Call Center jobs in the Philippines are characterized by one or two things: slapping yourself until your eyeballs pop out or drinking coffee until it comes out of your pores; both methods are done so you could stay awake while you take those calls. A lot of my friends are working in call centers and even though I’m not working as an agent myself, I could see the different ways they screw with their body clocks to keep up with the ever-changing schedules and demands of call center jobs in the Philippines.

Coffee takes on a whole new role as more than the usual pick-me-upper. Most of the time for certain agents, even coffee is not enough anymore. When you’re working for a week straight with constantly changing schedules, you have to make your own ways of keeping up. Forget irate customers, one should deal with his own bodily functions first before he can converse with customers asking why their internet isn’t working. There have been numerous instances wherein call center agents are found literally sleeping on a call (YouTube can attest to that) there are even instances wherein at the process of preparing their tools, they nod off to sleep. So to be an effective call center agent you have to take control of your body and snap yourself to attention. Some call center agents can consume up to three Venti cups of Starbucks coffee in a day. That’s a whole lot of coffee in just one day if you ask me.

Team Building is equally important. To be able to muster the energy to deal with about a hundred calls a day, call center agents need to have a solid foundation with the people they’re working with. They need people they can actually have a normal conversation with aside from the calls they receive everyday. For one thing, it keeps them sane and another thing; it gives agents that necessary push to actually look forward to going to work despite having little to no sleep. Most call center companies in the Philippines put a great deal of time and effort on this, even going as far as allotting a considerable budget for it. Simple activities are also used to create tighter bonds between call center agents. As I have witnessed, most of my friends get so attached to their teammates that they become the sole reason for them to stay in their job and actually do well. Camaraderie does a lot to a person’s morale and work principles. Everyone should learn how to take advantage of that.

This far ahead in the article, you’d probably notice that I’m not talking about call center agent skills. When I say ‘keep up’ I literally mean having to keep yourself armed and ready to face the daily challenges of call center life. Because probably more than the challenge of dealing with customers is the challenge of literally keeping yourself up to speed. That’s where coffee, good relations with officemates and the right priorities come in.

Call center jobs in the Philippines have been prominent over these past few years and for a good reason too. Offshore outsourcing has reached its peak and most companies are taking advantage of it. It’s not just the companies taking advantage of it though. Graduates looking for jobs in the Philippines are also making the most out of this opportunity. But before you can begin to think about applying for one, you have to remember that you have to be physically and mentally prepared for the requirements of being a call center agent in the Philippines.