Something I Learned in Tech Support

"Man, that lady sounded mad about it."
"Yeah, well she wouldn't be calling if she didn't have a problem."

There it is. I learned something in that interaction with one of my coworkers. Much of my customer service experience comes from Restaurant Land and it's given me a tremendous amount of experience with people who are mad about something or another. The big difference is that people generally don't go to a restaurant because there's a problem. They go to a restaurant to eat, drink, and be merry. When someone's calling tech support it's because there's a problem. They're not calling to have a good time. That's not to say that most people who call are really mad. Most people are cool and just want a solution to their problem. Nevertheless, underlying even the kindest person's call is something negative that needs to be resolved. They'd rather not ever talk to you.

Yeah, you could say that hunger is a problem that a restaurant is looking to solve but most people aren't frustratingly hungry and mad about it. Yes, again, you can argue against that, too, but I'm speaking in generalities. Most people who go to a restaurant are there for positive reasons. Most people who call tech support are there for negative reasons.

Either way, the duty of the employee is to ameliorate the customer's woes and make sure they leave happy and satisfied. As a server or a retail clerk or a help desk technician or a car salesman, your duty is the same: make sure the customer leaves happy.

election day unemployment rambling ruminations

In the midst of my current joblessness, I've been feeling a resurgence of rebelliousness. I'm being radicalized by unemployment. I can feel it happening. Of course I'm going to feel bad things towards a system that isn't currently working for me. It's the story of radicals around the world. Do you think most suicide bombers come from good economic situations?

It's a matter of national security for the US to strengthen its economy. Otherwise the likelihood of homegrown terrorism grows signficantly.

I'm suggesting that the preponderance of nontraditional work schedules is a threat to national security. Such schedules cause, continue, and exacerbate the disillusionment of workers. People with chaotic living patterns are drawn towards job with chaotic schedules ungrounded in reality. Nontraditional work schedules are bad for this country.

Everybody agrees that it's nice to have weekends and holidays off, but they're afraid to demand it. After a handful of years in the bar/restaurant industry I'm tired of working when everyone else is playing and relaxing. I got into that world because I wanted to be with people, but what it ends up doing is confining you to the shiftless, limited group of bar/restaurant people and college students and the unemployed. I mean, who else doesn't need to be up in the morning? On a Tuesday?

We've created a consumer world where we expect to be able to shop and buy things and get tech support every freakin second of the day, all week long, all year long...never stopping, never taking a break...always there.

What do we really need at all times? The cops, firefighters, EMTs, constantly aloft nuclear-armed bombers...all these things I acknowledge as needing to be at hand at all times. But is it really right to think it's OK for that cook to be grilling your steak at 10:30 PM when he should be home with his wife and kids? Is it his fault that he took the job? Or is your fault for creating the need?

From serving to soldering...

Recently I registered for my first class at Pensacola Junior College in my quest to get an Associate in Applied Science degree in Electronics Engineering Technology. Talk about a career change: switching from being a restaurant/bar work to an electronics technician. Given my epicly bad academic history, it'll be interesting to see how this particular academic adventure goes. I think it'll be a good one.

The class I've registered for is called Introduction to Computers in Technology.

A first computer course, geared to providing technology students with a working knowledge of computer hardware and software related to their vocation. This course focuses on five concepts; basic keyboarding, word processing, computer hardware, operating systems, and basic computer maintenance.

I just hope the class is up to date because farther down in the description it says the student will learn to operate Windows 3.1. Windows 3.1!? That's what I had on my computer when I graduated from high school 14 years ago.

From the world of food and drinks to computers and circuit boards. Woohoo!!!

I thought she actually liked me!

What a wild and wacky planet we live on.

But if you yourself are starting to worry that you are a prostitute , help is at hand from the kindly bouncers at Zapatas- Shanghai’s premier place to hear the Grease mega-mix 6 times a week.

Are you a prostitute? In my handful of years in the bar/restaurant industry, I can't say I've ever had to boot someone for being a prostitute or heard of someone prostituting who didn't know that's what they were doing...unless you count those chicks who go after the solitary older guy sitting at the bar who looks wealthy...