What is the shortest time you've spent at a job before quitting.
- Thread starter Sounga
- Start date
2 weeks.
I started a job after a few months of unemployment as a telephone salesman doing credit card sales. We'd call someone, ask if they wanted a visa card, go over rates, and if they said yes, turn it over to a 'floor manager' to close the sale. Training was 2 weeks.
Day one of actually being on the phone, I get this customer that spoke only (I assume) mexican. No english skills at all. He kept saying 'k?'. The floor manager was listening in, assumed he meant 'OK, i'll take it.' and took over the call. The customer ended up agreeing to a card, when he had no clue what he was agreeing to.
I left at lunch, told them I'm not working for a company that unethical, and went home. As my wife was asking what I thought I was doing, I said "Something else will come along", the phone rang, and I was offered another job. True story.
Two weeks later, I got a commision check for that 'sale' for .50. wheeeeeeeee....
I started a job after a few months of unemployment as a telephone salesman doing credit card sales. We'd call someone, ask if they wanted a visa card, go over rates, and if they said yes, turn it over to a 'floor manager' to close the sale. Training was 2 weeks.
Day one of actually being on the phone, I get this customer that spoke only (I assume) mexican. No english skills at all. He kept saying 'k?'. The floor manager was listening in, assumed he meant 'OK, i'll take it.' and took over the call. The customer ended up agreeing to a card, when he had no clue what he was agreeing to.
I left at lunch, told them I'm not working for a company that unethical, and went home. As my wife was asking what I thought I was doing, I said "Something else will come along", the phone rang, and I was offered another job. True story.
Two weeks later, I got a commision check for that 'sale' for .50. wheeeeeeeee....
Shortest job before I quit? ~5 years. My shortest job (laid off, not really fired) was ~2 years. My current job is at ~6.5 years. I guess I prefer long term relationships.
Anyway, I quit my second job (the 5 year one) after about a year of working 40 hours during the week (at my current job) and 20+ hours on the weekend (the job I quit). I just got too burned out to do both.
Anyway, I quit my second job (the 5 year one) after about a year of working 40 hours during the week (at my current job) and 20+ hours on the weekend (the job I quit). I just got too burned out to do both.
1) First official day on the phones (after 3 weeks training) with a telemarketing contract whose name I'll omit. The training period sent out a LOT of red flags as many of the systems were tremendously buggy assuming they worked at all. However, anyone whose worked in call centers can tell you that training systems are terrible. As such...I stuck with it believing that the promise that the live systems would be much better.
Day one on the phones and it was clear that the real systems were completely unacceptable. The amount of stress this added to the job was not worth the wage. They could have tripled my hourly wage and I still would have quit. I moved on to another telecommunications contract where I earned less money but was happy.
2) Half a day.
This wasn't actually me quitting the job officially though. I had gotten a job to do some geothermal testing and the company offered to have me work as a plumbers assistant for about 2 days until the testing started. I agreed.
The plumber who I was working with was very kind, patient and welcoming. What prevented me from being able to do this job was my own lack of abilities. I'm NOT a handyman by any stretch of the imagination. And this was made perfectly clear to me. I spent 90 minutes working on chipping away cement/rocks and the like. My knees and back were killing me and I was miserable. Then the plumber came to check on me and in the span of 30 seconds accomplished far more than I was able to do in total. I did a couple of other tasks but they fared about as well as the first.
Oddly enough he never got frustrated or angry with me. He was a great guy. When chatting I learned that the business employing us was paying over $50.00 an hour for my role in the work (I think I was making $13.00 an hour out of that). This made me sick to my stomach. I could NOT ethically rip off this business through my inability to contribute properly. When we returned to the work place for lunch I told them I wasn't suitable for this kind of work and would return for the geothermal testing in 2 days time as originally planned. They agreed and I did that job as normal. It wasn't a good job but I pulled my weight and earned my pay. I could live with myself.
Day one on the phones and it was clear that the real systems were completely unacceptable. The amount of stress this added to the job was not worth the wage. They could have tripled my hourly wage and I still would have quit. I moved on to another telecommunications contract where I earned less money but was happy.
2) Half a day.
This wasn't actually me quitting the job officially though. I had gotten a job to do some geothermal testing and the company offered to have me work as a plumbers assistant for about 2 days until the testing started. I agreed.
The plumber who I was working with was very kind, patient and welcoming. What prevented me from being able to do this job was my own lack of abilities. I'm NOT a handyman by any stretch of the imagination. And this was made perfectly clear to me. I spent 90 minutes working on chipping away cement/rocks and the like. My knees and back were killing me and I was miserable. Then the plumber came to check on me and in the span of 30 seconds accomplished far more than I was able to do in total. I did a couple of other tasks but they fared about as well as the first.
Oddly enough he never got frustrated or angry with me. He was a great guy. When chatting I learned that the business employing us was paying over $50.00 an hour for my role in the work (I think I was making $13.00 an hour out of that). This made me sick to my stomach. I could NOT ethically rip off this business through my inability to contribute properly. When we returned to the work place for lunch I told them I wasn't suitable for this kind of work and would return for the geothermal testing in 2 days time as originally planned. They agreed and I did that job as normal. It wasn't a good job but I pulled my weight and earned my pay. I could live with myself.
Well, I haven't quit anywhere yet. Nor have I been fired.
I do remember my poor mother deciding to work at home for an Internet website that let her receive orders for numerous different companies. Then porn happened. So much porn happened. She didn't finish the weak. I don't think she finished the day. Lord bless her.
I do remember my poor mother deciding to work at home for an Internet website that let her receive orders for numerous different companies. Then porn happened. So much porn happened. She didn't finish the weak. I don't think she finished the day. Lord bless her.
My first "job" was working for Vector Marketing, otherwise known as Cutco. Basically you try to sell people Knives door to door.
I got hired and realized I'd made a mistake pretty fast. I turned in my display set and quit within two days. I didn't make any money but I didn't lose any friends/sleep either.
I got hired and realized I'd made a mistake pretty fast. I turned in my display set and quit within two days. I didn't make any money but I didn't lose any friends/sleep either.
In the summer of 2013 I got a job at a pet grooming place to be the guy who stands out on the street in a bright pink poodle costume and try to bring in business by waving a sign around.
Honestly, I loved it. One of my favorite jobs ever. I didn't have to deal with customers, I didn't have a boss barking orders at me (no pun intended) I just put on my costume, listened to whatever music I wanted and got to dance like I didn't give a fuck what anyone thought. And the pay wasn't bad either. I got like 9 bucks an hour and always got paid at the end of each shift.
But that job only lasted for like 3 weeks. Unfortunately the groomer just wasn't doing well enough financially to keep the dancing poodle as part of their business model.
So yeah, my shortest job ever...dancing poodle.
Honestly, I loved it. One of my favorite jobs ever. I didn't have to deal with customers, I didn't have a boss barking orders at me (no pun intended) I just put on my costume, listened to whatever music I wanted and got to dance like I didn't give a fuck what anyone thought. And the pay wasn't bad either. I got like 9 bucks an hour and always got paid at the end of each shift.
But that job only lasted for like 3 weeks. Unfortunately the groomer just wasn't doing well enough financially to keep the dancing poodle as part of their business model.
So yeah, my shortest job ever...dancing poodle.
I was at a small fish and chip restaurant chain for about three weeks before I quit/was fired. I made sushi in the mornings and worked the rest of the day serving customers in the kitchen in various places around the city.
There were a whole bunch of reasons. I lived a long way from work, I couldn't get home if I worked the evening shift, my health isn't very good (not a great match for rushing around on your feet all day long) and it was my first job in a kitchen, so as hard as I tried and as careful as I was I was never fast enough and made occasional mistakes.
I set up in the morning with a guy who was borderline retarded (in the most professional sense of the word) and had an awful speech impediment. I could barely understand what he was saying most of the time and when you're trying to learn how to do your job, there are customers waiting to be served and there is a guy talking quickly at you telling you vital information in a voice like he's eating porridge at the same time it's a lot like hell.
The thing that tipped it all over the edge though was coming to the end of the day and double checking all the rosters to see if I was on the next day. I wasn't on any of the lists. It was advertised as a casual job so I stayed home the next day. I got a call around 10 in the morning from my boss asking why I hadn't turned up and telling me it was a full time job and I should have known better. He was a little bit crazy, as a lot of people who run small private businesses are. And the pay was pretty awful.
I think everyone should do kitchen work at least once in their life. It gives you incredible respect for the staff at any restaurant. I'm always filled with sympathy and gratitude whenever I go out to eat.
There were a whole bunch of reasons. I lived a long way from work, I couldn't get home if I worked the evening shift, my health isn't very good (not a great match for rushing around on your feet all day long) and it was my first job in a kitchen, so as hard as I tried and as careful as I was I was never fast enough and made occasional mistakes.
I set up in the morning with a guy who was borderline retarded (in the most professional sense of the word) and had an awful speech impediment. I could barely understand what he was saying most of the time and when you're trying to learn how to do your job, there are customers waiting to be served and there is a guy talking quickly at you telling you vital information in a voice like he's eating porridge at the same time it's a lot like hell.
The thing that tipped it all over the edge though was coming to the end of the day and double checking all the rosters to see if I was on the next day. I wasn't on any of the lists. It was advertised as a casual job so I stayed home the next day. I got a call around 10 in the morning from my boss asking why I hadn't turned up and telling me it was a full time job and I should have known better. He was a little bit crazy, as a lot of people who run small private businesses are. And the pay was pretty awful.
I think everyone should do kitchen work at least once in their life. It gives you incredible respect for the staff at any restaurant. I'm always filled with sympathy and gratitude whenever I go out to eat.
Three years of summer seasons at a private pool. One working the gates and the next two as a lifeguard. Second year they misplaced my application so I got stuck with sub duty, and got that again my third year while newcomers were getting guaranteed shifts.
All these tales of god awful jobs have got me worried ha ha.
I've never quit a job but I did finish working my notice on Friday. I was pretty sad as it was a great job and I learnt a lot there. The place was like a family, a small firm where everyone was fairly local and knew each other. I liked how anyone could voice an opinion on matters, no matter their standing in the company.
Now I am reading all these horror stories and thinking god help me what have I let myself in for? ha ha.
I've never quit a job but I did finish working my notice on Friday. I was pretty sad as it was a great job and I learnt a lot there. The place was like a family, a small firm where everyone was fairly local and knew each other. I liked how anyone could voice an opinion on matters, no matter their standing in the company.
Now I am reading all these horror stories and thinking god help me what have I let myself in for? ha ha.
Ha - I once interviewed for Cutco too; they seem to prey on teens and fresh high-school grads who don't know any better. If I remember correctly, they brought me in and had one HR person interview me and two others simultaneously. The interviewer even asked "Why should you get the job instead of this guy? I was like: "I'm not sure, he seems like a perfectly capable guy, maybe you should give it to him?" I kind of stopped taking it seriously and looked elsewhere. Luckily, I got a different job before they called me back to offer me that job (they probably never intended to turn anyone away), so I had an excuse to turn them down. If they'd have hired me, I probably would have quit as quickly as you did.Dalisclock said:
Oh, well if we are counting lay-offs, then I have shorter ones than I mentioned before. I was 96 hours (12 shifts) into working for a small newly opened independent cafe, preparing food, washing dishes, serving, busing, that kind of thing, when I was let go. The owner told me just after hiring me that he only opened the cafe because it allowed him a legal loophole that would mean he could keep from giving a portion of his assets to his ex-wife (major red flag).Strain42 said:
I was doing an okay job considering this was my first ever food-service job and I had a bit of learning to do (which my boss knew full well before hiring me). I was even put in charge of training new hires a couple weeks in. 'Strangely', those new hires were all attractive young women, and I found myself (a dorky looking guy) relegated to washing dishes in the backroom increasingly often so they could greet the customers.
Then when it came time to write the first paycheck, I sat down with my boss, and he paid me $7.00/hr. I protested that he said upon hiring me that the position was for $9.00/hr. He said "I wish you were worth that much," and refused to pay the rest, letting me go right there. Rather than pointing to any task I had done inadequately, he justified this by claiming he had hired too many workers (even though I was the first worker hired). Moral of the story: get everything in writing (and also don't work for jerks).
I wandered by the location of the cafe a few months later and it had been replaced by a completely different business. I laughed spitefully.
Oh, I have a ton more stories about past jobs that I either quit, was laid off, or fired from for various (absurd) reasons. But if its any reassurance, not everyone is as outrageously unlucky and/or simply out of place in the normal working world as I am. If you know what you're looking for already, and can afford not to just stumble blindly into questionable situations, then I'm sure you'll be fine.carlsberg export said:
I went for a job advertised as Telesales (to get my foot in some kind of door) which turned out to be a pyramid scheme kind of thing, door-to-door selling (or door-to-door irritating as I'm sure many people saw it).
I gave it nearly the whole of my "trial" day before saying something along the lines of;
"What you're doing is sick, pressuring people to buy stuff at the door when they just want to eat their dinner. I'm out" and walked off to get the bus home.
Screw that job!
I gave it nearly the whole of my "trial" day before saying something along the lines of;
"What you're doing is sick, pressuring people to buy stuff at the door when they just want to eat their dinner. I'm out" and walked off to get the bus home.
Screw that job!
Thanks man, I feel confident that I know what I'm looking for, I just hope I don't wind up taking a job because I can't find anything else. I think I'll be fine though.TWRule said:
The thing about the job I just finished, is that it was such a comfortable work environment. There was no angry boss/supervisor breathing down my neck, it was just 'here is the job you have X amount of time to get it done' and I was then left to my own devices to complete the task.
I've got a few horror stories of my own from previous jobs, mostly of former co-workers. The ones I had issues with were all the same, very bitter people that liked to take their aggression out on others because they hated their jobs/lives.
To be fair though, these people inspired me to push myself to actually get a job where I was learning a skill.
Then of course there is the time I worked in fast food as a teenager. The less said about that the better!
3 weeks - Pizza hut
I could not stomach the way the treated customers, scrapping day old pizza to rebase, down and dirty defrosting meat on top of the oven, pushing on expiry dates + I was told it was an assistant manger job...so was everyone else there
The manager got sacked about 6 months later, so it was him not he company, but no way I could work there
I could not stomach the way the treated customers, scrapping day old pizza to rebase, down and dirty defrosting meat on top of the oven, pushing on expiry dates + I was told it was an assistant manger job...so was everyone else there
The manager got sacked about 6 months later, so it was him not he company, but no way I could work there
Yeah, a good work environment is tough to find. I've worked a fairly long list of jobs in the past and maybe two had me working under and with good people who allowed me to more-or-less do things at my own pace without having to put on airs. The rest had the overbearing bosses, pretentious or hostile coworkers, and/or consistently difficult customers while asking me to either act phony or meet unreasonable demands. Best of luck on that front.carlsberg export said:
I was just thinking about how I wouldn't mind it if hypothetically I could go back to work for this little self-serve frozen yogurt shoppe I once worked at (even though the pay was hardly anything and it required tedious cleaning tasks), just because the environment was laid back, my supervisor was a great person whom I befriended quickly, and she let me be myself at work. That and no customer is in a bad mood when they are making frozen yogurt for themselves (nor was I, since I was entitled to a free frozen yogurt myself each shift). I can't say the same for most other jobs I've ever worked.
If you count a induction a hour. I was looking for a job as i had been on jobseakers for about 6 months back then and some random on the street right outside the jobseakers office offered me one. So i said sure okay why the hell not, after he explained it would be working for charity. (Hey I was desperate okay)
So I went to the induction meeting which was basically a hour video, as it turns out it was a job knocking on peoples doors begging for money, the video itself portrayed it all about oh im so happy to be out and about talking to all these nice and lovely people who in no way hate my guys for knocking on there doors and I have no chance of not ever meeting the required amount of donations to keep my job so why even worry about that.
So I glossed from that you go around knocking on peoples doors hoping they dont beat you to death with a hammer (I dont live in the nicest area) praying to god that you swindle the required amount of donations from people so you can maybe pay your rent and not end up homeless.
Thankfully i didnt sign anything or officially take the job so after that I walked out and told them its not for me. At least your benefits are reasonably safe if you are actually looking for a job (let me explain further, in the uk if you get a job your benefits stop, and if you get fired from said job its pretty much set in stone that you cannot get benifits for a year afterwards. Its not like I was trying to mooch of the system its just that if i took this one i would have been screwed a few weeks afterwards). I got a job a few months later working in a call center witch ive kept for two years and to be honest love.
So I went to the induction meeting which was basically a hour video, as it turns out it was a job knocking on peoples doors begging for money, the video itself portrayed it all about oh im so happy to be out and about talking to all these nice and lovely people who in no way hate my guys for knocking on there doors and I have no chance of not ever meeting the required amount of donations to keep my job so why even worry about that.
So I glossed from that you go around knocking on peoples doors hoping they dont beat you to death with a hammer (I dont live in the nicest area) praying to god that you swindle the required amount of donations from people so you can maybe pay your rent and not end up homeless.
Thankfully i didnt sign anything or officially take the job so after that I walked out and told them its not for me. At least your benefits are reasonably safe if you are actually looking for a job (let me explain further, in the uk if you get a job your benefits stop, and if you get fired from said job its pretty much set in stone that you cannot get benifits for a year afterwards. Its not like I was trying to mooch of the system its just that if i took this one i would have been screwed a few weeks afterwards). I got a job a few months later working in a call center witch ive kept for two years and to be honest love.