The Final Countdown
3 days to go.
Beginning Monday, I have to go back to living the life of an office drone - not just any company mind you - a senior office drone for the top local company in the country.
I just realized that as of today, my resume is 5 pages long. All those companies, and all those experiences, now etched in laser printer carbon and saved as 1s and 0s on disk.
As much as i often left with a heavy heart or an empty wallet, most of the companies i worked for seemed lost without me. Seriously, let's see the scorecard:
1st job: Publishing Firm - Monthly Magazine
- part-time contributor (during college)
- hired as staff writer upon graduation
- promoted to Associate Editor in 3 months
Company status when i left: Bankrupt/Closed
2nd job: Local distributor of Apple Computers (pre-iMac)
- started as technical writer for 4th Dimension database programs
- transferred to PR department as PR writer
- concurrent editor in chief of monthly newsletter
- concurrent lead business writer
- PR assistant for major marketing events
Company status when i left: Bankrupt/Closed
3rd job: International IT Consulting firm
- technical writer for CICS (contractual for 9 months)
Company status when i left: Company still strong, department dissolved
4th job: Top local food manufacturing conglomerate
- Assistant to the chairman of the board
- stand-in to chamber of commerce and barangay meetings
- communications officer
- admin officer
- assistant in election matters
- built (really!) company's first web site
Company status when i left: Forced to sell major divisions, now operating with bare staffing.
5th job: Executive Assistant - real estate marketing firm
- Assistant to the President
- business development officer
- HR Manager
- IT specialist
- advertising director
Company status when i left: bankrupt/closed. Office equipment held by building until payment of rent.
6th job: Sales Manager - Engineering and chemical maintenance company
- Sales Manager for centralized a/c units, mechanical engineering repair, and duct cleaning
- made sales worth 3.8 million on a quota of 700,000.
Company status when i left: Engineering division closed. Chemical maintenance division operating under loss.
7th job: Technical Writer - International Image and Video Editing Software
- started as technical writer
- created a 200 page user's guide by myself on second try
- promoted to marketing writer by the 2nd year
- earned two trips to attend meetings in Taipei
- you can see my name on the software when you click "about"
Company status when i left: shortly after i left, a hostile takeover came from a rival company. Mass resignations in the worldwide HQ. Company is now part of the rival corporation. The local office operates on a skeletal workforce (except for tech support).
8th job: Operations Manager
- assistant to sad bald man (just a division)
- operations manager
- recruitment
- advertising consultant
- copy editor
- program and events director
- video, image and flash presentation maker
- business analysis
Company status after i left: key members resigned. Sales down. operations in disarray. Yet to find a replacement for me that works the same.
With all that, who would say that i can't hold a job?
Apart from the fact that i didn't give reasons for leaving, it's chilling to note that companies i left see to crumble. My siblings insist i carry a curse.
In fairness, most of the time i left a company when there is no need for my skills. Due to the arrogance of my youth, I used to think that i should join companies on the verge of being great and that my contributions would help it propel faster. I thought that working for big corporations was boring and routine.
Given my short stint as a freelancer, i realized the problem was me. I was too restless, and kept asking for more work, when i should be concentrating on just doing my job and making my work better. I never refused a challenge, when all i had to do was shore up the frontline.
I'm grateful for this chance. I'm excited to finally work in a very established company that includes taking care of its employees as part of the corporate culture. I'll be glad to have a defined role in an organization. I'll be glad to show up and show them what my combined experience has done for me.
Most of all, i'll be glad to breathe some fresh air.
The kind you get outside the house.
Don't get me wrong. I like freelancing. I didn't even apply for this dream job, but somehow my name was called. I had to take it because i'll be sorry if i didn't.
Beginning Monday, I have to go back to living the life of an office drone - not just any company mind you - a senior office drone for the top local company in the country.
I just realized that as of today, my resume is 5 pages long. All those companies, and all those experiences, now etched in laser printer carbon and saved as 1s and 0s on disk.
As much as i often left with a heavy heart or an empty wallet, most of the companies i worked for seemed lost without me. Seriously, let's see the scorecard:
1st job: Publishing Firm - Monthly Magazine
- part-time contributor (during college)
- hired as staff writer upon graduation
- promoted to Associate Editor in 3 months
Company status when i left: Bankrupt/Closed
2nd job: Local distributor of Apple Computers (pre-iMac)
- started as technical writer for 4th Dimension database programs
- transferred to PR department as PR writer
- concurrent editor in chief of monthly newsletter
- concurrent lead business writer
- PR assistant for major marketing events
Company status when i left: Bankrupt/Closed
3rd job: International IT Consulting firm
- technical writer for CICS (contractual for 9 months)
Company status when i left: Company still strong, department dissolved
4th job: Top local food manufacturing conglomerate
- Assistant to the chairman of the board
- stand-in to chamber of commerce and barangay meetings
- communications officer
- admin officer
- assistant in election matters
- built (really!) company's first web site
Company status when i left: Forced to sell major divisions, now operating with bare staffing.
5th job: Executive Assistant - real estate marketing firm
- Assistant to the President
- business development officer
- HR Manager
- IT specialist
- advertising director
Company status when i left: bankrupt/closed. Office equipment held by building until payment of rent.
6th job: Sales Manager - Engineering and chemical maintenance company
- Sales Manager for centralized a/c units, mechanical engineering repair, and duct cleaning
- made sales worth 3.8 million on a quota of 700,000.
Company status when i left: Engineering division closed. Chemical maintenance division operating under loss.
7th job: Technical Writer - International Image and Video Editing Software
- started as technical writer
- created a 200 page user's guide by myself on second try
- promoted to marketing writer by the 2nd year
- earned two trips to attend meetings in Taipei
- you can see my name on the software when you click "about"
Company status when i left: shortly after i left, a hostile takeover came from a rival company. Mass resignations in the worldwide HQ. Company is now part of the rival corporation. The local office operates on a skeletal workforce (except for tech support).
8th job: Operations Manager
- assistant to sad bald man (just a division)
- operations manager
- recruitment
- advertising consultant
- copy editor
- program and events director
- video, image and flash presentation maker
- business analysis
Company status after i left: key members resigned. Sales down. operations in disarray. Yet to find a replacement for me that works the same.
With all that, who would say that i can't hold a job?
Apart from the fact that i didn't give reasons for leaving, it's chilling to note that companies i left see to crumble. My siblings insist i carry a curse.
In fairness, most of the time i left a company when there is no need for my skills. Due to the arrogance of my youth, I used to think that i should join companies on the verge of being great and that my contributions would help it propel faster. I thought that working for big corporations was boring and routine.
Given my short stint as a freelancer, i realized the problem was me. I was too restless, and kept asking for more work, when i should be concentrating on just doing my job and making my work better. I never refused a challenge, when all i had to do was shore up the frontline.
I'm grateful for this chance. I'm excited to finally work in a very established company that includes taking care of its employees as part of the corporate culture. I'll be glad to have a defined role in an organization. I'll be glad to show up and show them what my combined experience has done for me.
Most of all, i'll be glad to breathe some fresh air.
The kind you get outside the house.
Don't get me wrong. I like freelancing. I didn't even apply for this dream job, but somehow my name was called. I had to take it because i'll be sorry if i didn't.
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