"linksys told me to call you. they say i have a PEBKAC error."

September 22, 2010 1:49 AM

I work second shift (5pm-2am) in a high volume call center. Please help me preserve my sanity.

I'm single, 25, male, and I work tech support for a cable carrier. It's been an ok job with steady pay for just over three years. I gross higher than most 25 year olds with no college. In fact I am pretty darn lucky for someone in my demographic to even be employed full time.

Anyway, about a month ago I was assigned this shift. Friday thru Tuesday. Not my druthers. To exacerbate things, recent changes affecting our customers have driven calls to where I must answer them back to back. It causes a good deal of mental anguish for me. At the end of my shift I am usually brain dead but still wired as a physical response to being agitated in a cubicle. Sleep rarely comes before 5am. Even with quitting caffeine, waking up earlier, aerobic exercise before and after work.

My bandmates also have differing schedules so playing with them has gone from being once or twice a week to maybe once a month. This is probably the most saddening part about these circumstances. Social interaction has also grinded to a halt. But it still feels like a candle burning on both ends.

It is my intention to go back to school come spring term. When that time comes, changing my schedule will not be a problem. pell grants and other factors may even allow me to quit. But until then, I need to find a way to deal with both my intense boredom and physical effects of call center stress. I'm thinking there are a few minds out there with some wisdom to share on this.

posted by triceryclops to Work & Money (13 answers total)

Call centers can suck the life out of you. Make sure you're getting enough sleep, eating right, and exercising when you can.

Two things that have helped me with stress in general:

Theta Meditation cd. I like all of his stuff, but the Theta Renewal part 1 is quite good.

And then because I suck at meditation on my own, I find this very helpful, though there was a learning curve.
posted by Issithe at 2:43 AM on September 22, 2010 [2 favorites]

If I read this right, you're exercising after work. Maybe doing the guided meditation suggested above instead of the workout will help you wind down from your day.
posted by PorcineWithMe at 3:54 AM on September 22, 2010

It is always possible to keep in touch with people by email, even when you are not awake at the same time of day. If this is not enough, it is certainly possible to find other people who have similar schedules to your own - but in your case, when you expect your current schedule to be temporary anyway, it may not be a good idea to develop a whole new social life based on the night-shift schedule, which you will only have to abandon when you resume a more normal schedule.

Reward yourself for making the sacrifices that you do. Makes sure that you are still doing things that you enjoy, eating foods that you particularly like, seeing movies that you want to see (even if you have to rent them on DVD) and so forth.
posted by grizzled at 5:54 AM on September 22, 2010

I think you probably should just accept that you're going to be going to bed at 5 AM. You have a stressful job, get off work at 2 AM, and expect to be asleep immediately? No. You need to get home, eat dinner, and relax for a bit. Watch TV, read a book. If you got off work at 5PM, you wouldn't berate yourself for not being able to get to sleep until 8, would you?

Can your band practice either on weekend days (when maybe you are all off work), or whatever evenings you have off?
posted by kestrel251 at 6:22 AM on September 22, 2010

Also, time to find a new job? Since you already have a job, this puts you higher up the list than most candidates (the job market is screwy that way), plus there's no pressure to take the first company that says yes.

It's well established that shift work like this is very stressful: don't work yourself into an earlier grave just for the sake of a call centre job.
posted by pharm at 7:26 AM on September 22, 2010

When working in a call center I found it helpful to move around when I could, even on calls - stand up and stretch, crouch down and put my head on the desk, contract various muscles when needed. There are desk yoga web pages out there you might want to check out. It helped with the fatigue and endless staring at my screen.

I've also found melatonin to be helpful with getting to sleep at odd hours - it's just the hormone that our own bodies produce when sleepy. I agree with others that you need a little decompression time, but that might help you shorten it.
posted by ldthomps at 7:41 AM on September 22, 2010

*gets in same boat*

While I don't have the exact shift you do, I do have a less-than-desirable shift in a call center for credit card fraud, so I can offer a few of the things I do to de-stress.

During breaks, go for a walk outside, even if it's just around the building. Keep a stress ball or similar squishy item at your desk (even play-doh or silly putty or something). I don't know about you, but working with my hands helps. Also: tea, if you like it. I do enjoy my cups of coffee, but during a stressful day, a nice cup of tea helps calm me down.

I don't know about how your workplace is, but can you post for a different position within the same company, or even department, with a better schedule? Do you do shift bids by seniority/review rating, etc? Can you bid for a better shift?
posted by Verdandi at 7:41 AM on September 22, 2010

Seconding keeping something at the desk to fidget with. I worked in a call center this summer for a rather popular smart phone during the launch of their latest version and the only thing that kept me sane was my ability to talk and knit at the same time. And twirling in my chair and generally not sitting still. When I could look somewhere else, like not the computer screen in front of me, or focus on something else with part of my brain, like counting stitches in the scarf I was knitting, I was able to be much, much more zen with customers on the phone and that monotone placating voice just started falling out of my mouth. And I didn't kill anyone, so that's good.
posted by LokiBear at 7:49 AM on September 22, 2010

Slow down on the phone. Back to back calls, resolving the same issue over and over, can make you talk faster, and use more verbal shorthand. Callers will respond to a slower rate of speech by being a little less crazed. When the caller says "I was on hold forever, I hate the ads on the hold muzak, and I pay a fortune for this service that is not working" keep saying,
- Yes, that's really frustrating,
- I hate ads when I'm on hold, too,
- Let's see if we can get that fixed,
- Thanks for being patient; we hate to keep people waiting so long.

I find that when I address the caller's reasonable frustrations, they are nicer to me, and calls are less stressful for both of us. Also, your calls will take a little longer, which gives you some relief. And your call numbers aren't going to be a problem since you aren't planning to be a permanent employee.

Call centers are expected to provide really efficient service, but in the long run, quality service, with adequate time to assist callers, is better for the company.
posted by theora55 at 8:25 AM on September 22, 2010 [1 favorite]

I worked nights in a call center for a while, and the best thing for me was going outside and taking a walk in the dark on my break. It was tremendously soothing emotionally, and the movement helped keep me wakeful. That and blackout curtains were the things keeping me sane.

That being said, I found a better job after less than six months on nights, and I'm not sure I would have made it more than a year without losing my mind.
posted by restless_nomad at 8:34 AM on September 22, 2010

Here was my answer from last time.
posted by winna at 8:34 AM on September 22, 2010

Take care of yourself. Don't start smoking. Eat fresh fruit and vegetables. Pretend like the vending machines in the break room are perpetually broken and will not dispense junk food no matter how tempting it looks. Don't drink to excess on your days off with "work's hard" as the excuse. Get enough sleep.

I worked night shift for years, and my favorite trick is to tape white foam core poster board to the windows. It blocks the light nearly as well as tinfoil, but it's effectively invisible from the outside (i.e. to the neighbors). You can buy it at office supply stores.

Identify a path out of front-line support, and claw your way into it. I escaped by becoming very good with the technical side, and getting into the escalated support pool. And from there, to proper sysadminnery.

There are also usually management tracks and routes into the training department. Figure out which department you'd best be suited for, and work hard to get there. At the very least the effort will give you a sense of control over your own destiny, and a route out of your call center hell.
posted by ErikaB at 11:45 AM on September 22, 2010

But until then, I need to find a way to deal with both my intense boredom and physical effects of call center stress.

And the emotional labour, too. So you may find yourself transferring the habits of your workday life to your home life, feeling like you need to be of service to your friends and flatmates. Or you may rebel and want to be self-indulgent and irresponsible at home since you have to be all obsequious on the job. Watch yourself for either tendency.
posted by brainwane at 12:16 PM on September 22, 2010