from that, my sister really loves to let me do the work, because she loves my writing. I’m proud of her, for her achievement. She graduated Cum Laude in College, and graduated magna cum laude during her masteral but sometimes, I wonder why she has little confidence on her self. I consider her very blessed. Perhaps, its because she really served the Lord much, specially while she was still here in the Philippines. She was a member of the Catholic League for Women (CWL), choir at church and a president of Lourdes – a group of young catholic women. She improved right now, because of her achievements. But still, its not the full confidence that she needs. On the other hand, we are the opposite because I am confident and I do believe in my capabilities and in what I can do. Though I haven’t achieved much aside from being Valedictorian in high school, I still feel confident that I can do anything I will to do. My motto is there is nothing I cannot do, with God. I believe in myself and I believe that I can do anything I set my mind too. Perhaps, this has been a result of my addiction to self-growth and self development books. But, it’s a good addiction anyhow. No regrets on my end. My wisdom right now, has a lot to do with these books. I actually have a collection of them, some got lost because people borrowed and I forgot who they are, and they forgot to return or simply just ignored it.

This is my sister, she is in New York right now.
We miss her a lot.

I also put that always in my husband’s mind, because he also lacks confidence in himself because of the way he was raised. He was raised in a family that relies on God alone, and has this “bahala na” attidude, wherein they just let fate lead their lives without even doing their part. He thinks he is not smart and he can’t do this, and blah blah blah because he never excel in school. You know, I know those stuff because we were classmates before. And to tell you, I never even talked to this guy, who is now my husband for the 4 years we’re sharing the same room in high school. Yes, we were classmates. But my friends were the popular and bright students, while he was with the “nobody” group. So what I did was, to tell him always that he is capable of doing anything he wills to do. I motivate him to excel in what he does and to avoid being passive. As his partner, I observed and scrutinized his character and to tell you honestly there are a lot of things he can be proud of. I let him see the “real him”, and I let him open his eyes to his capabilities. I let him see how good he is in playing piano and guitar. I tell him he is a very responsible father and husband. I tell him, he is a very very good servant to God, which I salute a hundred times. He never drinks, he never smoke, he never go out just for fun, while we are left at home having difficulty with all the chores. He loves our child so much. He loves me unconditionally. He does the laundry at times if he’s not at work and he does everything for me and for our family. And I tell him that even if he doesn’t know how to use the computer (which is fine because I’m going to teach him as soon as we will be able to buy a computer), even he can’t speak English well, even if he is not academically smart I tell him he has his own worth and own strengths. Right now, I can sense that he had a change of attitude. He has been more confident and capable. If we have a problem, he doesn’t just accept it. He tries to do something about it, which he never did before. He has dreams, plans or aspirations for our family, which to tell you honestly, he never had before too. He believes in himself and focuses on what he is good at and he is starting to go for excellence. I’m so proud of him and also I never regret that I forced his real self to come out, the way he let me come out and be my best too. I believe that is what relationship is about, bringing out the best in each other.

This is my man. This is the man I wouldn’t exchange for any other man.
Except if it’s still HIM. I am looking forward to spending my whole life with him and our child and my family: mom and sister.
You know already why my dad is not listed.

Sometimes, I feel like the world has change. Everything in life now, is instant. Everything is done quick and fast. Everyone is busy, doing one thing or another, earning for a living, looking for more opportunities to grab more money. Everyone is going after the next “NEW” dress, accessories, gadgets, house, car etc. WHEW! It’s just so draining. I feel like we’re all in a rush…I don’t know, perhaps it’s just me, or maybe I am right. It’s like my life is revolving around work. Work, work and nothing but work. I do work all night, and when I’m home in the morning, well, what do you expect? Of course, I do sleep. I have to sleep so that I can recuperate and have strength to do my job for the next night. My eating and sleeping pattern has been disturbed ever since I’ve been on the night shift. Yes, my weight dropped. I used to be slim, but now, I’m really thin. Usually, I just hide it with a jacket. I don’t like to eat, it might be because of my eating pattern which is not normal.. I lack appetite, and I can’t really sleep well in the morning. Our place, is filled of homes who have people who do nothing but sing videoke. Duh? I know you can imagine the place. Just imagine a place, where at least 3-5 karaokes are rambling loud while you’re trying to get some sleep during the day. Yeah, that’s my life now. Sometimes I day dream, and I imagine the life I would want to have. That gives me hope and freedom. We are all in the rat race, as what the author of Rich Dad, Poor Dad wrote. I can see it is right. We work for money, and the cycle just keeps on going. I’m just hoping that one day we will be free. And I know, it will come. God is there, and along with determination nothing is impossible. I dream someday that I would just be able to stay home and I will be the one to take care of my 6 month old baby, instead of my mom. I dream that I would be able to take care of my husband more, and attend to his needs. I dream that I will be the one managing the house, and taking care of important things. If I have an option, I wouldn’t be on this job. Being shouted at, by customers who are aggregated even by simple matters, is not easy. You’re the one giving this service, and yet, they nag and shout at you. Sometimes, this work can be so toxic and draining. I just want to have some time to rest, and to take care of my family. I also would like to have more time for other things I wanted to do. I want to finish my degree, I want to travel and enjoy life. Well, as for now, I just have to deal with it. I also have to learn to love it and thrive in it, I know. I guess, only those working in a call center can understand what I feel. But anyway, this is my life now, so you know. And I’m simply happy to be able to share it with you.

We have been together now for almost a month. We started our pre hire training on October 28, 2007. We were originally 17 from the first day. We had 2 trainers for the pre hire, Miss Jessie and Miss Carmel. In the morning, we had Miss Jessie for the speech development and then we had Miss Carmel in the afternoon for the Customer Service and Communication Training. We were asked to choose an American name, which will be our name in the company. I chose the name Melody, for it reminds me of my beautiful friend. So, from then on, I became Melody. The pre hire training was a 5 day extensive training . On the first day, we were all so quiet except for one guy named Kenneth. He ‘s like a clown and he’s really funny. He even resembles Jim Carrey. Two of our batchmates decided not to continue with the training, for reasons I do not know. On the fifth day, we had our evaluation. It was scary, because if you will not make it there, you will not be able to proceed with the formal training. So, you will not be offered a job contract in the company. The evaluation consisted of oral and written exams, as well as mock calls wherein we pretended to be real technical support representatives while the trainers act as customers. At the end of the day, the announcement was made. Three among us, did not make it. I had mixed emotions then; happiness, sadness, and nervousness. I was happy because I passed, so that means that I would have a chance to go on with formal training. At the same time, I was sad because of the 3 people who did not pass. I felt their disappoinment and their eagerness to be a part of the company. Lastly, I was anxious for the interview with the president, Mr. Ken. It’s the final determinant if we would really pass or not. And guess what? I passed the president’s standards. Mr. Ken saw my potential and burning desire to work for them. And for that, I am eternally greatful. On the other hand, four failed. So, again, we were trimmed down to eight.