When I was in my final year in college, me and my friends were convinced that going to a BPO or ‘call center’ to work was a thing the under privileged did. But fate had a different plan. It was going to teach me that working in a Call Center was not a sin. How?

It had just been 2 months after completeing my last exam at college and I was sitting relaxed at home one evening when I recieved a call from a consultant asking me If I was interested in a Job at a renowned BPO. Well, you know how nagging these consultants can get and she finally got me to come to chennai the next day. And what do you know? I was selected in the fist ever Interview I had attended in my life.

The salary was great… Or atleast that was what I thought at the time…. So I thought, Why not? I can become a software Engineer any day. For the time being, I got a Job and something to do rather than heating my rear at home. At first, the experience and the thought of talking to a person in a different country about something I was only 40% sure of was really scary. Then the day came finally and I was sitting in front of a computer with a headset on and waiting for my first call to pop up on a grey phone with a lot of extra buttons. I still remember when the phone rang and my heart skipped a beat. But I finally managed to start, ‘Thank you for calling……………..’. Ghost call!!! Phew! now that wasn’t too bad. There I was sitting again waiting for the next call and the following 20 more calls to follow in the same suite. But I was wrong and the other end of that second call had a Lunatic whos computer stopped working because he had bought our phone service!!!???

But after those few calls, I started to like the Job. It felt great when a customer appreciated you for for your extra-ordinary skills(Even though you had only restarted his computer). There was a certain kind of ‘Job Satisfaction’ in taking calls. The results of your toil are immediate. And recognition for your effort was always there. Not Just that. The work environment was awesome. Work was fun and you never feel as if you’re working. Sitting among guys and gals of your same age group, chit-chatting with friendly people from the other side of the Globe and trying to dump heaps of Ice on their heads just to get 1 CSAT was a totally different experience. It’s true that there are pressures and hardships. But that was just to tone and shape the person we are today. By the way who doesn’t have problems?

My Life in a BPO was not only interesting but also taught me a lot. It has groomed me to the person I am today. I really miss those days and though I may not want to go back and do the same Job, a part of me still yearns for those times.