When I was an university student, I worked at a call centre for about 2 years (I could never land a retail or waitress job). I conducted opinion surveys over the phone. Yes, I was one of those annoying people that called you after work, on the weekends and late at night.
I probably make about hundreds, maybe even thousands, of calls a night trying to meet the daily quota. People would hang up on me (loudly), swear at me, partially-complete the survey or complete the survey. Survey could be 2 minutes to more than an hour long (depending on the survey and the participant).
It wasn't the most glamorous job and I certainly had some bad experiences but I enjoyed being there. I got to meet and talk to a lot of people that I would otherwise never have the opportunity to. The centre had people from all walks of life.
A few experiences stuck with me till this day:
- Being lectured by a fellow co-worker for not appreciating the fact that I get called in to work every single shift
- Learning a little about elder's residence and government subsidiary from an women whose husband is using such services
- Planning a vacation with a fellow co-worker because I was visiting her hometown
- Being invited to Tuesday movies
- The death of a fellow co-worker (who passed away due to old age)
- Birthday Celebrations (Free Cake for all)
- Random Pizza Days (yay to Pizza Nova)
A year after I resigned, I learned from a friend that the call centre was closing and that they were having a closing party. I went back to see everyone again and to say goodbye to everyone.
