96
stereo
7y

This rant is a confession I had to make, for all of you out there having a bad time (or year), this story is for you.

Last year, I joined devRant and after a month, I was hired at a local company as an IT god (just joking but not far from what they expected from me), developer, web admin, printer configurator (of course) and all that in my country it's just called "the tech guy", as some of you may know.

I wasn't in immediate need for a full-time job, I had already started to work as a freelancer then and I was doing pretty good. But, you know how it goes, you can always aim for more and that's what I did.

The workspace was the usual, two rooms, one for us employees and one for the bosses (there were two bosses).

Let me tell you right now. I don't hate people, even if I get mad or irritated, I never feel hatred inside me or the need to think bad of someone. But, one of the two bosses made me discover that feeling of hate.

He had a snake-shaped face (I don't think that was random), and he always laughed at his jokes. He was always shouting at me because he was a nervous person, more than normal. He had a tone in his voice like he knew everything. Early on, after being yelled for no reason a dozen of times, I decided that this was not a place for me.

After just two months of doing everything, from tech support to Photoshop and to building websites with WordPress, I gave my one month's notice, or so I thought. I was confronted by the bosses, one of which was a cousin of mine and he was really ok with me leaving and said that I just had to find a person to replace me which was an easy task. Now, the other boss, the evil one, looked me on the eye and said "you're not going anywhere".

I was frozen like, "I can't stay here". He smiled like a snake he was and said "come on, you got this we are counting on you and we are really satisfied with how you are performing till now". I couldn't shake him, I was already sweating. He was rolling his eyes constantly like saying "ok, you are wasting my time now" and left to go to some basketball practice or something.

So, I was stuck there, I could have caused a scene but as I told you, one of the bosses was a cousin of mine, I couldn't do anything crazy. So, I went along with it. Until the next downfall.

I decided to focus on the job and not mind for the bad boss situation but things went really wrong. After a month, I realised that the previous "tech guy" had left me with around 20 ancient Joomla - version 1.0 websites, bursting with security holes and infested with malware like a swamp. I had never seen anything like it. Everyday the websites would become defaced or the server (VPN) would start sending tons of spam cause of the malware, and going offline at the end. I was feeling hopeless.

And then the personal destruction began. I couldn't sleep, I couldn't eat. I was having panick attacks at the office's bathroom. My girlfriend almost broke up with me because I was acting like an asshole due to my anxiety issues (but in the end she was the one to "bring me back"(man, she is a keeper)) and I hadn't put a smile on my face for months. I was on the brink of depression, if not already there. Everyday I would anxiously check if the server is running because I would be the one to blame, even though I was trying to talk to the boss (the bad one was in charge of the IT department) and tell him about the problem.

And then I snapped. I finally realised that I had hit rock bottom. I said "I can't let this happen to me" and I took a deep breath. I still remember that morning, it was a life-changing moment for me. I decided to bite the bullet and stay for one more month, dealing with the stupid old server and the low intelligence business environment. So, I woke up, kissed my girlfriend (now wife), took the bus and went straight to work, and I went into the boss's office. I lied that I had found another job on another city and I had one month in order to be there on time. He was like, "so you are leaving? Is it that good a job the one you found? And when are you going? And are you sure?", and with no hesitation I just said "yup". He didn't expect it and just said "ok then", just find your replacement and you're good to go. I found the guy that would replace me, informing him of every little detail of what's going on (and I recently found out, that he is currently working for some big company nowadays, I'm really glad for him!).

I was surprised that it went so smoothly, one month later I felt the taste of freedom again, away from all the bullshit. Totally one of the best feelings out there.

I don't want to be cliche, but do believe in yourself people! Things are not what the seem.

With all that said, I want to give my special thanks to devRant for making this platform. I was inactive for some time but I was reading rants and jokes. It helped me to get through all that. I'm back now! Bless you devRant!

I'm glad that I shared this story with all of you, have an awesome day!

Comments
  • 5
    @KizuTheMaid Thank you for taking the time to read it through. During the first couple months of recuperating, I found out that the saying "what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger" seems to be true. Toxic environments are exactly that, toxic and hopeless. I hope that perhaps this rant might help people who are in situations like this. Have a nice day!
  • 5
    Welcome back among the living!
  • 1
    @CWins It's really good to be back :)
  • 1
    @kgbemployee Appreciate it man, cheers!
  • 2
    Man, oh, man... this is such a good story! I'm really glad you got through it and it seems it really made you stronger.

    Stuff like this is what makes or breaks you, and I'm really happy when I see good stuff happen to people that had to go though shitstorms, and to see them become fearless sailors at the end of it all.

    Best of luck, and thaks for sharing!
  • 1
    @balaianu Thank you for the kind words. They really mean a lot.
  • 2
    She surely is a keeper, wish my ex would've done the same though...

    It's good to hear you're back and running, welcome home.
  • 2
    @stereo I can relate. Toxic environments are (somewhat unfortunately) a great forge of character.

    Great story, glad you got a happy end to it!
  • 1
    Thank You for this story! This is exactly what I needed to hear today.
  • 2
    Respect to you and to your amazing wife!
  • 0
    @starbear Stay strong inside and you will be able to solve all of your problems, and a little patience on the side.
  • 1
    @Noob Thank you for your words!
  • 1
    Great post.
  • 0
    @Charon92 Focus on your health and it will be peaceful once the storm is gone. Don't let it drag you down! You will find your strength dude!
  • 0
    Amazed that your boss can say "you're not leaving" - did you legally have to stay? Which country is this, do you *have* to find your own replacement before you can leave? Glad you managed to get away in the end.
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