humiliated
made a major career move to go back into a career/industry from long ago, employee benefits insurance account management. 90 days later it all came to a screeching halt. it is a family owned and operated business and yes I had my reservations but they were just so nice and I was more than ready to experience nice decent people in the workplace. I was cheery and happy (to my surprise) every single day. The compliments from the dad and his two sons kept rolling in. 30 days turned into 60 and then so on and I still had no idea what my actual job was. I had not rec'd set assignments and nothing specifically assigned to me as my responsibility. I would be given projects and they were completed in a timely manner leaving me with several hours on a daily basis with nothing to do. My smiling face never left nor did my positive attitude and the Oscar goes to....however the down time was becoming excruciating. yes I approached the dad and two sons along with one other gal in the office asking if there was anything I could help with. Again I would be given a project or two that would take me minutes to complete. I was afraid that my frustration was going to start showing so I started stepping outside taking quick walks or calling a friend or two to shake it off. I was told there was no problem with making or taking phone calls outside. Then it happened I apparently crossed over to one too many "steps outside" and my last 5 min walk it off moment was met with one of the sons greeting me when I got back wanting to know what my problem was. He kept randomly talking basically having a conversation with himself saying things like "r u sensitive"? "why do u keep going outside r u dealing with personal problems"? he references again being sensitive and then follows up with "we won't tolerate it" that is when MY blood started to boil. "tolerate"? at this point he is still having a conversation with himself and I have said nothing. He finally says "am I wrong"? he clearly was not in a state of mind to actually hear my concerns so I decided to say "yes u r" he said "I don't think so" that was it. the next morning I rec'd an email before work telling me my position had been "eliminated" and not to come into work accept to drop off my key and pick up my last check. I am a very strong person and I don't shy away from awkward situations and am all about holding my head up high but I just couldn't do it. I was a blubering mess -a friend volunteered to handle it for me and to my surprise and relief I let her. I feel sad and somehow betrayed and defeated.
I’m truly sorry to hear about your recent work experience but try not to beat yourself up too much over it because that sounds like an situation you had absolutely no control over. Business or mis-managed businesses post jobs and hire pre-maturely all the time. They clearly did not have a role fully developed for you before they decided to take you on and I don’t think that’s something you would have been able to identify during the hiring process. Taking on a new job always has a 50/50 percent chance of working out and the the first 90 days is typically the grace period where you can identify a good fit. Make a note of the learning and put that experience behind you. There’s plenty of other opportunities and companies out there with a true need for qualified employees. Good Luck!
It sounds like a perfect storm of circumstances that lead to an unfortunate encounter.
Perhaps they were fine with the slow workload as long as you were happy being a part of the team. As you started taking walks and calls outside, it may have appeared to them that you were dissatisfied.
Unfortunately, it sounds like they had no clue how to address the issue with you, perhaps they have not had to address these concerns before or had to have this conversation. By the way you described the encounter, they just seemed inept in dealing with it.
Not having been there, and going on only your side of the story, it sounds like there was simply a breakdown in communication. Maybe they didn't approach you correctly, and your reaction to the poor attempt was off-putting and they saw you as combative or not a team player.
It happens. Clearly the lackadaisical nature of the job was not to your liking and was causing you frustration. They picked up on it but didn't address it in an appropriate manner.
Find a place that better meets your needs and don't worry about what happened at this job. No need to feel betrayed or defeated, it was simply a mix of things that culminated in one unfortunate event.
On to the next!