How do you feel about call center jobs?

Just curious to see if theres anyone I can relate too. Im gonna give it one word: mentally-exhausting

Once when I was young, dumb, and fresh out of the military with no real world experience I went out job hunting as I was also a new father and needed a job badly. Anyways I replied to an ad looking for a "sales associate" that also had a nice base pay of $12/hr and offered bonus pay as well. Sounded too good to be true! Well, it was. During the interview process at no point was anything even remotely mentioned about being a call center or whatever...so I accepted and on my first day I walked into work and behind the main doors was just row after row of phones and people crammed in making calls.

I said 'F' that and walked out.

Funny thing is the manager who was walking me in didn't even seem that surprised lol...my response must have been fairly common.

I worked at one for a short time. I would describe it as... hell.

I'd never do it. I think of it as equal to selling your soul.

Ive worked at 2.

My first one was at a Health Insurance center and it was horrible. I stuck with it through training and then said screw it, and walked out halfway through the shift, lol.

The second wasnt so bad, actually. I never talked to the customer, all I did was provide real time captions correctly and thats it. Anytime I wasnt on a call, I was reading. It wasnt too bad, but the pay was shit and it was only part time so I got a different job in a few months time.

And you were in the military? As someone with cold calling experience, only the strong one seem to survive. Which is odd cause i always thought people who are not shy or simply like being on the phone will excel in cold-calling.

It's not a matter of being strong, it's a matter of not wanting to put up with (what I perceive to be) a soul crushing shit job and instead try my luck elsewhere for something I would enjoy doing.

Anyways based on the circus of people in that call center (and the clowns I speak to whenever I call into customer support type places), there's nothing strong or admirable about the people that work these shit jobs lol.

@Renevent42: that's insane, you a military person even know its bad! it is and you were smart, im stuck at one with it being hard to find a new job these days i have to wrok this dreadful job where the minutes feel like hours

I know it seems daunting but let me give you some advice...figure out what you would be happy doing and put in the extra effort to make that happen.

Not going to lie and say I found some awesome job after walking out; in fact I actually delivered pizza's for a local Italian restaurant after that. I had to work as I already mentioned I had a family depending on me. Delivering pizzas obviously isn't glamorous but certainly better then working in a call center IMO.

With that said during this time I ended going back to school (while working). From there I got an internship (money was tight) but it was in the field I wanted to work in. The rest is history...I now make well over six figures and love my job. Instead of being a clock watcher hating everyday I enjoy going to work and also of course have financial freedom.

I'm not saying go out and quit your job or anything...just don't settle on misery and work a bit extra to make your life better :)

What did you do in the service? Just curious.

I think only masochists should do that job.

14S, or basically drove around one of these:

I went into the recruiter asking about computer type jobs but they said they were fresh out...so I said "how about something where I can blow shit up and jump out of planes and stuff like that"...a smile crept across the recruiters face and he responded "oh, I think we can do that for you" lol.

@Renevent42:

Oh okay. Thank you for your service. Yeah I can see how that would be hard to translate into a real world job. I lucked out I guess.

Yeah for sure...other than being former military looking good on a resume, driving around a humvee with a ground-to-air missle system slapped on it doesn't really translate well into anything in the civilian world heh.

@Renevent42:

Yeah. I didn't think my job would translate well, but I did a skills translator when I got out and while the job itself doesn't transfer over, the skills I gained from my job were worth something I guess. I assume you've found greener pastures?

I ended up going back to school (while working a pizza delivery job) and have been a .Net developer/SQL Database Administrator for the past 12 years or so. I actually started out as primarily a .Net developer but fell into a DBA position early on, which basically stuck as at the time job openings and salaries were much better in the DBA world. Actually glad it happened too as I am making much more money as a DBA.

What did you end up doing?

I used to work Customer Service in a Call Center. NEVER AGAIN. It was beyond Hell, even Satan would pass it up.

I got out and started going back to school. Now I work in the semiconductor industry. My experience in the military canceled out the Bachelors Degree required for the job but I still plan on finishing school.

I'm agin' 'em.

I'd rather starve to death than do such a job.

it feels like your a rat trapped in a cage answering calls all day.

I hated it especially customer services because every phone call is someone pissed off over something the shitty company I worked for cocked up.

I've got respect for them. I couldn't do it.

I can say for certain there is nothing I hate more than having to talk to someone on the phone when I want to cancel a service. The only consistently good experience I have with people over the phone is when I call my bank.

It's also hilarious that when I call for some kind of technical support I'm always told to go over and do the things I've already told the person I've done.

@thehig1: I can say the same dang thing, its the product! not my fault! but in the customers eyes its our fault and we have to care! That's the worst of it, than hold there hand in troubleshooting, give me a break, it does suck

its like we don't have feelings, how could we? were the ones taking the call right?

@Renevent42: I appreciate your insight, thanks for the advice, I was thinking about it, and I may have landed something big I just don't know yet which sucks

@danyopizzle:

Yeah actually I worked for 7 months at one helping people out with their computers getting them to work with our software.

If we had been allowed to remote in it would have been great, but 95% of them time it was just us walking the customer through the fix logically. Had some good times, but I don't really wish to go back to it especially since the pay was $3 less an hour than the standard minimum for the type of work we were doing.

What type of call center job?