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Hello fellow Call Center agents! Today I stumbled upon an article that can help us fight anxiety and stress from our hectic shift. What is surprising is that the ingredient is very accessible to everyone, especially those who love to cook and eat adobo! It is none other than bay leaf, or in tagalog, dahon ng laurel! Here's the article, enjoy! Eliminate Your Stress Simply by Burning the Leaves of This Herb! Modern people have accepted the fact that their lives are filled with anxiety, tension and stress. However, their bodies have not accepted this situation and this is why there are so many cases of so-called “modern diseases”. But, there is no room for panic. There is a good and simple solution for this issue. It turns out that only one herb can help you eliminate these problems. Thanks to this herb you will eliminate your stress and get rid of anxiety. Prepare for the ultimate rest. In case you believe that we are talking about marijuana, you are wrong. The solution comes in the ...

The stigma of being a flaky job-hopper is quickly becoming a thing of the past, and that's a good thing. - Vivian Giang Changing jobs every couple of years used to look bad on a resume. It told recruiters you can’t hold down a job, can’t get along with colleagues, or that you’re simply disloyal and can't commit. That stigma is fast becoming antiquated—especially as millennials rise in the workplace with expectations to continuously learn, develop, and advance in their careers. This sentiment is different than the belief of past generations that you cling to an employer over a lifetime in the hopes that your long-term employer will treat you fairly in the end with a matching 401(k) plan, among other benefits. Job Hopping A Good Thing  There are a lot of arguments for jumping ship every few years. The economy isn’t what it used to be—and never will be again. Workers who stay with a company longer than two years are said to get paid 50% less, and job hoppers are believed to have a...

Hi fellow Call Center Agents! I know some of us are having a hard time trying to get sleep at home before we work our night shifts, but I stumbled upon this article below. Dr. Andrew Weil may have the solution to the countless sleepless nights. If you have this problem, you should try this trick which will put you to sleep in seconds. Yoga and its breathing practices inspired Dr. Weil to produce “The 4-7-8 Breathing Exercise”. Dr. Weil describes that this exercise is very simple and can be completed anywhere. Also, it won’t take long and you don’t need any equipment. Here are his written instructions: 1) Exhale completely through your mouth, making a whoosh sound. 2) Close your mouth and inhale quietly through your nose to a mental count of four. 3) Hold your breath for a count of seven. 4) Exhale completely through your mouth, making a whoosh sound to a count of eight. 5) This is one breath. Now inhale again and repeat the cycle three more times for a total of four breaths. This brea...

Borrowing money to pay another debt is a common story here in Philippines. Though most of the people may find this a “common” scene and seems like there’s nothing to worry, on a financial perspective, this is very alarming. Financial debt is increasing in the Philippines. If we will not take action to solve this financial issue, we’ll surely see our fellow Filipino kababayan swimming in debt. This blog is to help fellow Filipinos to increase their awareness in financial matters of life. If you are one of us, help us spread the word in this awareness campaign. Listed below are Filipino spending habits that are commonly seen in the Philippines. We hope by the end of this post, you’ll be more aware of these bad money habits and take action. Saying that you can is one thing, but proving it is another thing. Mañana habit Many Filipinos despite knowing how important it is to save especially for emergency use, it seems they tend to ignore saving money and procrastinate rather. This is because...

A significant percentage of workers employed in the country’s business process outsourcing (BPO) sector — majority of whom working in call center facilities — are suffering from work-related health problems, a recent study showed. Although it noted some negative aspects of the country’s BPO sector, the study, conducted by the International Labor Organization (ILO), also said working conditions and pay remain of “good quality" for BPO workers in the Philippines. “[The study] reveals that 42.6 percent of BPO employees in the Philippines work the night shift, which is associated with occupational safety and health concerns, such as sleep disorders, fatigue, eye strain; neck, shoulder and back pains; and voice problems," a statement in the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) website quoted the ILO study as saying. The study said 47.7 percent of Filipino BPO workers surveyed are suffering from insomnia, while 54 percent are suffering from fatigue. The study also indicated th...

Preparing going onto nightshift  1. Try to do something physical “the day before the day before”. Physical activity is good for your general wellbeing anyway, and it will set you up for a decent “pre-nightshift” sleep. I would go swimming, running, boxing or have a mega-housework blitz. Then get a decent amount of sleep prior to starting nights: Method 1 : Stay up really late (at least 3am – 6am) the night before (calling/Skyping mates in different timezones or a TV marathon can help) then sleep for the majority of the day before your first nightshift. Method 2 : Go to bed as usual the night before , sleep in until late morning, have a big feed for lunch then go back to sleep for an afternoon/evening nap. On nightshifts 2. Drink water and eat food (bring real food, not just junk, and a big water bottle that you can reach for when you are writing notes). Drinking enough water is my absolute number one piece of advice. It’s hard to be high functioning when you are symptomatically deh...

75% of call center employees spend their salaries within five days upon receiving it. Then they end up counting the days till their next paycheck. This is a study that was done by me (so technically imbento lang yon). But based on my humble observation, call center agents have poor discipline when it comes to money. They end up splurging on Taxi's, Starbucks, cellphones, designer clothes, pokpok's and whatever -- simply because of the "malaki naman sahod ko mentality" and the "mag-iipon ako next sweldo" mindset. And in the end years pass and nothing financially solid is gained. So what are the money saving tips I applied? 1) Realize that the call center is an unstable working environment. The call center is a very unstable environment. Your salary, account, status, titles, training, office romance, depend solely on the next “end of life” of your account. I have seen Managers, TL's, and whoever lose their jobs in an instant due to the US clients clo...

Call center agents working graveyard shifts face serious health problems. According to the DOH, the lifestyle-related illnesses such as stroke, heart disease and cancer have risen at an alarming rate among call center workers. The Reason? According to the 2008 National Nutrition and Health Survey (NNHS), smoking does not just cause cancer and lung diseases but is also the number one cause of strokes and heart attacks. Smoking is estimated to have caused 50,000 deaths a year and caused more strokes and heart attacks than diabetes, hypertension, obesity and high cholesterol. ( http://www.interaksyon.com/business/25067/call-center-agents-health-in-near-crisis---doh ) The The Contact Center Association of the Philippines (CCAP) has pegged the turnover/attrition rate in the Call Centers Industry at 60 percent to 80 percent, the highest in the world. In some companies, it can go as high as 100 percent annually. A full-time call center agent stays in a contact center for an average of 22 mont...

I have always thought of the ‘call center diet’ as cigarette, coffee and lots of junk foods.  Well, I can say that also to almost everyone who works on deadlines all day or night in front of a computer, inside an office or a home office like virtual assistants, graphic artists, writers and bloggers. Sedentary lifestyle takes a whole new different meaning since the entry of personal computers – before it was beer and television, now it’s a more productive version but no less dangerous than the previous description.  Some of the health issues attributed to this type of working environment are: Stress Disrupted Body Clock Boredom Urinary Tract Infection Back aches Unhealthy lifestyle and food choices More Stress Call Center Agents, specially those who work at night, are at high risk of developing unfavorable health conditions and for that they need special care.  A special lifestyle and diet that will keep them healthy in spite of the stressful work conditions. Call Center A...

Diet (nutrition), the sum of the food consumed by an organism or group Dieting , the deliberate selection of food to control body weight or nutrient intake Diet food , foods that aid in dieting Wikipedia defines a diet with the statements above, but for a typical call center agent, we define diet to be nothing more than a way to fit in our pants. Most Pinoy agents are fat , obese , or unhealthy, and this is expected from a job where you sit 8 hours a day in front of the computer.  To keep awake and the mind active during those wee hours of the night, one needs to eat sweets and drink coffee.  Most work shifts also change, so your dinner time today can become your breakfast time by next month - this confuses your body and you end up craving for food when its time to go to sleep. So I've collated some ideas that can help us agents eat right.  Again, I am not a doctor nor a grocer so these tips do not have a nutritional standpoint.  Every sane human already kn...

          Ngayong darating na August 1, 2015 ay ang aking 1st year Anniversary sa pinag tatrabahuhan kong Call Center. Naaalala ko last year, sobrang saya at Proud ako nung natanggap ako dito. Bukod kasi sa napakalapit sa inuuwian ko, malaki pa ang sweldo, technical support kasi ang account ko.           Napakasaya namin nung training, petiks petiks lang! Tapos nung nag tatake-in na kami ng calls, medyo kinakabahan parin pero todo effort at pakitang gilas. Productive naman lalo na nung mga bandang 4th-5th month na, medyo gamay na halos lahat ng proseso. Tapos syempre ang pinakahihintay ng lahat ng mga New Hires, ang Regularization! Nakuha ko naman sya sa ika 6th month ko, as usual.           Nung ika 8th month ko, by God's grace, nakuha ko ang title na Top Agent for the month of April 2015 (with a perfect score of 5.0)! Sobrang overwhelmed ako nun! I feel unworthy talaga. Sabi ko pa nga sa sarili ko, malamang CHA...