Let me give you a little background about how I started in [24]7.ai and how it has become such an important part of my life because of what I have accomplished and how I have developed both personally and professionally.
Just as any other teenager (beginning the 'adulting' stage) living with my parents, with no car, no girlfriend in the picture, no job (broke), and with no clue of what I was supposed to do with my life and let me preface this with, I didn't know any English... AT ALL!
After my high school graduation, I started looking for a job; with no luck, I soon realized how underpaid most Guatemalan jobs are; hence, I decided that I wanted to work in the BPO industry. However, as I already mentioned, my knowledge of the English language was "zilch". Since, I had no money to pay for an English academy, I decided to learn on my own.
I started with online courses, videos, and some books I had from high school. After two months I thought I was ready to apply for a call center, and so I did. I applied in three different call centers and got rejected in all of them. I went back to my auto-didactic lessons, I studied two more months, and applied again in three other call centers and as you can already imagine, I got rejected again. I was really disappointed of course but I determined for someone to could give me the opportunity to get accepted to one of their English programs.
Eight months of studying by myself had passed and I went to a job fair. I was applying for any type of job (I really needed to work), I ran out of resumes and as I was about to leave the building, a [24]7.ai employee approached me and asked me if I wanted to apply. Of course, you already know the answer to this question, I applied and got accepted in their English Learning Program Academy. After 3 months of free intensive English training, I was ready to start working. I spent two years with the company. In those two years, my dreams began to come to fruition:
1. Bought my first car!
2. Went to my first concert!
3. I moved out of my parent's house
4. Studied two years of French (oh, la la)
5. I started college (FYI I have less than two years left!)
6. And last but not least, I learned how to manage my finances.
After two years of working for [24]7.ai, I decided that I wanted to try something different and I quit (BIG mistake), I left for another place, but after just a year and a half, I realized I wanted to go back home. This was the only place where I felt comfortable and I felt at ease. I applied and got rehired! I was welcomed with arms wide open and got a schedule that really fit my needs. The team in here is awesome, the facilities are incredible, there are tons of schedules that can fit almost everyone's needs, benefits and much more!
I must say [24]7.ai is a great place to work, and this is why I can call [24]7,ai my dear old pal.
Blog by: Andre Mejia [24]7.ai