Day 2: Security questions and a shoe

Today can be summed up with this scene: I'm in the changing room at the Y gearing up for my run, pulling my clothes from my bag:  Top, tights, socks, and a running shoe.  A single shoe.  

This is why I pack important stuff the night before and didn't run.  Exhaustion.

Today's training consisted of only two hours of powerpoint.  This training reminds me of my semester in theology school: the total onslaught of new vocabulary for concepts I've used but without the technical know-how.   My inanely basic questions no-doubt irk the finance majors in the class.  But, everything is brand new to me.  I have a savings account, checking account, IRA, credit card, etc.; however, I haven't thought about them from the industry's standpoint.  It's the difference between reading Genesis on your own as a spiritual story, and then taking a class on it to analyze its structure, historicity, and authorship.

Then after lunch, I received my employee number and now have a computer log-in.  I had to answer my security questions and come up with passwords. Then we actually worked in three of the computer systems that we'll be using on training modules (so not to wreak too much havoc).  I've watched other people use them.  I felt like a monkey mimicking her trainer.

Observing people work has been trickier than I expected.  The first girl I observed was the best.  She was polite, honest, helpful, and methodical.  The next guy seemed impatient and didn't really engage with the members.  He presumed he understood their questions.  He actually said, "She had no idea what she wanted."  He hung up on another member.  The second girl was equally disappointing.

As I think about the position while I observe coworkers and listen to the instructors, I realize that I will have to make this into my job.  I'm still on a job hunt, and I will always be. There will always be some dissonance between the ideal and the reality. I'll have have to decide consciously what my job is every day.  I was drawn to this business because their motto is  "Do the right thing," and I want to follow it.  But, it'll be a lot like my seventh graders following the rules and rising above peer pressure.  I have a choice of who I am in every situation, especially this one.

It is as my uncle responded via email to my last post: "But just for the record, I didn't say dream jobs DON'T exist, I said there's just NOT TOO many out there.  And I still hold onto the hope that we can grow into jobs or use them to springboard into better ones.  Keep the faith!"