Several of you have asked and let it not be said that I am not a slave to the demands of my loyal followers. So, today, I bring you word of what my new work-life is like.
May the tale not bore you to tears (though I happen to find the work riveting and my days just FLY by!).
So I am the new Network Coordinator at a large Northern CA University in charge of maintaining the delicate ratio of data entry going out of my cubicle and the telephone calls coming into my cubicle. So far.
I am also in charge of a certain number of meetings and conferences per year (bigger than a breadbox in size and yes, I will travel) and the maintenance of my department's website, aka it's window to the world.
I have been here a total of 18 business days and I adore my work. I cannot stress that enough. It is a chaos manager's dream.
I get data. I move data along a process pathway until the data is "complete."
I plan/organize/execute meetings, then I write and distribute minutes for those meetings.
I process reimbursements until the reimbursement is deemed approved and is paid.
I shepherd graduate certificates from one eminent physician/dean to another for signatures then send those certificates on to the correct site for distribution to the hardworking physician who earned it.
I maintain and update our department's segment of our website.
I troubleshoot with applicants, colleagues, etc. to solve their particular problems when they arise.
This job is a checky-box lover's dream.
No, it really is. I have taken it upon myself to see how many days a week I can leave the office with all my data entered/moved/processed for the day. I'm competing with myself to see how up-to-date I can be. I enjoy this greatly. I love--love--things that can be finalized eventually. Even if it is an ongoing process, even if the deadline isn't for 12 months, knowing that 95% of my work HAS a deadline is heady stuff.
Efficiency. Organization. Completion. Structure.
Watch me soar. No, really. Watch me.
Now, I know that eventually there will be bad days and mistakes and things I wish had gone better. I know that somewhere along the line, someday, something is going to get overlooked or fall through the cracks or just completely fall apart.
That's okay. That's life. That's what keeps us all from wearing capes and tights and generally being insufferable all the time.
That being said, I see myself working here indefinitely. I genuinely like the people. I love the work. I feel like the position fits me very well and that I have the opportunity to make it grow into something no one has yet envisioned.
Like I said--very heady stuff.
I was telling Amazing GF the other day that I don't know how or even when it happened, but a very long time ago, somewhere in my development, I developed a sense of validation whenever I helped another being. Helping people to solve their problems, helping make systems and structures more efficient and productive, making people's lives easier somehow--all of this is what I love to do.
Seriously, maybe I was an English butler in a past life. I loved the movies Remains of the Day, Gosford Park, and My Man Godfrey not only for their individual merits as entertainment but because I identified with the butler. Let me be very specific here: the butler. Not the head housekeeper. Not ever her (though Emma Thompson did a magnificent job portraying hers in Remains of the Day).
In my mind, the housekeeping staff in those films, while important and critical to the smooth running of the home, did very little to directly affect the efficiency, productivity, and pleasure of the people living in or visiting the home. Butlers, on the other hand, (and to a certain extent, personal maids) made those things their life's work. To the point that Stevens' professional duty even outweighs his personal happiness and he forgoes a relationship with Miss Kenton (Emma Thompson) in deference to his duty (yes, Remains of the Day again--I did mention I loved the film, right?).
Let me be the first to assure you, though, what happened to Stevens is not going to happen to me. I would never, ever place my profession above my love and family. I couldn't do that to Amazing GF, our Babies, or my fabulous family. But I can relate to it. Very much so.
Hmmm... Perhaps I should look for fictional and non-fictional accounts of English butlers' lives to read for a while. If I ever get back to reading.
Okay, it's time for work now. I got here a whole 45 minutes early today, so I thought I'd finish this post.
Love to you all!
No comments:
Post a Comment