Wednesday, January 03, 2007

CALL OF THE WILD

Was on the phone with Comcast for an hour trying to resolve internet connectivity issues.

Three years ago, I was a tech support guy answering phone calls from American customers for SBC Yahoo DSL. Today, I'm sitting in Detroit talking to Candice from Comcast. Feels good! Not that I ever considered working in call centers demeaning, but for the kind of person I was, I struggled with a few things:

1. My ureter had to wait for the call queue to diminish.
2. I had to rush down to cafeteria, wait in queue, gulp my food, and walk back to call floor within thirty minutes. Felt like a junior artiste in the video of the Pink Floyd song "We don't need no education".
3. Social life after call center became like actress Simran's career after marriage.

Whenever I'm pissed about my current job, I think about my life in the call center, and I find a lot to be thankful for!

9 comments:

Jeevan said...

Your Profile pic was Super!

Karthik Srinivasan said...

Social life after call center became like actress Simran's career after marriage

hee hee... btw, do u know that Slimran..chee Simran is back to acting with a Telugu film opp the great comedian Balakrishna?? :-))

Paavai said...

Call centers do have a way of dehumaizing. Dont want to sit on judgement over the practices there - but it is a different world altogether.

Glad you find this job better than the call center one in India.

When u say all places are the same, it applies more to US of A than any where else, in my opinion.Wall mart, target, Office depot, staples, chillies, roads, traffic, suburbs ... all the same anywhere except for probably for nature .. snow capped mountains in Utah and beaches of Florida.

Vinesh said...

@jeevan: thanks jeevan!

@karthik srinivasan: oh my god! lucky her!

@paavai: hey, romba naaLaa kaaNom? u are probably right about the US in that aspect- hadn't looked at it that way.

Anonymous said...

Vine as far as i'm concerned i really like customer service...but thats actually a very difficult task, satisfying the customer! When i used to take calls and faced irrate customer...used to think they r so rude?? but i understd that when i call up hutch or airtel or reliance customer service:-(

Kausikram Krishnasayee said...

Pink Floyd song "We don't need no education". .wow thats an awesome good song .i tried to sing it for anual day .got through .sarman .calling it an englis thaii vazhtu .but rats the nirmala!!

Matty said...

tatz true...sometimes me too pissed about my current assignment..yet another brick in the wall :)....but in my case the previous job was better!!!

Vinesh said...

@rathi: serve as others serve you? :-)

@kausikram krishnasayee: hahahahaha! i sang Breathless (Shankar Mahadevan) in college and i had to change "prem kahaani" to "preeth kahaani" or something silly like that.

@matty: oh no!

Mythreyee said...

Candice-a? kandippaa theriyuma that she wasnt pushpavalli from neyveli-nu??? :D :D :D