3 Reasons Why I Resigned After Just One Day...

I know, I know, you're very confused.  Girl, so am I!  I take a lot of pride in being clear during the interview timeframe when looking for a new job.  Not only do I ask a lot of questions, but I negotiate quite a bit once an offer is made.  All of this was done, same as always, so how did things end up so far left?!  HOW?  HOW?!

Lack of communication from the employer side.  During the interview and in subsequent communication, I asked if I had my own office.  You may wonder why would I even need to ask about an office at this point in my career.  The reason I ask is because having your own office is not a standard in the hotel industry.  Occasionally, you may share one large space with your sales team or even just have a cubicle.  Not asking will definitely have you playing surprise surprise on your first day of work.  Anyways, I ASKED.  "Do I have my own office?!"... To which they responded "Yes, of course".  So you would understand how perplexed I looked when I arrived on my first day to find out that I was sharing my office with the Maintenance Staff.  Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of hotels were there may not be separate spaces for departments.  Many times there are multiple departments in one space separated by cubicles.  This was not even that situation.  There was no separation and the entire office was open for anyone to walk through.  As a Hotel Sales professional, this was something I just knew wouldn't work for me.  Immediately, I addressed my concern with the General Manager and his response was that he didn't realize me sharing a space would be an issue.  To him, "technically" I did have my own office... it was just being shared.  BULLSHIT.

As if the Maintenance Office Sharing debacle wasn't enough, I looked up at the ceiling towards the end of the day and saw a security camera right above my desk.  Now this makes sense because of the open space in which the camera is placed.  It's not an area where privacy is to be expected.  Hence, why your Director of Sales shouldn't have a work station there.   So to recap, not only do I not have my own office space BUT I also have a security camera on me all day.  How exactly am I suppose to scratch my ass, adjust my bra or SnapChat?!  That's not gonna work!

Heading out of the office, I still was hopeful that just maybe I could go home and think of some sort of resolution.  What that resolution would be, I don't know.  As I said goodbye for the day, the General Manager looked at his watch and mentioned that I would need to work a full 8 hours from the time I arrived that day.  *blank stare*  Now, don't get me wrong, I know working 8-9 hour shifts are normal but that's not what we discussed during negotiations.  In fact, I accepted less pay than what I requested so that I could drop by daughter off at school in the morning (9:15) and come in to the office after that.  Less pay for more flexible hours.  So why are we now trying to adjust what was already agreed upon?  Are you offering me more money?  Is the salary I initially requested back on the table?  This was the literal straw on my back for the day.  I didn't bother arguing with him about this at all.  I simply looked him the eye and told him to have a great evening, turned around and walked out the door.

This was a lesson that I learned a long time ago.  Never let anyone make you feel like you don't have any other option.  Like you're backed into a corner.  When I sat down to talk about the office space, one thing I noticed him saying repeatedly was "now that you're here and you've accepted this job, try to make the most of it".  You see sometimes people know that your expectations won't be met but they're literally betting on the fact that you have no other choice.  What if I had quit a job to go there?  What if my family truly needed that income now?  Would I still have quit?  Probably.  Until I found another opportunity, I would rather work at my local grocery store than allow someone to take advantage of my situation.  Because at least I know what to expect there.

I couldn't have been more clear about my standards or expectations during the interview phase.  Sometimes it just has nothing to do with you.  So, I will continue to apply + interview until I find the right opportunity.  Hopefully, me sharing this with you will empower all of us to open our mouths and ask for what we deserved.  Don't let anyone take advantage of you honey!!
Until next time.  XOXOMCS