After the release of my Alevel
results, I remembered asking for advice from my father about my future career path.
He remarked to me then that finding a job I love doing is no doubt important,
but the working culture plays a crucial role too. Having had a number of
different work field experiences under my belt now, I now understand the
significance of his comment. In this
blog post, I will talk about two part-time jobs I once held.
The first job was as an
administrative staff right after my A levels. I was in a department with a new
head who had just entered the company a few months back. Eager to prove his
capability, he pushed his staff hard. Almost everyone had to work overtime every
day. Furthermore, the new boss was relentless to sections that were unable to
deliver. Needless to say, tension grew between people from different sections
and people were unhappy. They started taking care of their own interests just
to be able to return home early. I experienced such a bad working culture at
this company that I decided to never work as an administrative staff again.
The second job was as a photographer
for the Harry Potter Exhibition held in Singapore last year. The overwhelming response
for the exhibition was unanticipated, especially so in the first month. We were
severely understaffed and the job was tiring. Even so, everyone was helpful and
considerate to one another. Giving up our break time to help our colleagues
handle the crowd was common. Also, even though I had no prior training in
photography, my experienced colleagues were also patient in guiding me. Furthermore,
when the crowd becomes significantly smaller towards closing hours, our
supervisors also gave permission for us to take unofficial breaks. Later on, I
heard that even when the exhibition ended its run in Singapore, many of my
colleagues went on to find jobs within the company.
I can finally understand the importance
of being in a suitable working culture as I reflected on these two different
work experiences. Even though both jobs were demanding, I ended up having an enjoyable
time in the second job since my colleagues there shared similar working values
(such as teamwork and patience).
As I am about to graduate in a year’s
time, I cannot help but remember what my father told me three years back. I may
be able to decide what I am working as in the future, but I will not be able to
decide who I am working with. I will only have to learn to accept the working
culture then.
