The Life of a Job Seeker: Episode 12
Episode 12: The Replacement
Kobi felt relieved when he realized the child was not his; but deciding on what to do with the abandoned child sunk him in ambivalence. However, after much contemplation, he packed his bag and travelled with the infant to Niger State, with the hope that his mother, Mrs Doris would assist in her care. Rather, his mother and siblings were mad at him for taking responsibility for a child that didn’t belong to him considering their financial situation.
Sophia on the other hand was excited that Kobi was not the father. She implored him to come to Lagos, noting that with his good qualification, he would be able to secure a good job while they find a means to care for the child together. Meanwhile, she was unemployed and had been relying on her family to provide her basic necessities.
The Acquaintance
Around 7am the next morning, Kobi went out to buy some milk for the infant who barely slept through the night. At the store, he overheard another buyer conversing on the phone stating that he would resign his job the following day.
The statement caught his attention, that after completing his purchase, he waited to speak with the Resignee. He said to himself; “since he is resigning, the organization will definitely be needing a replacement for him; I could be that replacement”.
Subsequently, Kobi had a discussion with Gideon, the Resignee. However, without seeking to know why Gideon was going to resign, Kobi pleaded that he paved way for him to replace him at the company, explaining how desperately he needed a job. If Kobi had asked Gideon why he was resigning, it probably would have spared him a lot of stress.
As it was a Loan Agency, initially Kobi was worried that he did not have a background in that field but Gideon assured him that his field of study did not matter as long as he met the second-class upper criteria. He urged Kobi to get his credentials ready and they made plans to visit the organization the next day. That day, Kobi named the infant, Favour, believing that she had brought him job luck. His younger sister Nana agreed to help him care for Favour while he goes to work if the job clicked.
Fast forward to the Loan Agency
Kobi was offered employment with the Loan Agency as a Debt Collector. Even though the job did not align with his passion and aspirations, he accepted to work there as long as it earned him some money.
The organization, on the other hand, was one of the worst work environments ever. Kobi wasn’t given proper orientation as to how things were to be done; he struggled to learn on the job on his own. He also struggled to make relationships with his co-workers as the organization was full of hostile employees with negative vibes. The management was whacky; the organization continued to lose and replace personnel week after week. Even though Kobi’s role was to manage finance and recover money owed on delinquent accounts, he was forced to take on random assortment of duties that didn’t align with his role; like running errands, washing the company’s car, gardening, etc. He wasn’t gaining relevant knowledge neither was he growing on the job. He would work under pressure Monday to Sundays from 7am to 10pm.
The thought of starting a new week at work made him miserable, sick, frustrated and depressed. It was all energy sapping!
Within 5 weeks of work, he was broken down by stress; he fell very ill and was hospitalized. While he was hospitalized, the company didn’t care about his well-being. While on the sick bed, Kobi reflected on his life and realized that there was no future for him in the organization; he had no passion for the job, his income didn’t suffice the stress, he wasn’t gaining any new skill, it was just mentally draining!
Lesson 7: Don’t just find any job, find the right one.
Considering salary on a job is important, however, you should not blindly take on a wrong job just to earn. Unlike a wrong job, the right job is one that you love and are passionate about. Not only does it help you earn, but it also aligns with your goals; lets you grow, supports your well-being, gives you a sense of value, and satisfaction. If you do not love your job, you won’t enjoy it; every task will seem daunting and your productivity will not be at it’s peak.
Five days later, Kobi got better and returned for work, with the aim of tendering his resignation letter and getting his pending payments, only to discover from a guard that during his period of absence, the company got another replacement for him and also relocated without informing him. If you were in Kobi’s shoes, what would you do?
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