How to Handle your very First Call

So you're all excited about that first call. You make sure the headset is working, your tools are up, confidence level is high, and then you hear the beep. Suddenly, everything that you've learned from training seemed to have just disappeared.

This is what happens most of the time during the first call that you would be taking. But as a newbie, you have absolutely nothing to worry. 99 % of the first calls that newbies take end up like this.

So here now are a couple of tips to help alleviate the nervousness that you would be feeling:

1. Sleep

I can't stress enough how a good night sleep can help you relax more when taking that first call. If you did not have enough sleep the other night, try taking some tea. I don't usggest taking coffee or caffeinated drinks since it could cause more anxiety.

2. Sit with a person you're comfortable with

Having a seatmate that you're comfortable with is also a very important thing to keep in mind. One of the reasons why newbies tend to feel nervous during this time is the thought of commiting mistakes. Obviously you don't want that person who makes fun of everyone to be sitting next to you during this time. So with with a friend, laugh at your mistakes, and learn from them.


3. Make sure a senior is around

Aside from sitting with a friend, try looking for a sit which is near the pros. A supervisor, a tenured agent, or a team leader around is very handy when you're looking for a solution for that very difficult issue the customer just told you about.

4. Bring your notes

During the first calls that you would be taking, I suggest taking your notes with you.

5. MAKE A SCRIPT

The most important tip that I can give you is to make a script. You can forget about the first four tips that I have listed here but never forget to make a script. Making a script is not only advisable for call center newbies taking their first call but also for experienced call center agents taking their first call in a new account. Start with your opening spiel, verbiage for various scenarios, and finally your closing spiel. With a percentage of your brain free from having to think on what to say next, you now have a better chance on resolving your customer's concern. While a script does not guarantee that your first call would go smoothly, it would definitely make a difference!

The Mysterious Chabacano Accent

Thank you for taking interest in the Chabacano de Zamboanga.

All my blog posts about Chabacano in Smorgasboard have now been moved to Bien Chabacano.

You can read this post at:

 http://bienchabacano.blogspot.com/2009/11/mysterious-chabacano-accent.html

Where are the Lions and the Giraffes?

My friend and I went to the Manila Zoo on a very hot Sunday afternoon. Naturally there were a lot of kids with their parents, some couples dating, and some tourists.

The entrance fee to the zoo was a bit hefty (I can't recall how much it exactly was ** around 50 pesos I believe for adults). But of course if you're a senior then you can go in for free. Although, not exactly exorbitant, I felt like they could've lowered the fees but then again, maybe animals can't live on bread alone.

Once inside, I found that the landscaping is marvelous. The exhibits were placed in strategic locations. Navigating the zoo is not that hard and I found the facilities inside to be satisfactory.

Now, we go to the zoo denizens. Normal people normally go to the zoo to see animals. While I did see the resident elephant, zebras, deers, monkeys, hippo, tigers, birds, crocodiles, noticeably missing were the giraffes and the lions.

Now Im not exactly sure if they died already, or whether the zoo had one in the first place but I found myself deeply disappointed 'coz I was really hoping to see a lion and a giraffe.

I guess the elephant would be enough for now though.

Here are some photos that I took of the animals:

The laziest tigers in the planet:

 The king of the Manila Zop

Horses?

Bambi, is that you?

The Big One

Poor monkeys

Who let the lizard out?

Turtles anyome?

Look at that neck!

Are those wild pigs?

Overall though I did enjoy my Manila Zoo excurtion. It could've just been a lot better if I did saw lions and giraffes.

How to Win the NBI Clearance Challenge

Among the many survivor like challenges that the government throws at its people, the NBI clearance challenge surpasses the others in terms of the amount of deception involved, patience needed, physical endurance required and intellectual prowess called for.

On the internet, one can read on hundreds of horror stories from people who involuntarily underwent this challenge. I always lament upon reading these tragedies.

But today, a new dawn shines upon the Filipino people as the NBI renewal card is introduced to the public. I first heard about the NBI renewal card when I applied for an NBI clearance this year at the Carriedo NBI kiosk. It costed me 120 pesos and what I needed for the NBI renewal card to be issued to me was a valid (not yet expired) NBI clearance. Immediately after taking my photo, the card was issued to me. How it was gonna help me in the future though I did not have an idea at that time.

Just last Friday, I went to SM Megamall to secure an NBI clearance again. I was astonished to find that the queue was around five stories long. I wasn't even sure how many stairs I had to climb to reach the end of the queue, but from my vantage point, it was a good long way down.

So after a couple of minutes, an NBI personnel was approaching those in the queue asking them their purpose for getting the NBI clearance. It was evidently a move to make the queue move faster. I asked the NBI personnel what good the NBI renewal card would serve me and she told me that I shouldn't not have queued anymore and just went straight to the head of the queue. So upon learning that, I did go to the front of the queue and showed my NBI renewal card and voila, I got to pay for my NBI clearance (which was the first step in getting the clearance) immediately. Upon having my photo taken, the person behind the computer took my NBI renewal card and I saw that I had 'no hit'. So there you go, apparently the NBI renewal card had the ability to whisk you through the whole inconvenience of waiting for your NBI clearance while the NBI people sorted your name out from other dishonorable characters who happen to share something in common with you (most probably your name).

My advice to people, get the NBI renewal card. It is definitely worth the 120 pesos. Think about it. No more queuing to pay for your NBI clearance. No more waiting because you have a 'hit'. Instant NBI clearance!

A Wonderful World

I hear babies cry, I watch them grow

They'll learn much more than I'll never know

I see friends shaking hands saying how do you do

They're really saying I love you

I see trees of green, red roses too

I see them bloom for me and you

I see skies of blue and clouds of white



The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night



And I think to myself what a wonderful world



Yes I think to myself what a wonderful world

These are photos that I took when I was at the beach at the back of the Ebenezer Bible College and Seminary in Zamboanga city. The photo captions are excerpts from Louis Armstrong's What a Wonderful World.

Ten Last Minute Reminders for your Call Center Job Interview

Knowing how how to answer common call center interview questions is never enough. The interviewer will not only be listening to your answers, but would also be observing HOW you answer his/her questions. For this matter, it is important to keep in mind some behaviors that you need to exhibit and avoid.

Maintain Eye Contact

On top of the list of behaviors that one needs to exhibit is maintaining eye contact. Maintaining eye contact is a good way of showing self confidence. Averting the eyes of your interviewer may give that person the impression that you're shy, unsure of what you're saying, or that you're lying. Remember that call centers are looking for assertive competitive individuals. So if you're not any of that, it's good to at least look like you are. Mind over matter.

Maintain Good Posture

Maintaining a good posture is also a good practice that one should exhibit during a job interview. As with averting the eyes of the interviewer, slouching would make you look as if you're unconfident and timid. Do you ever see world leaders or powerful businessmen slouch? You get my point.

Smile

When the interviewer introduces him/herself, it is a very good idea to wear a warm smile on your face. A smile would defnitely make you comfortable and confident aside from making the interviewer feel at ease.

Talk Slow

When I say talk slow, I mean speak clearly. When you speak too fast, there is a huge tendency to mumble. If you have a non neutral accent, enunciating is a very good way to make your accent neutral.

About hand gestures

While hand gestures are alright, be sure to minimize them. Excessive hand gestures can have the potential of making the interviewer uncomfortable, especially if you look as if you are debating with somebody. It can also make you look like you're unable to get your message across effectively, thus making the Interviewer think that you're inarticulate. If you're more comfortable using hand gestures, use them minimally.

Voice Level

Often times, interviews are conducted in enclosed spaces. It is a good idea to tone your voice down if you are inside a small room (with the interviewer being the only other person inside). If you are a soft spoken person, be sure to make your voice louder if you are in an open area.

Fillers
Instead of using the usual ummhs and uuuhhs, a good filler is a prolonged 'and' and 'then' (E-e-ennd, D-e-e-en). Silence is not so bad all the time. A two second silence is definitely allowed.

Accent

While having an american accent is definitely a plus, you can still pass your call center job interview with a neutral accent. The best way to achieve a neutral accent is to talk slow and enunciate. Don't bother procuring an American accent, it would only make you look silly and desperate.

Absolutely NO Tagalog

If Tagalog is your first language, it is pretty hard to speak in straight English for a good fifteen minutes or so. It is inevitable that a Tagalog word may slip out of your mouth. When those instances occur, keep the Tagalog words at bay with all your might. Swallow them as you feel them coming out. Then continue on as if nothing happened. If the worst happened and the Tagalog word did escape, carry on as well as if nothing happened. Pray to Jesus that the interviewer did not hear it.

Nervousness

It is vital for you not to be nervous when being interviewed. Nervousness would usually be common among those applicants who are dreading the outcome of the job interview because they would have to report to somebody (at home) of the results. If you don't have somebody at home waiting for the outcome of your job interview, then it is very possible to combat your nervousness. Just think that nobody ever needs to know that you failed. You can also keep this thought in mind when the butterflies set in: there are many call centers out there.

The Curious Case of 'Cosa'

Thank you for taking interest in the Chabacano de Zamboanga.

All my blog posts about Chabacano in Smorgasboard have now been moved to Bien Chabacano.

You can read this post at: 

http://bienchabacano.blogspot.com/2009/11/curious-case-of-cosa.html