Wow, how time flies, I am a month into working with the customer service team here at Giganet, and I can honestly say it’s been the most positive month of my life!
Before I began my career at Giganet, I worked in retail, where, if I’m honest, I clock-watched each shift because I couldn’t wait to go home. I felt overworked, under-supported and found myself feeling increasingly deflated, stressed and emotional. When it got to the point of buckling at the slightest of stresses, I sought my doctor’s advice and was diagnosed with anxiety and depression.
Like many people, confronting mental health issues made me feel like a failure, my confidence had been stripped away and I was fearing I would never be able to cope with the trappings of full-time employment. Panic attacks would flare up every time left the house for work but I put my faith in its treatment.
After nine months of antidepressants, I felt like my confidence was starting to return. I found myself a new part-time job, again in retail; but a day into the role, my anxiety flared up, and I was back to square one. I decided to leave and refocus on my health.
Following a year of support from my family, I found the courage to start looking for another job, but this time I made sure that I didn’t take the first thing that came along; I was picky, I wanted the right job for me and my wellbeing.
When a job alert came through for a Customer Service Advisor at Giganet, it felt right for me. Although I had the added benefit of my fiancé working for the company, I decided to apply without telling him, hoping this would give me a confidence boost if I were to be successful on my own merits.
Shortly after, I received an email from Sarah, our Customer Service Team Leader regarding my application, she asked if we could arrange a telephone interview for the next day and it went ….amazingly.
When I made sure Sarah was aware of my past experiences and its impact on my mental health, I instantly felt a sense of relief I could be honest. It created a real buzz about the role and the supportiveness of the team I’d be working with.
Within a week I was invited to a face-to-face interview with Sarah and Scott our Head of Service. On the day of the interview, I felt excited, but as expected, also extremely anxious. Regardless, I pushed through self-doubt and to my surprise got some very positive feedback from the interview. They were completely understanding and did their utmost to reassure me that I would be looked after and appreciated at Giganet.
On my first day at Giganet, I was a bag of nerves, absolutely terrified, but after meeting the team and learning how welcoming the entire office was, I felt instantly at ease. Since then, I haven’t had a panic attack, a bad thought or even the slightest worry about going in to work. To some people, this might seem silly and like such a simple thing to overcome, but to me, it was everything, A month in and I couldn’t be more proud of myself for being a part of this great team, and feel like I have achieved something massive.
Something they said that day has stuck with me ever since, “A company can hire you, and you can be just another number on their payroll or like us, someone can employ you and appreciate you for you”.
In these times, a company that values its employees means more than ever, and I have definitely found it here. I have never felt so happy, content or committed to a job as I do at Giganet!
– Tabby
