L i N d $ @ y

really helps me with not thinking about real-life problems. Although sometimes I come on here and I'm stressed because of some posters.

We met quota. That's a good boost for my sales team even though life is hard and no one wants to get non-life insurance these days. When things get back to normal, we hope to be able to travel again and use that incentive to boost the morale of the team (when they meet or exceed quota).

Happy weekend! I hope you're having a lazy and relaxing weekend ahead.

dancing in the rain

Yeah I definitely get that about It just takes your mind off things. And I get that other thing too xD

Great to hear about meeting quota Hopefully that normal time comes again soon.

I did, hope yours was good too

L i N d $ @ y

Summer really is the worse here, it's so damn hot and humid. But at the same time, I also hate typhoon season here (which starts in July until November). My favorite months are December-January because it's actually cold which is not common for a tropical country.

I hope work has been okay for you this week. Don't stress yourself out too much.

dancing in the rain

Both those do not seem like fun at all. We don't have typhoon season here, thankfully, but the super hot and humid Summers are a norm, which is for sure my least favouritie. Fall is my favourite season because of that. Hopefully this Summer won't be as bad for you.

Not happening for the next 3 weeks or so The stress levels are doubled and tripled, we were already understaffed, and most of the work had been dumped on me and our team leader, and now he is taking a couple of weeks off so of course all the load is now on me. It's just been two days so far and it's been talking with 10 people at the same time, at least 2-3 meetings every day, a ton of tasks to be done sooner rather than later. So yeah...

L i N d $ @ y

When does summer start there?

Oh wow, that all sounds stressful. Maybe you can also take a couple of weeks off? Although I'm always iffy to do that (even before the pandemic) because I like having plenty of leaves that I can use up for the holidays.

dancing in the rain

End of June so in about one month and a half. But it's already starting to feel like Summer with high temperatures and humidity. What about you?

It is. I was already overworked, but that was nothing compared to now, I feel like I've been in back to back calls since yesterday morning.

It's rare that we take more than a few days off at a time, unless it's a special case (wedding, which is our leader's case, maternity, or usually around Christmas). But for now, we're fully booked with deadlines for the next two months, so I probably won't be able to take more than a couple of days at a time until then.

I do have a couple of days off for a holiday now, but I need to do some planning, so at least I'll be able to work without too much external noise and interruptions.

L i N d $ @ y

Started last March and will end around June. And then typhoon season until November.

Ugh, sorry about that.

Before the pandemic, was it already this busy for you or it's busier now?

dancing in the rain

I was going to say at least it'll be over for you soon, but what comes next doesn't sound like it'll be much better. Hope it won't be too bad this year.

So the 4-day weekend was replaced by an extended 7-day work week, I have not had a breather in over 2 weeks. I can't wait until next week when the team leader is back so at least some of this load is shifted off.

I always had busy days/weeks, and often worked on weekends. But this past year has been on a different level. It didn't help that one of our senior team members left and it's been newbies since. And another has been sick so also hasn't been able to take a big load for months now. And our deadlines keep cramming up with never ending client requests, so that's a "plus".

How's the month going for you so far?

L i N d $ @ y

Oh my goodness 7-days work week? But how long should you have to work in a day?

It's a challenge working with newbies especially when you want things done right away.

Work has been okay so far. Month end has been so-so for us tbh. Sometimes we meet quota, sometimes we don't. As much as possible I don't want to pressure my team anymore because of the pandemic and everyone's priorities are different these days. But I always tell them we have to be back to our level before the pandemic (we usually exceed quota). It's hard to motivate everyone these days because of the current situation.

dancing in the rain

At this point any time I'm free There is a LOT to do, not enough people to do it and very strict and close deadlines, so it's not a very forgiving schedule.

Yeah exactly, and you can't really give them the load you give others because they need additional time to familiarize themselves with each service and the standard way of working.

Very true, morale is definitely not at any acceptable level at this point. Hope that your team will be able to at least reach quota in the coming months.

L i N d $ @ y

You're used to the grueling hours though? I used to work longer hours and go home at 12 am everyday. I did last on that job for 8 years because the pay is good but wow was it stressful.

That's true. You have to tread with them carefully because as much as they want to help (some of them), you also don't want to screw things up by giving too much to do.

It's month end for me again and it's looking like we'll hit quota but much better if we exceed it. More people are getting vaccinated here but still not enough for us to travel anywhere (only locally for now).

dancing in the rain

The way they have been for the last month or so, I don't think I'd be able to keep up with it for much longer. It's literally draining because it's basically every hour of very day of every week.

But when it's occasional, a weekend or two every once in a while, or adding 3-4 work hours a day for a few days, yes, it's pretty much a norm.

Yeah, there is a lot to consider with them. But at some point, they would need to get the hang of things.

That's great to hear, hopefully you do exceed it. And yeah, things are looking up in that front, so that might help with incentives for you too.

L i N d $ @ y

I'm sorry to hear that.

Yeah the newbies have to learn everything eventually and the only way they can learn everything is if they try and do more work.

I got my mid-year bonus 2 weeks ago and now it's all gone. There are sales everywhere so I blame them all.

dancing in the rain

I haven't been able to be on much this past week because of all the deadlines. Now that the season is over, I'll probably let Jerry know about the possible board closure over the weekend

Yeah, we have one now who seems to need a lot of pointers, and telling him exactly what to do, but I'm trying to get him to rely on himself a little bit more so hopefully he's able to do that soon.

Sales tend to do that Hope you were able to get some great merch. And good to hear you were able to get a bonus

L i N d $ @ y

I'm sad to know this but I also understand your decision to close the board.

I'm sure in no time he'll get on. You'll be a good mentor.

The malls all know that everyone gets a mid-year bonus at this time of the year so the sales are expected. And I get pulled in everytime.