There are times when I walk into work and I know exactly what I am walking into. I know the very wording of the conversations I will be having with my bosses. I know the emails which will come in and the work they will dictate. I know when my customers will need something urgently and I know that I have absolutely no way of doing it for them.
Fortunately for me, these days are really very rare. I find my days are normally full of the unexpected and the unannounced. I can walk into work, grab a coffee and then not see my desk until it’s time to grab my keys and head home.
I can try and walk passed our warehouse without someone grabbing me and giving me a problem to solve. I can try and look at my emails without seeing the one which needs something fixed somewhere. I can even attempt the impossible of walking through the open-plan office without being asked how to do a simple formula on Excel.
None of these things ever actually happens.
My job is not your average job. My job title is broad and bland. My working day is built on the unpredictable and if you ever asked me what I had done that day, I would seriously struggle to tell you anything.
I fix problems and try to keep our systems running in the way they should. I do not have a clue what I will be walking into, mainly I love that.
I do not think I could go back to my old job. This one just suits me and my way of thinking. I love to solve a puzzle, I love to try and get better at anything I do. My desk is a boring place and I really don’t want to be stuck behind emails all day long.
Why would you ever try and find boring? It just seems like a completely alien concept to me. I go home from work and search kaplan.co.uk for any course I think I might be interested in. I love to expand my knowledge and I love to learn new tricks.
It was the best piece of advice I ever got from my old boss. She always told me to push myself in every way. If I wanted to play the guitar, that I should have lessons every day and aim to be the world’s best. If I was interested in numbers, then I should find every course about Excel.
I took it to heart. I knew I loved numbers and she knew it too. I went on every Excel course I could find and tried to learn it inside and out. I wanted to be able to solve any problem on it.
Then when she left and gave me her job, I had the opportunity to use every ounce of knowledge in my normal day-job. Best piece of advice ever.