Working at a Call Centre

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I recently moved to Argentina, due to problems in my own country (Venezuela). It was a no-other-choice matter, so I left my family and now I'm here, working at a German call centre. I find it really stressful, cuz clients call all day and complain about too many things and sometimes I just can't solve their issues since the system does not allow it. I've been feeling too sad cuz I miss my family and I feel so alone and incompetent, cuz I can't understand their emotions and how they feel, and I'd say my job is around 80% about it. Sometimes I feel like I want to cry, but I seldom cry, so I just "man up" and keep doing it. There's nothing else I can do, I abandoned my studies back in Venezuela thanks to the neverending crisis, so I have no degree and the "find another job" option is simply not plausible.

Maybe some of you out there have suffered the same problem, I'd like to read your experiences and advice.

Thanks and sorry for the sad ambient, haha.

It's not fair what's happening in Venezuela. I'm sorry you had to interrupt your studies because of what's happening there.

I'm glad you got a position at the call center. You're a pretty smart person if you know how to speak German, in addition to Spanish and English. I would tend to think you are rather fortunate to have picked up such a position. Still, you have to make sure they don't exploit you, and pay you at least what the minimum wage is. And follow rules on taking lunch, breaks, and such.

I think it is smart that you are "sticking it out," rather than giving up. That's the nature of the call center business---dealing with customers. Just ignore the ones who abuse you. Or report abuse to your boss, especially if the boss would be receptive to your concerns.

I would assume they record your phone conversations with customers, so the "evidence" is right there.

Would you have the opportunity to attend university in Argentina?

Thank you for taking your time and having replied to my post!

Yes, what's happening in Venezuela is really sad, and I actually couldn't learn German at a Language course, cuz that would have been too much for my parents, so I decided to teach myself the language.

This is actually a good job, I earn around 600 dollars a month, (which is very good according to Argentinian standards, and a dream come true according to Venezuelan ones). It allows me to help out my family and live in Buenos Aires.

The job's okay, what I find stressful is...well, I don't know how to cope with our clients' emotions. My boss is very understanding and she's been telling me that sometimes all I should do is try to convince the clients that I just can't do what they want me to do, cuz I'm not allowed to it, but that means I must make them feel empathy for me, or at least pity me...and I can't do that. I've never had to do it, so I don't know what to do. I learn really fast, but when it comes to feelings and people...oh, God, I'm clueless.

Yes, you can't solve everyone's problems. But, an Aspie can be very helpful in explaining what is available and what can be done to help. The emotional distance can be useful in providing solutions.

Well, the thing is, I'm emotional, but I just don't understand emotions and shut them down, as if they suddenly did not exist anymore.

I hate being yelled at and sometimes clients ask me questions and I don't know what I'm allowed to say or not. I'm always dreading incoming calls. I've tried to classify calls and imagine what the clients could possibly tell me, but there are just sooo many cases that it just does not work.

You will get experience, and get better at it.

Most people don't do too well at the beginning of any job.

Also: Take advantage of the fact that Buenos Aires is considered "The Paris of South America." And make sure you get warm clothes for the winter. It is frequently below 10 Celsius at night in the winter; once in a while, it might get below zero Celsius. They had a few snowflakes in 2007. Much cooler than Caracas in the winter.

I am sorry that you are going through the stress of being away from family in another country, doing a job that adds more stress to the mix. I do not know good answers. Over the years I worked many, many types of jobs. Every job I did introduced me to more skills. I enjoyed learning and generally did the best I could in each job. These skills gave me the ability to branch off into other areas and I took joy in becoming very versatile.

Things are rough in Venezuela. You are like a lifeline for your family. If things get worse before they get better, your family may need you, they may need that lifeline. So I guess if I was giving advice it would be:
Keep close contact with your family the best you can.
"Man up" for the time being.
And pray a lot that conditions will get dramatically better in Venezuela and you can return home.

Oh, you're probably right, I've only been working here for two months, but I'm impatient and always love to do everything as perfectly as possible.

Oh, right! I'm not from Caracas, though, haha. I'm from a neighbouring city, Valencia, which is much hotter, haha.

I was here in Argentina last winter, but not in Buenos Aires. I loved it, though I've been told winter is much harsher here than where I was last year.

All this seasons thing is crazy! We have no seasons in Venezuela, only a never ending summer with a dry a rainy "season", each lasting 6 months.

All you can do is convey to the customers the solutions to their problems that you know of/are trained on.

Sometimes, it's not you that's causing the yelling---it's them. They might have had a bad day or something.

Just make sure you are in "business mode" at all times.

You will get better at this. I can assure you.

New York winters are much colder than Buenos Aires winters----but Buenos Aires winters are much colder than the winters in most of South America.

I worked part-time at a call center while I transitioned from unemployed to full-time employed. At times it was hard. Here are a few strategies to help you.

If you have an extremely difficult call, step away from the phones for a few moments, if you are allowed to. Sometimes you have to "debrief" by talking about a call to a supervisor, and then you relax enough to get back to the phone.

As you gain more experience, you will probably learn things you can offer a customer when what they are asking for is something not allowed. That might be something like a small credit on their account, reversing a late charge, something like that.

I found people were nicer if you acted like you understood where they were coming from, even though you couldn't fix things for them. Phrases like "I'm so sorry that happened to you" and "Let me update your account so this doesn't happen again." You'll learn some of these in time.

Learn what options you have for "escalating" a call. There may be actions you are not authorized to do, but a supervisor might be. People understand that the first person they talk to may not be able to help, but a manager might be a better person to talk to. In a call like this, you can (1) empathize with the caller ("I'm so sorry that happened to you!"), (2) make them understand you recognize their problem, and (3) get them off your line.

Hang in there. It gets better with time.