Working at V8? TOTALLY NOT GR8!!!
It has been exactly one month since I started working at V8 Commercial, and I hate every minute and every second of it! I have already wanted to quit like so many times!
It is so not the kind of work that I imagined I would be doing at all when I left my former company to work here.
I am currently handling V8 Commercial’s molasses division of the company. Being a trader of molasses as well as other commodities that cater primarily to farms and feedmills, I am in charge of the selling, the monitoring, the deliveries, and the collection of payments. I interface with different customers whom I have never even met, who happen to be scattered all across Luzon.
It all started when my godfather invited me to work with him. He said that he needed someone to be his eyes and ears, since he lived in the US. He told me that he was going to train me in terms of business, and that he’d tell me trade secrets that he’d only tell his children. And that if I’ve already learned all I needed to know about running his business, he’d also offer profit sharing. That was initially what attracted me to work for him. That, and the possibility that he’d sponsor me in the US.
My official start in V8 Commercial was in January. But wanting to learn as much as I could, I spent the last two weeks of my December in his office, trying to absorb everything that I could, even though I didn’t get paid. I was still connected with my other company at the time, and so I just spent my free days there. Since my godfather, “the boss”, was in the US, he oversaw everything through a camera in the office, and issued his orders by calling in the VOIP phone and through chatting in the MSN Messenger.
So far, working there has made me so utterly and completely depressed. I have never in my life felt like I was completely inept, as if I couldn’t do a single thing that was right! I dreaded every single moment that I have to talk to “the boss” in the VOIP phone, knowing that it would more or less result in his becoming angry with me. I also dread seeing the MSN messenger chatroom with this dog picture he has, not knowing if it will result in something bad that was gonna happen again.
ANGST #1
The first time he got mad, although I’m not exactly sure if he was angry, was during the time that I chatted with him, and I used the emoticons in the MSN Messenger. This was during the last two weeks in December, the time I havent officially started working in the company yet, and was just trying to learn the ropes. He told me to stop using smiley faces, said that it was unprofessional. All this he said using all caps, and the way he said it was kind of in a scolding way, so I’m assuming he was kind of angry at me for just using emoticons. I’ve always used emoticons chatting with just about everyone, and it didn’t really occur to me to stop using them when talking to him.
He also said that I wasn’t taking the work seriously enough, that I had to be more professional. At this point I got really insulted, and I wanted to ask him why he said that and what made him think that way. But of course, I didn’t. Was I giving the impression that I didn’t take what he was asking me to do seriously??? Hello?!??! I was already there in the office learning everything I could when I haven’t officially resigned yet from Askmenow. I also spent my free time there even though I didn’t get paid and could have been doing something else, and then he was telling me that I didn’t take it seriously?!? *WTF?!?*
ANGST #2
The second time he got mad was the last week of December when I talked to Aunt Helen, his sister-in-law, who comes in time and again to check up on the business. It was the first time I talked to her on the phone when I haven’t officially met her yet. “The boss” wanted me to talk to her about something with regard to Christmas gifts to be given away to some people. Aunt Helen was nice, and she asked me how work was, and if “the boss” already delineated all my responsibilities and such. So foolish me, I told her some stuff about things I wasn’t sure about, like knowing about pricing the molasses and such. So Aunt Helen talked to “the boss” and they got into kind of a fight that “the boss” wasn’t teaching me all that I needed to know about running the molasses business. And this apparently insulted him, because he called me straightaway using VOIP and railed at me, saying that he’s never in his whole life ever had this sort of problem. He asked me why Aunt Helen said that I didn’t know what I was supposed to do, which was to handle the molasses business. Hell, I never even told her anything of the sort! She just misinterpreted things I just said. He also demanded why I asked Aunt Helen about the pricing, when he didn’t tell me to ask her. I mean, come on! It’s his sister-in-law! She’s like one of his family– someone who also watches over his business! How was I supposed to know that I wasn’t supposed to ask her about these things, because she may interpret it such that he wasn’t teaching me anything?!? He even asked Sir Ricky to tell me not to submit my resignation letter yet to my other company, implicitly saying that maybe I wasn’t cut out to handle his business! And I wasn’t even officially employed by V8 Commercial at the time!
That weekend, all the time I was thinking about him yelling at me. It was absolutely the most wretched weekend of my life! I wrote him a letter during that weekend apologizing for my actions, hoping that all would be fine. He wrote me back saying that he knows I wont let him down, blablablah, BS BS BS.
ANGST #3
Last week, we had a problem with one of the deliveries, when the check they gave did not equal the total amount payable to V8 Commercial . Because the client (owner) stayed in their farm in Rizal and the office was based in Marikina, communication was extremely difficult since there were no phones and everything. They simply asked us to write a letter to fix this problem, which we did. So “the boss” called again, asked us what we did to resolve this matter. So I mentioned that we wrote them a complaint and were waiting for a response. At this point, he got kind of angry again! He told me if I really expected a simple letter would make them pay us the balance owed us!?! He told me it was hard-earned money (duh!), and who is going to pay for the balance if they didn’t? Coz certainly it wasn’t gonna be him! I took it to mean that he meant I was gonna pay for it, even though he didn’t say it in so many words. He also said that he never experienced anything like this in all his years of doing business! Hell, if he were here right now in the Philippines, he would in fact be experiencing it! It’s not even my fault that this thing happened and it’s like he’s blaming it all on me! It was all the fault of an incompetent secretary in the client’s farm, something which I had absolutely no control over, and what he does is that he blames it on me! I mean, hello?! Is that even fair? Give me a little credit!
It was a good thing that I knew the client’s niece who happened to be my best friend in grade school. Luckily, the owner came down from the farm, which he rarely does, since it was Chinese New Year. So during the weekend, I went to the client’s house and had a little chat with him. I was able to catch him and talk to him for a bit, and thus the problem was resolved. I don’t think that it even mattered that I went there– I think they would have paid us eventually anyway. But because of the boss’s angry yelling at me, and also my assumption that it might be taken out of my measly salary, I went there to fix the issue. I did it all during a supposed Chinese holiday, on a Sunday, no less, and I even paid for the gas going there, which the company’s not even gonna reimburse me since “the boss” doesn’t even know I went there to solve this stupid problem of his!
ANGST #4
Just this morning, “the boss” got angry at me again. It all started when I messaged him in the MSN Messenger, saying that Wills Intl was calling me about the pricing, asking if we could give them a lower price, being that they’re also a trader. So “the boss” called me on VOIP, asked what went on in our conversation.
So I tell him …and then I don’t know what happens, but he starts to get angry, asks me about the prevailing prices, about where my report is on the prevailing prices.
So I told him that different people have been telling me different things, so I wasn’t really sure what the actual prevailing price is, which was why I haven’t included it in my report. Then he tells me that I should tell him what all those other people tell me then! So yeah, maybe it was kinda my fault that I haven’t told him what the prevailing price is because it’s different according to different people. But how was I supposed to know he wanted a play by play of my conversation in getting the prices! I mean, come on! I’m no mind reader!
Oh yeah, he emailed Grace (the one who handled the molasses before me) last Thursday asking for my prevailing prices report. Well, I included it in my Friday report yesterday and he even got angry at me today for supposedly not giving him the prevailing prices report!
Then he starts getting angrier… Why haven’t I been telling him what prices I am giving to customers etc etc., and that whatever I am saying to customers reflect back on him.
Well, let me check. The last time I asked “the boss” about how to do the pricing, he told me that that was a question that I shouldn’t be asking him, but rather Grace. So when a customer calls to ask about our pricing, I just ask Grace if the pricing that I gave them was ok.
But just last Thursday, “the boss” emailed Grace and told her that I had to report to him to ask him the prices I should give the customers. Note: it was Thursday when he emailed that. And today, Saturday, he got mad at me for not reporting to him the prices. Is that even fair?! Nobody even called me to ask for pricing between Thursday and today! I already gave Wills Intl the pricing before he gave his order and he got mad at me because of that?!
He also said that I don’t tell him what’s happening, that I haven’t been doing anything..
Yes, I am guilty of the fact that there are a lot of lull times I have wherein I’m not exactly doing anything, since the production in molasses is extremely low. I’m just supposed to monitor the molasses and do the things Grace does, and I do it. Since there are only a few responsibilities, I tend to finish quickly, so there are times when I simply surf the net or chat with friends. So when “the boss” told me that I haven’t been telling him what’s happening and that I haven’t been doing anything, yeah it kinda pricked my conscience a bit.
But come on, what does he even want me to do?! It’s not like there are a lot of responsibilities I needed to do!
There was one time during one of my ‘highly stimulating conversations’ with “the boss” when he was relating his experience of handling the molasses that during deliveries, he always has to know where the drivers are to ensure that the drivers aren’t stealing molasses. But when it comes to me handling his business, I just care about the pickup and the delivery of molasses, that I don’t monitor it in between.
WTF?!! How am I supposed to know that I’m supposed to do that?!? It’s not like I have a background in managing and trading molasses before! I’m new, it’s been just one month! Hello?! Does he expect me to be a mind reader and guess the things he wants me to do?! Give me a break here!!!
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It’s been problems, problems, and even more problems since I started working at V8 Commercial , and I so want to leave. I don’t think my cousin, who’s handling the export side, even has this much problems that I have. I don’t even think that “the boss” gets angry at him like he does me! And at least my cousin gets to meet other people and travel outside, while I stay stuck in the office talking to people I have never and will probably never see in my life!
So here I am, stuck in this boring, monotonous desk job, with an angry boss who keeps on becoming more angry at me for things that I have no control over and don’t know how to handle since I am fairly new. I know that I am a novice and I know that I have a lot to learn, but please! Does he always have to yell at me?! Cant he even give me a break for once and cut me some slack, being that I’m new?! Add that to the fact that Grace just texted me over a possible problem that I have to face with regard to the lastest delivery come Monday morning… *sigh*
Life, since I have started working at V8 Commercial , has been nothing but hell! I have felt nothing but dread with every problem that I have faced ever since coming to work at V8 Commercial , knowing that I might be yelled at every so often. Sometimes, I don’t even report those possible problems anymore, or ask “the boss” to give me advice on what to do should a problem arise, (which I know I should do) since by doing so I know that he probably would get angry again.
Don’t get me wrong, my godfather is a nice guy, and a lot of people respect him. It’s just that as a boss, he’s definitely someone different. Ever since I’ve started working for him, well let me just say that my respect for him has gone down many, many notches. Sometimes, I wish that he’d just fire me. Actually, I wouldn’t even mind if he’d fire me so that I’d have the opportunity to work somewhere else where I’d feel more secure and less like an incompetent fool like I feel when working for him. My self-esteem has definitely suffered a major blow ever since I’ve started working for him.
Right now, I just don’t know if I can quit at V8 Commercial, even though I feel as if I want to. I just started and everything, and it may seem that I’m ungrateful if I just quit. I realize that I have no prior experience, hence I’m having all of these difficulties, but the working environment, especially the angry scoldings that I have to face– well they really suck!!!
I want to learn everything I can from my godfather, being that he’s a business mogul, but I hate this feeling of depression and wretchedness and ineptness that I feel working for him! I don’t know if the coming days and maybe months would be better or much worse, and frankly, if it will get worse, I must say that I just cant continue to live like this!
