Rant Thread: Get things off your chest!
Rising Star
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Chief
Hey all- posting about some new NFTs that are just coming out for the Dream DAO. Essentially, each minted NFT and subsequent sale helps seed fund projects for a non profit for Gen Zers called Civics Unplugged. The non profit is backed by Andrew Yang, the Rock and others. Regardless of if you like the NFTs, it’s a cool project to get involved in / read more about. https://opensea.io/collection/skywalkerz
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If a third of my life is spent at work, a third of my life is spent sleeping, that leaves a third of my life to cram all my interests, hobbies, chores, responsibilities, and personal life into a tiny little space. should i stop sleeping? because i can't stop working. asking for a friend.
This rant is lengthy, but I’ve held it in so long because it really caused a bit of trauma. I was an HR Senior Associate in Risk Assurance at PwC and it was the absolute worst time of my life. Starting from the very beginning, I was severely micromanaged and set up to fail by my Deployment Consultant (DC). From day one, I felt very much like an outsider when I know that I’m very personable and try my absolute best to do a great job. Training was led by another Senior HR Associate that was too wrapped up in getting married & relocating than ensuring that the new hire would understand best practices. Despite asking questions during training, NOTHING was ever clarified. I thought this had to be a joke.
I met my DC, who is located at an office in another city, on the 2nd day and it felt like she was sizing me up from that moment on. I’m not one for those games and tried to look past it, since I’m not gunning for her job. I’m just here to do mine & be great.Honestly, I wish I listened to my gut from the beginning.
During my tenure at PwC, my DC and her manager really did a number on me. I’m usually a self-assured person, but because there were so many horrible circumstances going on at the time (I broke my ankle on my 3rd day, I found out my grandmother was dying, and then Covid lockdown), they successfully broke me down. Nothing I did was right; according to them, I wasn’t qualified or capable, and wasn’t intelligent enough to comprehend how to do any assignments. I told our HRBP about how I’d been feeling with documentation of how I’d been treated and the set-ups to failure, but nothing was done.
And to top off the fact that I broke my ankle on my 3rd day at PwC which was also less than a week before Covid lockdowns, and I was given zero communication to stay at home (leading me to commute to the 60th floor of the building on a knee scooter to discover the office was dark & empty).
Once we started working from home, I was scrutinized for being in my bed during meetings (as instructed by my doc to stay in bed & constantly elevate my foot due to the amount of swelling). They even asked me if I was financially capable to set up office space (AGAIN I was bedridden & had to undergo TWO surgeries for how severe the ankle break was). And if I turned my camera off during meetings because of being in my bed, then I was “not engaged” or sent constant pings pretty much quizzing me on “what did the speaker just say?” (checking if I was paying attention). I even received the numerous “are you there?” pings throughout the day, as if my ankle miraculously healed and I decided to go out for a jog. Nothing I did indicated that I wasn’t working. It was just a pain in the ass.
Despite my fracture, I was still present every day and did my best to stay positive despite being handed nothing but negativity. The only times I wasn’t present were the fees I took after both surgeries to heal.
When it came to learning how to complete a task, I was sent on wild goose chases to find resources on how to get things done. God forbid I made even a slight human error mistake, that was just another notch of being stupid/incompetent by my DC. She was the queen of finger-pointing, and even a few “how do you not understand?”, “please re-read the email I already sent to you”, and “you should know how to do that already” comments even when I explicitly showed her where a task doesn’t make sense. The never-ending game of office politics on her end when we were all trying to navigate Covid was so pathetic and uncalled for. No matter what, I was in the wrong. I spent every day there crying & angry beyond words. I woke up in defense mode preparing for the moment that I would finally explode. It was pure misery.
I do not make a habit of bashing people, but that DC had no business being anyone’s manager and just isn’t a decent human being. I pity her for having to treat another adult in the way she treated me; pretty much building a case to get rid of me, while I’m just trying to learn, heal my fracture, and actually TRY to build a decent working relationship with her.
My DC & her manager were cliqued up by that point, so no grievance was truly heard. Any grievance against my DC was followed by an excuse. I was put on a PIP on my THIRD MONTH, and that’s when I knew that department was toxic. I’m self aware enough to know that I wasn’t incompetent, unqualified, and somehow finagled my way into a Big 4. My experience spoke for itself. That department, and the HR team who comprised of it, were in a toxic league of their own.
I did my best to network with other HR Senior Associates in other client groups because I knew this just couldn’t be the culture across the board. And of course, it wasn’t. They loved their jobs, which further sent me spiraling into a “what is wrong with me?” overthinking OVERLOAD.
I never been made to feel like such a failure in my life. I had no one in my corner. It was a dark time and even if there were a position at PwC that matched me to the T, I could never go there again. I’m still overcoming imposter syndrome for new opportunities that come my way. I never got that off my chest and it honestly felt really good. I hope anyone reading can understand that I am NOT trying to gain sympathy.
This was my experience, I hurt from it, and thankfully I grew from it. Now I’m finally at a company where I’m valued, appreciated, and have actually outgrown it with my developing skills! Now I’m headed to a new role that’s propelling me way further in my career trajectory that I could’ve ever imagined.
Rising Star
Mine, to start:
I was told I'd get promoted into role X like I wanted to be for months. Instead, I was just given role Y this week, but was told I'll still get to do the work of role X.
Role Y has a much lower pay range, and the position doesn't even make sense for the type of work I'll be doing in reality. And this is after I shared that I'm considering looking elsewhere, that some great companies are interested in me (the truth), and shared what those places said they'd pay me (15-25% more even after the promo).
Yay a promotion and all, but... I feel played.
Thanks yall - that's the goal 🤞 just gotta hope my new manager/team where ever I go are decent. That's my biggest worry 😅
So sick of my department, I love what I do but I feel stuck. No room for advancement, and things are highly unorganized. I've asked to work on projects to learn something new, my manager told me that she never asked, because I had xyz on my plate and she didn't want to overwhelm me 🙄. Yet the projects are given to people who can't keep up with their day to day work. 13 years with the company and I'm ready to move on..but I'm not getting any calls or emails from applications 😩
Hang in there and keep applying. Job hunting sucks, is draining, and mentally taxing. But in the end, it can be so worth it.
Being told that I'm 'under-utilized' in my current role (which I am but I came in knowing that) and to come up with a list of things to improve in 2022. Then during my review - being told that my top idea is not happening. That in itself is fine - but when it's accompanied by a snort and a 'yeah that's not happening' it's very disheartening. And then being rated 'needs improvement' in the continuous improvement category becuase I haven't been with the company long enough(6 months) to make any changes. I'm like dude - I'm trying but you shoot down every freakin' idea I come up with!
Also - being told to fire an employee that is out on workers comp because we 'aren't going to hold a position forevre for a mediocre worker with no RTW in sight'. Then when reminded CEO that we have a policy that states we'll hold a job for 6 months (not the same job, just 'a' job) being told that he doesn't care, let him sue us.
Rising Star
Holding in your feelings or feel like no one listens anyway? Let's hear your rants about your companies and/or jobs.
Been told I would be getting a promotion for almost a year. I’ve been managing 5ppl without the title or pay performing the same tasks as the other VP’s that get 50k more than I do. I’ve had 4 different managers in 2.5 years and keep getting passed up for the assistant VP and VP job even tho I’m doing it. Feeling taken advantage of 😓
I hope you are able to find somewhere that values you!
I've been there where I've done so many peoples jobs at higher levels only to see nothing for it. Leaving was the best choice every time. In my first job out of college doing admin and event support at a non profit, I got 2 dollars above min wage and was doing things that people with 10 YOE were supposed to be doing. Saved a formal gala event from getting canceled and made it the 2nd highest earning fundraiser event they'd had in 14 years. What did I get? A 58 cent per hour raise and critique from my boss saying "you asked for help with the event and you shouldn't need to". Despite that I was paid nothing and doing way way way more than I should have. I was barely supposed to do anything for the event outside of like printing things and helping out with basic things like that. Yet I planned a ton of it, procured donations and auction items, and a million other things. I would have quit on the spot if I wasn't broke at the time.
Moral of the story, get out while you can and find someone who sees your worth ❤️