Tag: employment

On Resignations and Breach of Contract

Sometimes in life we reach crossroads wherein the the path we are currently taking has take a sudden demise and we must choose another path. This is an inevitable part of life.

For Miguel Zubiri, his stint as a Senator has been tainted by doubt and controversies prompting him to resign from service and being dubbed as the first ever senator since 1987 to do so. At least, Zubiri still has a conscience. For indeed, how can a public servant continue serving the people if his own credibility is being questioned. In my opinion, he really didn’t want to be involved in all those cheating but he was included in the dagdag-bawas none the less. He thought he can get away it with, that is rather get away with it than try to oppose an administration which considered him an ally. Well, the tables have changed and his name is drag to the dirty waters. It’s time then to resign and accept defeat.

In the same light, I admire US Congressmen in particular those who were involved in scandalous sexual controversies. If you think about it, these seemingly noble statesmen just made the mistake of forging flirtatious relations with other women despite their being a family man. Posing semi-nude pictures were considered as a disgrace for these public servants. Faced with such controversies, they then stepped down from office even though they’ve had years of service behind them.

For me, these public servants had enough honor to know when the end is near and to admit defeat and resign from their office. Rather lose with dignity than pretend to be clean amid constant controversy. How I wish other public servants would do the same. But sadly, there remains many, some even in the highest echelons of power, who would never give up despite endless years of controversy. A case in example is none other than Ms. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo herself, ex-president and now congresswoman. Her name has been dragged into controversies after another ranging from judicial killings to nationwide electoral fraud yet she refuses to yield power. Rather than save face and lose with honor, she pushes forward, still acquiring power. Despite numerous evidences, court cases and massive protests against her, she remains steadfast in her goal to “serve the people”. But is she really serving the people if the people doesn’t want her?

Thankfully for these people, no one will hold it against them if they resign and do not finish their term. It would even be a welcome respite. But in the case of the corporate world, resignations when a contract has been agreed upon is deemed as a negative thing. It is basically unlawful to breach one’s contract especially when the only reason to do so is because the stress and pressure of the work was more than what was bargained for. To the employee, this should have been expected and anticipated prior to signing the contract. Often, resignations in this light are deemed as unethical and non-honorable.

The bottomline: before undertaking something like a job post, ensure that you got it through credible means, that while in the position you do your best to protect your credibility and that before you actually sign up for the job, you know all the costs (even the worst case scenario) involved with it.

 

on teaching and being a teacher

A writer in Peyups said that some people are born with a natural and innate ability to be a teacher. He said that there are people who are blessed with the gift of teaching and who are natural teachers. Teaching is just part of who they are. They are gifted with the ability to pass on knowledge that others can learn easily.

In my years as a student, I have indeed noticed that there are people who are innate teachers. I have had teachers who were not the experts in the field they’re teaching but who nonetheless can convey knowledge really effectively. Then there are also those who are experts in their field but are unable to convey their vast knowledge.

Early on, I knew that I had the natural ability to teach. It was apparent in how I share my knowledge with my peers; on how I coach them on certain subject matters. I have had no difficulties sharing knowledge in a way that people can learn from it. I do not spoon feed it but rather I know how to encourage someone to discover and learn it for themselves. Most of my volunteer works were centered on how I teach others. I teach kids most of the time and I know I’m effective at it. Results don’t lie. Neither do affirmation of parents and colleagues.

two of the kids I taught in Sunday School

And so it was but natural that one of the doors of opportunity open for me is teaching. I have been asked by my thesis adviser to consider teaching in the Institute. I have been encouraged by my aunts, family and bestfriend to try out teaching. I have no qualms that I can do it.

Yet I shied away from the prospect. After graduation, in my mind’s eye, I wanted to see the world. I wanted to experience the corporate setting and leave the school setting. I viewed teaching as being stuck in a routine on an environment I have been living in for the most part of my life. I wanted to discover what lay beyond the four corners of the classroom (figuratively).

So I set out to the corporate world. Armed with my business attires, I ventured forth. Only to be gravely disappointed and dismayed. (For more details, just refer to previous blogs about work.)

Now I am given yet another opportunity to go back to the academe. Whether I would peruse teaching methods or a master’s degree, is still too early for me to say at this point. But what I do know is that teaching is sounding more and more appealing by the minute.

I know I look like a person devoid of direction in life. I guess this happens when you have so many opportunities available and liberty to try them all out. When you find out one doesn’t work as good as you hoped it would, you try the next one. What happens then if in the end you find that all of them doesn’t work out to your satisfaction – you weigh out all options and go to the next best thing, I guess.

So there I’ve said it. Teaching, well here I come. And in the process I have to eat my words on how I would never want to be a teacher. Tsk.

 

D4DR gene mutation. I know I have it.

I don’t really know how to start this blog yet there is something I need to write down. Just to get it off my system. Or to dissect it even further. This won’t be an easy post. It is never easy admitting to the world that you have a character flaw. It is never easy admitting your were mistaken. It is even more difficult discussing your weaknesses. But weaknesses would forever remain such if they are not brought out into the open and discussed. No rational solution can be hoped to be achieved if the problem is never discussed. And such, I, once again, make myself vulnerable in the attempt to solve something or at least throw some light into it.

As I enter the corporate world or the working world and leave the predictable life of a student, I am aghast to note that though I have the skills and personality to survive in any corporate setting, I do not have enough of a willpower to do so. Devoid of any real motivation for working, like sending some siblings to school or helping the family out financially (not that we are well-off (we are not) but I am not obliged to help in any way except voluntarily), I find it very easy to become bored with what I do. When I look at my resume, I find that I have a lot of work experiences but none of them even lasted to a year. Not because I was not performing well, in fact I exceeded expectations, but because I became bored with the job and sought something better. Something more exciting.

I know, and I have been told, that I would never last in a routinary job like an office job. I need something that changes constantly and that puts me into pressures that would thrill me. I crave excitement and adventure all the time that a static job would bore me to death.

I am seriously alarmed and aghast to find the prediction coming true. I lose excitement easily. When I was working in the call center, the novelty was great for me. I had so much fun in the beginning. As days turned to weeks, and weeks turned to months, and the work became repetitive since I’ve mastered almost all of it, I became despondent. I shifted to medical transcription which was really working out all right but the pay and the company policies were questionable and I was forced to get out. I pursued freelance writing which was taxing deadlines piled one on top of the other. But after those weeks were done, I am left with a void. I can go ahead and accept new job offers and enter the same cycle but I dare not. No one wants to suffer another bout of low blood incidents and skin as pale as the Twilight vampires.

And the more alarming thing to all of these, is that I have no plans as to what I want to do next. Yes, I have thought of several options. I know I could really teach college (there have been hints of offers) and I know I could apply at any company I so desire (I am never at a lack for self-confidence and smooth words) but the drive to really make something happen is missing. There is no push, no internal motivation. I lament and I cry that I am like this. My bestfriend said that I have always been a structured person. Back in our high school days, she has known me to always have a plan – even if the first plan backfired, I have a spare. I have also always been full of goals. Goals to accomplish.

But I guess, the shifting around of those goals has left me somewhat goal-less. The goals all appear to be like shadows of a dream I once had that somehow I’ve lost the will to attain.

I know I have the D4DR mutation (see D4DR article). I need higher levels of dopamine than the rest. I understand that now. So what do I do? Seek out adventures on my own. Create my own thrills? My mom said I shouldn’t waste life sulking around the house, waiting for opportunities to present themselves. Indeed, I musn’t. She urges me to go out there, find some employment, not because I need to earn money badly but because I need the social company. Indeed I cannot lock myself up inside the house, under the pretense of freelance writing and with the internet as my social companion. Freelance writing is good. Writing, as I said countless of times, will always be my passion. Online social communities are nice. It is always great to meet real people virtually, whether they be clients or colleagues. Yet, I know that there is also more to life than just living a seemingly virtual existence.

So what are my plans now? Now that I have finally attained that long worked for diploma, where do I go from here? When I first “technically” graduated – that is when I finished all my subjects and have been free to get a full-time job, there were a lot of doors open for me. There were so many paths I could choose. Now that I have officially graduated – no more snags with the thesis – there are more doors than ever. But the doors are shrouded by a mist, a mist that only internal motivation and drive can lift up.

I know, subconciously, I have been sort of blaming a withering spiritual relationship for all of this. I keep thinking, if I fix this spiritual humdrum I am in, then I am sure the internal drive will return. But even with fixing that relationship, I am lacking motivation. Humbug! What has happened to me?

I must shake myself from this stupor. Get out there and start again. I am young. I am capable. And I know I can do it.

Besides, people with the D4DR mutation are more prone to psychological and psychiatric disorders when the dopamine levels they need are not met properly.

I don’t really know how to start this blog yet there is something I need to write down. Just to get it off my system. Or to dissect it even further. This won’t be an easy post. It is never easy admitting to the world that you have a character flaw. It is never easy admitting your were mistaken. It is even more difficult discussing your weaknesses. But weaknesses would forever remain such if they are not brought out into the open and discussed. No rational solution can be hoped to be achieved if the problem is never discussed. And such, I, once again, make myself vulnerable in the attempt to solve something or at least throw some light into it.

 

As I enter the corporate world or the working world and leave the predictable life of a student, I am aghast to note that though I have the skills and personality to survive in any corporate setting, I do not have enough of a willpower to do so. Devoid of any real motivation for working, like sending some siblings to school or helping the family out financially (not that we are well-off (we are not) but I am not obliged to help in any way except voluntarily), I find it very easy to become bored with what I do. When I look at my resume, I find that I have a lot of work experiences but none of them even lasted to a year. Not because I was not performing well, in fact I exceeded expectations, but because I became bored with the job and sought something better. Something more exciting.

I know, and I have been told, that I would never last in a routinary job like an office job. I need something that changes constantly and that puts me into pressures that would thrill me. I crave excitement and adventure all the time that a static job would bore me to death.

I am seriously alarmed and aghast to find the prediction coming true. I lose excitement easily. When I was working in the call center, the novelty was great for me. I had so much fun in the beginning. As days turned to weeks, and weeks turned to months, and the work became repetitive since I’ve mastered almost all of it, I became despondent. I shifted to medical transcription which was really working out all right but the pay and the company policies were questionable and I was forced to get out. I pursued freelance writing which was taxing deadlines piled one on top of the other. But after those weeks were done, I am left with a void. I can go ahead and accept new job offers and enter the same cycle but I dare not. No one wants to suffer another bout of low blood incidents and skin as pale as the Twilight vampires.

And the more alarming thing to all of these, is that I have no plans as to what I want to do next. Yes, I have thought of several options. I know I could really teach college (there have been hints of offers) and I know I could apply at any company I so desire (I am never at a lack for self-confidence and smooth words) but the drive to really make something happen is missing. There is no push, no internal motivation. I lament and I cry that I am like this. My bestfriend said that I have always been a structured person. Back in our high school days, she has known me to always have a plan – even if the first plan backfired, I have a spare. I have also always been full of goals. Goals to accomplish.

But I guess, the shifting around of those goals has left me somewhat goal-less. The goals all appear to be like shadows of a dream I once had that somehow I’ve lost the will to attain.

I know I have the D4DR mutation (see previous article). I need higher levels of dopamine than the rest. I understand that now. So what do I do? Seek out adventures on my own. Create my own thrills? My mom said I shouldn’t waste life sulking around the house, waiting for opportunities to present themselves. Indeed, I musn’t. She urges me to go out there, find some employment, not because I need to earn money badly but because I need the social company. Indeed I cannot lock myself up inside the house, under the pretense of freelance writing and with the internet as my social companion. Freelance writing is good. Writing, as I said countless of times, will always be my passion. Online social communities are nice. It is always great to meet real people virtually, whether they be clients or colleagues. Yet, I know that there is also more to life than just living a seemingly virtual existence.

So what are my plans now? Now that I have finally attained that long worked for diploma, where do I go from here? When I first “technically” graduated – that is when I finished all my subjects and have been free to get a full-time job, there were a lot of doors open for me. There were so many paths I could choose. Now that I have officially graduated – no more snags with the thesis – there are more doors than ever. But the doors are shrouded by a mist, a mist that only internal motivation and drive can lift up.

I know, subconciously, I have been sort of blaming a withering spiritual relationship for all of this. I keep thinking, if I fix this spiritual humdrum I am in, then I am sure the internal drive will return. But even with fixing that relationship, I am lacking motivation. Humbug! What has happened to me?

I must shake myself from this stupor. Get out there and start again. I am young. I am capable. And I know I can do it.

Besides, people with the D4DR mutation are more prone to psychological and psychiatric disorders when the dopamine levels they need are not met properly.

happy with freelancing

Freelancing.

I have heard of this before and I have been fascinated by the industry but I have always been hesitant to try it out. My hesitation stemmed from the fact that there is not much assurance of stability in the work I will enter. What if there are no jobs to be done or what if I am not able to sell my skills properly? And so even if I knew the advantages of freelancing, I never had the guts to try it out.

Until now.

I left my medical transcriptionist job, not because I hate the job per se, on the contrary I love it, but because I can’t take the company policies. Besides, my mom made a very valid point that I would fare better if I stay at home first, rest quite a bit (no one is forcing me to work, after all) and finish my ever-delayed thesis (and as such my hopelessly delayed graduation). Besides the pay for freelancing, whether it really would be stable or not, is way better than what I am currently earning.

So I made the switch. I must have had 3 job experiences already within the year! So much experience for someone barely out of college (technically).

But I am not complaining. By the “explorations” I’ve made I formed a pretty much clear picture (or goal) in my head on how to get rich without engaging in business (which I am not so keen to enter just now) or doing illegal stuff (which I will NEVER do).

For one, I found out that MT’s, really good ones, earn at least $9 an hour and some are even paid per line such that they earn really ludicrous amounts. Since I saw during my 4 weeks training that I have the skills to become a good (even excellent) MT (and I’m not bragging), I know that I could earn as much as several thousands a day doing home-based transcription work. But of course that’s a long way off because I would need proper training and perhaps a license to boost my credentials. Then perhaps I could pursue that application I have with RareJobs for online Japanese English Tutorials. Then I could continue my current freelancing writing jobs and maybe look for more.

In the end, I realize that employment opportunities for me are never endless. I just need to be brave enough to seek out the right ones and leave the wrong ones. And of course, there is no higher paying job than the job I once had with NuSkin. Perhaps in the future I will go back but for now I am content to remain where I am.

moving on…yet again

I guess I hit rock bottom when I took the cliff dive. A month ago I was so eager to make the jump that I must have jumped without really looking or thinking, that is. Not that I have any regrets for jumping – I relish the adrenaline rush of the thrilling escapade yet I will be a hypocrite if I feign success over what I did.

Nope. I was not successful. I fell, dear reader. I did. And the bruises hurt.

I love the job I have right now. There is nothing compared to the joy of figuring out the words being dictated – medical words that are really hard to understand coming from a non-native English speaker. The joy that rushes through my veins whenever I understand that the doctor was saying Coreg when all I can hear was courage is uncomparable.

Yet for all my praises for this job, equally are my disgrunts on how the company works. I know there are no perfect companies out there but this company exceeds the limit. For one there is the constant dispute over our very minimal salary. I learned today that PGS stands for President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo Scholars. We are called PGS trainees at work. I learned that PGS were given something like 10k, half of which goes to the company and half to the trainee or training costs I figure. This would include our allowance. What I do not understand then is how come, with such a fair amount of budget, are we entitled to get only a hefty 50php allowance per day? And to think we are already learning account specifics. Shouldn’t it be that when one trangresses to learning about account specifics they earn higher, possibly not a trainee’s allowance but an employee’s wage? Sad to say that it not my case.

And yesterday, when my mom learned that we were the ones who would still have to laminate our IDs and pay for our ID cords, she was astounded – urging me not to report to work any longer and to quit from the training. She goes further to state that by what she observes of my current health status, the allowance won’t even cover for my medical bills.

Furthermore, she states that I do not need to really work – a daughter’s dream, I must say. How many kids now a days can hear their parents tell them that they must not work yet? That the parents would still be willing to shoulder their kids’ expenses? In reality, my mom just wanted me to stop tiring myself out in a work that promises no higher compensation for the amount of work I put in.

She further urged that I could always do freelancing especially now that I can see the potential I have in that field. Working at home does seem like a very appealing idea especially when your alarm rings at 5 am on a very rainy morning.

Yet I procastinate. I must give my intent to leave now – if they will let me go, I really do not think so – not after the performance I’ve set in in the past weeks (Trainee of the Week for 2 weeks.. hmm..). But I want to leave. I do want to rest for a while. Not be employed but rather stay at home doing odd jobs or freelance jobs. Not answering to any boss. Working at my own convenient time. Of course there are downsides to it but that is yet to be explored. 😀

I may get in trouble for this. I hope not though. In the end, I realized that although mental satisfaction can be provided by a job, compensation or salary is still an important consideration for work satisfaction. And if one or the other is not met, work quality suffers in the end.

regularization !?!?

I signed my regularization papers today. For all my talk about boredom, disillusionment and dissatisfaction I still managed to last 6 months in the job enough to be regularized. And it wasn’t a bad 6 months because I managed to earn a score that would allow me a 15% salary increase – not the maximum increase possible though.

When I saw the paper, and the amount of my increase, I was tempted not to sign it. I couldn’t bear in my heart to accept what was written. My eyes had tears – not of delight but of disappointment. I remember the time when I was almost finished with school; I told my roommates that when I apply for a job I would not settle for a gross salary less than Php15, 000. Well I was idealistic then and I was in Manila. I believed that I was worth that much and I could earn that much. (How ironic when I had already experienced a work where I could earn a monthly way, way higher than Php15K. But that is another story.)

Things and circumstances have changed then. I am now working in the provinces, in a job that is supposedly high-paying but is actually not, and with a salary that even with the 15% increase would still take about 2 months to become Php15K. A far cry from my expectations right?

Of course I don’t really mind the small salary (most of the times) because I’m living with my parents and as such I have no solid obligations like rent and lodging, unlike when I was living independently back in my college days. My only obligations now are the DSL bill and the wants of my siblings, the latter of which is optional, subject to my goodwill. But one always have a sort of life one wants to lead and time will come when I will venture out in the world once more – again an independent soul. When that time comes I’m afraid my salary may not be at par.

My mom reprimanded me for having such high expectations. I should have lowered my expectations in life and in work so as not to be gravely disappointed. A friend also told me that I am too idealistic and have too high expectations of things and that I should change that – be more pragmatic and lower my expectations in life. I countered, “So I should lower my standards then.” He said not the standards, just the expectations. But aren’t they the same? Don’t you have high expectations because you have high standards? One of the things I’ve learned in life is one should expect the best of a person always, so that one would live up to that expectation and thus perform at his best. Doesn’t that translate to life or situations as well?

I do not deny that I have high expectations for myself and my life. Just as I have high hopes and dreams. I do not want to settle for something less than that. I know my capacity and what I can do or achieve. I cannot rest if I know that I am not fully taking advantage of what I have or who I am. I will forever yearn to make the most of myself always. I cannot settle for mediocrity.

Now do you blame me for resigning from this job when everyone seems to be telling me to stay put for practicality’s sake? If I stay, say another 6 months, I believe that by then I would have been reduced to mediocrity. All the fire within me will have been extinguished and I may be reduced to living a sub-standard life with no passion or flame or desire for the stars.

I will not let that happen.

a rare moment of insanity (and irresponsibility)

I know it was immature and irresponsible. I know it goes against all my principles and my personality. But I had to do it. I had to be irresponsible and immature – just for once. Just this one time. 

 

Why? I cannot exactly tell. Maybe it was a way of telling the world (or myself) that I can also go against the tide; that I can also be reckless to the point of stupidity; irresponsible to the point of foolishness. A lot will berate me for my foolishness; my inconsideration. But although it was a regrettable action, I can’t help but admit that if you strip the regrets and the disappointment, I’m actually glad of what I did. I actually believe that what I did resulted to more good than harm – for me and my work, even for my sanity.

 

depression460What the heck am I talking about? Simple. I just went NCNS (no call, no show) from work the day before my day-off. You could also call it AWOL (absence without leave). And although I was perfectly aware of the protocol, I disregarded it, doing things my own way. My reason? I don’t want to add insult to injury by giving a lie, however conceivable, to my planned absence. I wasn’t absent because I had some excusable sickness. I was absent because I simply wanted to. Because I felt that my sanity demands it. I know the consequences of my absence. I knew what would be affected. I was prepared to face it. I accepted the consequences. Furthermore, I knew that no serious part of my job would be compromised. Heck! The company or queue could survive a day (or night) without me. 

 

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