OK. I just have to let loose with this one, big pet peeve.
As I may have mentioned before, I am a remote employee, so I work from home. This means my morning commute is great, as my office is five feet from my bedroom.
Working at a home office has its distinct advantages, like going to work in your snuggy pants or dusting the coffee table while you’re on a conference call. But there are also some disadvantages, like, never really getting to have a sick day and sometimes working through breakfast, lunch and dinner. Nevertheless, I love it and am very grateful for this unique opportunity.
However, of late, there has been another disadvantage that I hadn’t expected – the advances of pesky (but well-intentioned) people aggressively seeking a “Work From Home” job.
Let me give you the most recent example.
Today Mr. Surly and I are having our furnace, air conditioner and water heater replaced. (I know. BOING!) So, we have had a team of workers coming in and out of the house all day. I’ve made coffee. We’ve shared a couple of chats in passing. They all seem like very competent, very nice guys.
So, on his most recent trip to the bathroom, one of the guys poked his head in the office.
Him: Hey, so what do you have going on in here?
Me: Well, this is my office. I work from home.
Him: What do you do?
Me: I’m a (title) for a technology company.
Him: Oh. Work from home, you say? My girlfriend is looking for a job. What does your company do? Are you hiring?
Me: We’ll we (description). We're only hiring sales folks right now.
Him: That sounds great for her. She's quite a talker. She would be great on your sales team. Can she call you for an interview?
Me: Well, does she have any experience selling (broad description of what my company does)?
Him: No.
Me: Oh. That's cool. Has she ever been in sales before?
Him: Nope. (Pause) Is that your business card. (Points to Desk) Gimmee one of them. I’ll have her call you.
Me: Well, if she is not interested in sales, I’m not sure how much I can do for her. We’re only hiring sales people.
Him: No. Sales is fine. Just fine. How much does it pay? Like, what does she have to do? Do people call in to buy stuff? Does she take orders on the phone?
Me: (Smiling, but Getting Annoyed) Well, not exactly. She would be an enterprise sales person to large companies. She would call on them, tell them about our product...For example, the most recent person we hired has over 15 year's experience. So, we're primarily focused on people who have lots of sales experi--
Him: But she wants to work from home! I’ll have her call you. I will just take one of those cards. Thanks!
I hate to be a jerk here, but this kind of thing drives me crazy.
I don’t mind that someone is asking for a job. I’ve been a job hunter before. I know how difficult it can be out there. So, I don’t want to criticize someone for trying to make a living – or for helping his girlfriend try to do the same.
However, I work for a real company that sells a real product to real customers. We work hard. This isn’t some kind of easy gig or silly "Earn 15,000 A WEEK from the COMFORT of your HOME!!!" pyramid scheme.
What that guy did is tantamount to walking into the local law firm and saying to some random employee, “Give me your card. My girlfriend is a huge Law and Order fan. I’ll have her call you about a job.”
Oy.
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