Life changed, and I was a bit wary about it at first. Near the end of 2017, after 2+ years working in mobile app support for WordPress, I changed gears and went back to the arena I originally worked in–general support for WordPress.com.
I love the mobile app. In fact, I’m using it right now to write this post. I thought I never wanted to leave that arena of support. Still, I understood when the company made the decision to have myself and other coworkers take turns working in specialized areas of support. Now other people could learn about the app.
When I started gearing up my knowledge quiver, preparing to provide general support again, I flashed back 3.5 years to my trial. Everything has changed so much since the last time I had been in general support. We are using new-to-me internal tools, and we offer so many different things than we did last time I worked in here (ex: you can now use plugins with our Business plan). I felt like a complete novice. And it was really exciting 🙂 There was/is so much to learn!
My coworkers, as always, cheerfully and readily pointed me in the right direction whenever I got stuck on something. This is such an amazing company to work in.
Now I’m a month and a half into my new role, and I can’t believe how much I’m loving it. I thought I would dread it, but I’m back to looking forward to waking up every day so I get to work again.
When I was in mobile support, I answered questions through a medium that was very similar to texting, but it wasn’t an immediate back and forth. Now I get to work in a mix of mediums. Sometimes it’s email, but I often do live chat, which is like instant messaging. I really enjoy that because even though we are typing, I actually get to talk with the people who use our product.
One of the beautiful things about WordPress is that it’s so versatile. Pretty much — if you can dream it, it can happen. Talking with people who use it inspires me as I see their creativity and the great things they are doing in the world. From art to nonprofits to regular business, the list of inspiration is unending.
One of my super favorite parts of my role in my job now is that I get to meet with people who use this product in a screenshare session so we actually get to talk with each other. Voice to voice. That’s for people with a Business plan. When one works remotely, as I do, the personal interactions like this are a real treat. For example, on Monday I talked with someone in Canada, someone from Norway, and someone from the southern United States in separate sessions. We talked about websites set up for nonprofits helping school children, we talked about websites for sharing rental properties, and we talked about setting up a store on website so someone could work from home. I love the global and business variety that comes with the job.
The only thing that is missing is something that I knew would be hard. I really do miss the mobile app world. But then I remembered that I could still be part of it by testing beta versions 🙂 I’m using a beta now.
I wish you could all personally meet the developers for the mobile app. They are super amazing people who are really dedicated to making the app the best that it can be. And they really listen when people report back to us with things that they want to see and with things that are problems. I’ve seen that first-hand. So I find it a real treat to test the app, work with what’s coming up down the road, and know that my voice is heard when I report any problems with it. If you’re into that sort of thing, you should give it a try. The beta testing option is open for everyone 🙂
A change this has been, for sure. But it reminded me that change can be a really good thing. As I get older, I am starting to see the signs that change is a bit trickier than it was in my past. I am thankful for reminders like this — change can be very beneficial.
Way back in high school I took a test to see what career I could thrive in. Can you imagine my family’s shock (and laughter) when my results came back, and we discovered that my optimal path was as an exterminator?
There it is. The idea of me being an exterminator was a great cause of mirth in my family.
