Tuesday 29 July 2008

Why I hate people

.. alternative title: I have worked in retail WAAAAAY too long!

This post from my old friend (see what I did there? I did that on purpose teehee) reminded my that I have meaning to share a website with you for ages.

My first job was working in my parents' newspaper kiosk at the train station, my first real job (by which I mean one where I actually got paid the going rate) was in a bakery. I never liked serving the customers, I liked being out back making sandwiches. Honestly!

My next job while I was at university was in the kitchens of a very snooty boarding school where I had to deal with snotty, spoiled, rich kids and snotty, spoiled, rich house staff. But I was a student, and I got fed.

Then when I left university I worked in a bank (oh! I met the most stupid and annoying people ... on both sides of the counter) And with my maths skills I didn't last long...

Finally, I moved to a call centre dealing with business mobile phones. This was a good call centre, not one of those "press 1, press 2" types of places but one where the number you had actually got you put through to a real, live person who knew what they were talking about. Our team was the best trained in the company and eventually I worked as a manager there with a team of very intelligent and sensible (and patient!) people. But the customers .... oh my! And talk about high pressure ...

All this left me with a nervous breakdown aged 25, I took a sixth month break and when I came back to work I couldn't be arsed with it all anymore. I decided to give it all up and move to the countryside.

Which brings me here. If you have ever had to serve stupid, ignorant, rude people, you will get it.

5 comments:

. said...

I was only thinking about the train station kiosk the other day when I was in the shiny new (for new read "fugly" station) in town.I was trying to remember what it was called... wasn't it "Just The Ticket" or something like that?

LOL @ the link. I love the one about the woman in the bathroom. PSML.

and I hope that "old" was to imply friends of old, rather than me being actually old... coz you've got 2 and a half months on me remember ;P

xMx

Gone to Earth said...

I wish I could say I don't understand where you're coming from..... I wish I could say I don't understand how the pressure got to you.... I wish I could say that I don't understand how you hanker for the countryside....but I do. If the children didn't need school ..... we'd be off to who knows where.....

Mrs Moog said...

I loved that link!!

So much on there that I can identify with from previous 'customer-facing' jobs I've done.

I did the call centre thing for a month and hated every single minute of it!

xxx

Junie Moon said...

I popped over and read all the entries, what a hoot!

Recently had someone called and ask to speak to "the man of the house." I asked why "the woman of the house" wasn't good enough as that is who I am and I'm the one answering the phone. Their reply, "I want to speak to the man of the house who makes the financial deciions." That aggravated me so badly that I said, "Funny thing about that. I am the financial decision-maker in this house and since you don't want to speak with me, I don't want to speak with you." And I hung up. I'm still quite irritated by that. The stupidity in today's world knows no bounds.

April said...

I remember you working at the station and the bakery.

I worked for a bank just after uni as well, first in the call centre and then front desk - which was way worse. Thank god I had maternity leave as an excuse to get out and never go back!!

April xx