I Am Not A Telemarketer... Well, Okay, Kind Of

Here's just a little retrospective on my job out here in Las Vegas. I'm still weary about writing the name of the company, because you just aren't supposed to write where you work(ed) online. It doesn't end well.

But anyway, as you have probably garnered from offhand comments here on the ol' blog, I was employed during our extended stay here by one of Vegas's many call centers. Apparently it's a good city in which to be a telemarketer.

And it was just so perfect for my situation.

First of all, my schedule was extremely flexible and was pretty wonderful. I never had to be in work before 10 a.m. I never had to stay at work past 8 p.m. I got to pick my own hours, so it mostly worked out that I could just work the same days as Pam. If I was short on money and needed a bigger paycheck coming up, I could always pick up an extra day shift or two. Or, if something exciting was going on that week, like say someone was coming into town Wednesday, I could always choose to work the minimum at the beginning of the week and have a five day weekend.

The job itself was mostly enjoyable. My coworkers and bosses were all super friendly. Like, surprisingly extremely nice. I mean, yea, there's was the requisite boss with the stick up her butt, and maybe one or two fellow callers were not so pleasant, but otherwise, the motley crew of college students, family men, and retired senior citizens I worked with were an amazing group of individuals. I'm thankful for the time I spent in that cramped call room with them.

While it was enjoyable, I think it's more important to note how much I got out of that job in just the short time I was there. The experience was rewarding.

For the first time in my life, I'd say, I really took a job seriously, and made a conscious effort to do it right and do it well. Okay, maybe not the first time - I really did work hard when I got promoted to host at the retirement home, and like there's been other times in my life that I put 100% into a project (theater, band, etc.). But, I think at other times, I goof off more than I should at a job. Or maybe I will only do the bare minimum because I don't care (what up, my former filing and billing department?).

Here at the call center, though, I really buckled down. I did exactly what the bosses told me to do. Should I stick to the script more? Well okay then, the script is my friend. I should try to sound more natural on the phone? Sounds good, let's practice with Pam poolside. I should make it my objective to make as many calls as possible? Then I'm going to make double the amount of calls as everyone else.

I did all these things, tried to improve every day, and you know what? I was rewarded for these things. I was trusted with high-importance prospects. I was trained first for new clients. I was rewarded with monetary bonuses, on average probably an extra $50 a week. Just for doing my job. I think that was an important awakening for me, that focusing on a job and trying to be the best that you can at it, that mindset is going to pay off in the end. When I hopefully get a job back home, doing whatever, I'll have this experience to look back on, and to take example from. I can be the best at this, and if I try, like really try, then only good things can happen.

Of course, there's other things I can take from this experience, other life-skills that I honed. Patience is a big one. Not everyone on the phone is nice with you, as I'm sure you can guess. Some folks I called were outright rude. But as a caller, you are required to "smile while you dial," even when an old West Point grad is hurling homophobic slurs. Obviously, six years of waiting on the residents at the retirement home was the main experience that shaped me into a patient people person, but the call center really polished it up. It's a nice skill to have.

Perhaps the best thing about calling for these clients was that the work we were doing was actual good work. We weren't trying to sell a hokey product or swindle a customer over the phoneline. We were raising money for charities. The two thousand dollars raised for Pocono Medical Center with my facilitation will help build a new cancer center. The few hundred dollars I convinced a Naval Academy alum to give as a gift will go toward the new Cyber Studies Center, which of course will mold the midshipmen into better leaders as they enter our world (reading from the script here). I helped Geisinger Hospital fund their Life Flight Program, and helped Miami Dade College offer a scholarship to a bright young student from a family below the poverty line. These are things I can feel proud about.

Ugh, that sounded really haughty and smug. To undercut it: I also earned a paycheck so Pam and I could get drunk.

That feels better.

But in all seriousness, I'm thankful that my temporary employment at the call center was such a great experience. Life works out pretty good sometimes.