An Unlikely Source of Inspiration

Call centers, who would have given them credit for being sources for inspiration?  As it turns out, those who own, operate, and are employed by them can find a fertile ground for creating believable characters in everyday life. Even the barrage of customers and potential leads via the telephone can give us an insight into a cross section of humanity! Are they, in fact, a suitable habitat for budding authors, and wordsmiths? I would say so, For  I have done my share of working the contact center circuit, and found all sorts of scenarios, characters, and interactions. I came, I saw, I did my job. I was inspired.  Most of my work experience lies within the walls of many of the city’s call centers. But my heart and mind belong to the written word, and I do possess some experience in the areas of writing, proofreading, generating ideas and creative names and slogans for products. Every job I’ve had has its own story, and all of them have presented me with various opportunities to be both a scribe and a conduit for them.

Moreover, the positions I held honed my ability with the written word.  Yes, both written and spoken words were present, or should I say omnipresent , when one is employed to use words to sell a product, a service, a vacation spot, an idea, or even to engage the contact in friendly, non-biased conversation in order to derive an opinion from him/her for market research purposes.  As in service based jobs, one needs to be creative in coming up with an answer right away.  Words also have their own way of manipulating someone’s reactions when upset. Empathy goes a long way when assisting a client. One conveys empathy with one’s choice of words. As well, the imagination factor allows one to feel as the other speaking to you feels, and how their situation or problem affected them.