. Thanks, everyone, for the kind words about my (non) job offer.
It IS very discouraging. I DO know what it feels like to just want to give up; I have to battle those feelings constantly these days. I try not to whine about it too much, but there it is.
When it comes to finances, I "did everything right" for most of my life. Thanks to frugal living and a prodigious savings rate, I was able to purchase my last two cars new, in cash. I put 45% cash down when I bought my house in 1995 (about $95,000). By my early 30s, I nearly always maxed out (to 15%) my 401k and IRA contributions, never incurred massive debt (not having kids helped) and then paid off a 30-year mortgage in 17 years, all on a single income that ranged, in the past 20 years, between $50,000 and $80,000. (OK, there was one incredible year when I grossed $130K.) But now I feel I'm being slowly, inexorably, undone by a stupid job loss just at a time when I was hoping to cap off my hard-earned retirement savings.
For years, I dreamed about a comfortable early retirement, at about age 60. I knew I would continue freelance writing on a part-time basis, but I wanted to live a lifestyle on MY terms, terms that would include lots of travel and unstructured free time to pursue my interests. A lifestyle not dictated by anyone else. I’ve always hated long commutes, fixed work hours and, most of all, office politics. The egos, the personal fiefdoms people build around themselves in reaction to the impersonal, ruthless environment that is corporate America.
Late last year, I was hired as a proofreader; I am sharing the job with another part-timer so the employer can avoid paying for our health insurance and other benefits.
They recently asked us to start making sales calls to customers who basically dropped off the face of the earth in recent years. I’m sure if they were truly valuable customers they wouldn’t have us making calls to them, but I guess they figured, what have we got to lose?
Umm, first of all, they haven’t offered us any commission if we make a sale. You see, they’ve discovered that you can get an awful lot done with a $12-an-hour, college-educated, white collar professional. (Maybe next week they’ll have us cleaning the bathrooms, helping out in Accounting or who knows what.) But hey! I don’t have a sales background, nor do I have an interest in becoming a sales assistant or sales anything. I was hired as a proofreader, dammit, not to fill in wherever you happen to have a labor shortage.
So about a half dozen of us were assigned a bunch of calls to make. All but the two of us proofreaders are salaried employees, and all of us normally do work that doesn’t involve sales. Making the calls involves a fair amount of upfront research using the company’s databases to see when the customer last placed an order, what they ordered the most of and how far away they are from reaching a certain purchase threshold that entitles them to certain discounts. We also have to inform them of various promotions we’re offering this month. There’s a whole sales script involved. No one’s really sat down with the two of us proofreaders to familiarize us with the software. (They had a meeting about the calls on a day I don’t normally work.) So the training consisted of about 15 minutes of looking over someone’s shoulder to see how she did it.
The other part-timer didn’t want to do it either and was procrastinating about doing so. She was hoping she could just say hey, I was just too busy with my normal work and I ran out of time. I took the opposite tack and just got through my (half-assed) research and calls as quickly as possible. I made one sale out of about 25 calls. When I approached my manager about needing something else to do, she then wanted me to do HER sales calls for her becus she was so busy and hadn’t had time to start hers yet. I told her politely no, I wasn’t comfortable with doing the calls, that sales wasn’t really my “schtick.” Then she’s like, well, then you can do all my research for me and I’ll make the calls. I said I’d really rather not do that, if that’s okay.(If more was at stake, I might have relented, but for this piddly job? No.) She got pissed when I said that and replied, “Well, it may NOT be ok.”
She gave me something else to do and then immediately walked into her manager’s office (that woman is a true sweetheart) and closed the door . Of course, she was discussing my insubordination, and I contemplated whether I would be asked to leave in short order.
That didn’t happen, and the rest of the day proved uneventful, though there was tension between me and my manager, someone who ordinarily is quite cheerful and nice, though she is a control freak who doesn’t allow you to think for yourself. Everything must be done precisely as she says and that, for an intelligent person, is really grating.
There’s a strong correlation between the degree of autonomy one enjoys in their work environment and the amount of personal job satisfaction experienced. While I completely defer to this manager on all things related to proofreading (tons of procedural stuff leave little room for interpreting anything), I also notice that she rarely takes any of my suggested edits when I’m asked to proofread a letter or something else. So why bother asking me to proofread it? Even when I back up my edits with credible/reputable online sources that explain why such-and-such shouldn’t be capitalized, why you don’t need a comma or why you should hyphenate, she often responds with, "But that’s the way we’ve always done it." But that doesn’t make it right! She actually showed me a letter that one of our clients sent back to her, all marked up and edited. She was embarrassed, but instead of taking it to heart, she found ways to rationalize and justify not making any changes to it.
So maybe you can see how defeated it makes me feel to work there; when I’m asked to do what I was hired to do, my suggestions are consistently overruled, and then they get pissed when I’m less than willing to do work that’s clearly beyond the scope of my experience or current job description!
Long Rant, Whining & Complaints
March 23rd, 2013 at 01:32 pm
March 23rd, 2013 at 02:01 pm 1364047306
But, I do want to say this - YES - you did everything right. This is why you are not worried about being homeless and destitute at these crossroads. Life doesn't always go how we want, and we change and we adapt. Have you considered volunteering with the less fortunate in any capacity? I really think that kind of perspective would be good for you at this moment. I think it would help you immensely. It's easier to deal our own challenges when we spend more time with people who are far worse off. & helping people is just good for the soul.
Take Care.
March 23rd, 2013 at 02:23 pm 1364048593
It feels like a fixation at this point, but if I don't attend to this, it aint' gonna happen! If you remember from when I posted about my income sources in 2012, there were some unusual ones in there.
But it's still a very good suggestion, and I'm going to give it serious thought. Thanks for the kick in the pants.
March 23rd, 2013 at 03:14 pm 1364051683
"Sorry, boss. No sales today. Maybe next week!" Let it go. They're asking you to work for free, and that's just not fair.
March 23rd, 2013 at 04:53 pm 1364057629
March 23rd, 2013 at 05:25 pm 1364059531
March 23rd, 2013 at 05:37 pm 1364060227
Money Mom's suggestion to volunteer is excellent and the added benefit is an opportunity to meet people who may be in a position to offer paid work or refer your name for an opening. All the research confirms that most jobs are acquired by referral. It's more network than skill sets in a vast majority of cases. Talk to as many HR people as you can access as their contact list is up-to-date and unending.
Since the 2008 crash, job seekers have been forced to be more flexible. There is a whole human river that has pulled up stakes and trooped back and forth across the country even to other countries to flog their skills. Sadly, I'm seeing 'ageism' as a huge factor. New graduates seem preferred over experience even though it's more expensive as their ghastly mistakes and job hop costing employers huge premiums.
{{{{{Hugs}}}}}} take a deep breath and try to enjoy whatever part of the work you can.
March 23rd, 2013 at 07:05 pm 1364065502
Take time to relax and step out of the fear vortex. Loosen your grasp on how things "should" be. Focus on other aspects of your life that may be calling out and are currently eclipsed. This may help you gain clarity about the bigger picture of what is important beyond your financial aspirations. Clarity will help you achieve all your goals.
Consider this: What if you knew beyond doubt that you are going to be okay in retirement, and that you will have everything you need for a fulfilling life?
Consider further: With that certainty, what specific bold actions might you take in this moment of your life?
On the job front, like Yoda the Jedi Master said, "Do or do not...there is no try." Stay and contribute your best, or leave.
You are awesome, .
March 23rd, 2013 at 10:16 pm 1364076966
Since you are stuck for now, I would go along to get along (that's what I'm doing now)and wait for the opportunity to leave.
Write a book, girl! You are so damned interesting!
March 24th, 2013 at 12:23 am 1364084606
March 24th, 2013 at 05:02 am 1364101356