am I ready for my close up? Not really....

So, have you ever wondered what it is like to be on camera from Monday until Friday? I didn't think so.... No matter, I will fill you in on it !

I get to sit in my cubicle with a rather heavy set of headphones on, and wait for the little "ding-dong" sound that means that someone would like to speak to me. I then accept the call and an image of the person calling appears on my computer screen. My video also appears on the caller's screen and it begins !

I introduce myself and we chat about what the member would like to do. My co-workers liken me to the Swedish chef from Sesame Street, "Hi, this is Leeeza how can I help you ?". I roll with it...

New people are often frightened, they think that it is an ATM and are shocked to see a real person. They often jump back and run away without out saying a word, pretty amusing. Others think that I am an avatar, cool in its own way...

I can see a very small image of me on my own screen, honestly, I try not to look at myself, I just make sure that the camera has a nice headshot of me and is not angled down my cleavage or just showing the top of my head. Note to myself: I should probably use stronger makeup...

My job is to be pleasant and engaging and help the member get his/her banking done in a timely fashion. I can accept checks and paper money, I can dispense paper money and coins, and I can do transfers, cash checks, and help people pay their loans and mortgages in real time. The best part is I don't have to touch money or checks, the machine does all that for me. The worst part is probably being chained to my desk, we are not worthy of expensive, cordless headphones. Another hard part of the job is looking at the camera when you speak, not at the image of the person, that is very difficult to get used to. Initially, many of the members complained that we were looking down all the time, not at them.

I like my job. Most of the people I deal with are pleasant and easy to deal with. A few of them are cranky and/or annoyed and in a hurry, but you will see that in any customer service job. There is some pressure on us to be speedy, not so easy for me as my strength is not keyboard speed but rather pleasant and courteous service. I will survive...

There you have it, my job, in a nutshell !