I really love my job. It's given me more confidence than I EVER thought I could have on the phone; I used to get nervous calling anyone, really. Now it's a walk in the park. No problem. I love working - I have friends there, we play games, we have fun, I make good money, I play sudoku, there's food in a closet just for us (the college likes to keep us happy :) ). I get told by very nice alumni that I'm good at what I do, and I love hearing some of their stories from the days they were here (like when Route 31 was Route 69 and they actually had to change it because of the two colleges nearby/sign theft... use your imagination), and about how certain academic buildings used to be dorms, and how girls/boys were separated. I really love talking to people - even the ones who aren't as interested in sharing or learning about the updates.
However, all of us have had bad nights. Nights where people will yell at us, hang up, belittle us, etc. Some examples come to mind, but one happened tonight. First, I should explain: We call Sunday night- Thursday night, 6:30 until 9pm, and on Sunday afternoons from 2-4:45pm. I called an alum tonight at 8:40 pm, almost the end of the shift:
Me: Hi, my name is Jessica, and I'm a student calling from ___(my college)____. May I please speak with ___(person's name)___?
Lady: *big sigh* Let me just start by saying, how do you have the NERVE to call ANYONE after 8PM?!?
Me: Oh, I'm sorry, we usually call between 6:30 and 9 so -
And she just hung up. Like, come on. I understand I may have caught you at a bad time, or that you've been getting calls from us (to which I say, just pick up the phone and we'll stop calling you!), or maybe you were busy, or you have kids that were going to sleep. I'm sorry about that. I really am. Several callers have been yelled at over the years for calling "too late." That's fine. But do you really have to act like that? If she'd have let me finish, I would have told her we could call her during the day instead, and hopefully end on a good note. But no.
So, I ask you, please be nice to your college/the telemarketers. I'm calling you because it's my job, and the least you can do is be polite back to me.
