Being A Responsible Employee

It seems to be a consensus with Second Life® business owners, good employees are hard to come by.

Sure, a lot of people here want a job; put out a classified and you get a lot of responses. But do they really want to work, or just looking for cash without having to earn it?

Second Life® is no different from real life when it comes to the job market. I know a lot of people think it is and that there really is no commitment, but that’s unfortunate, because entrepreneurs need people who are dedicated to giving their full attention and owners are willing to compensate them accordingly.

It starts with the interview process. Just like real life, you need to be prepared. It helps to know something about who you are being interviewed by and the company you will work for. In my ads for employment, I always provide a link to my blog where anyone could find out an enormous amount about what I and my company do. As well, you can look at my profile to find out some more information about me. I always check profiles of people I’m about to interview and together with their resume, have a good idea about them and am able to formulate questions around that. Of all the people I’ve interviewed lately, only one or two even knew I had a blog and most knew nothing about me or my business. As an interviewer, it makes you wonder how serious they are about the job.

Salary is another issue. I know there are a lot of jobs that pay strictly by tips and I feel that’s unfortunate. While I do split tips with my staff, each gets a regular wage, some weekly, some hourly, but something they can count on getting. The issue of salary and how much to pay in Second Life® has always been sticky. However, as a prospective employee, keep in mind that employers are not going to offer you the top wage from the start. Generally they want to see how you perform, can handle the job and live up to their expectations. Asking for a lot of money up front is not going to get you the job, here or real life. Be prepared to start a little lower and work your way up. It certainly is not unfair to ask a prospective employer about having a review of your performance and wage. I tell all interviewees that a review will be done after 30 days and both of us have input into performance, issues and salary. Certainly if you perform your job well, there would be no reason not to increase your salary.

While salary is a concern for most employees, don’t relay in or prior to an interview that it’s a major concern. Generally if salary is your focal point, employers will look past you. I recently received a resume from someone and in it they stated they were not happy with their last job because it only paid a specific amount and they wanted to make more. Well the job being applied for paid less than that amount, so I declined an interview.

While Second Life® is about fun for a lot of people, it is also serious business for some. Taking a job in second life means that someone is relying on you to perform your assigned tasks. After all, their business depends on work getting done and whether you realize it or not, it is real money that is injected into this place.

Taking a job here means taking the responsibility along with it. Make sure you are clear with your employer about your duties and then perform them. If you are unsure or unclear about something, ask. Employers don’t get offended if you aren’t sure how to do something, it is more annoying when something isn’t done right or not done at all. Be clear about when things should be done, if you can do them at your discretion and how often you must accomplish them.

Being reliable is very important. The reason businesses hire is so that the owner/manager can remove tasks from their plate and not have to worry about them being done. They want to count on someone doing them without having to check. So if something has to be done by a specific time or a certain day, make sure it is. There is nothing worse that an business owner logging on and finding out notices hadn’t been posted for an event and has to rush to get some posted otherwise end up with no one attending.

Now I know real life steps in the way a lot, and you can’t put Second Life® jobs ahead of real life jobs. That’s perfectly understandably and most employers would be accommodating as real life steps in their way too. But be prepared and even though you may have to leave for a short time or not be able to log in when you need to have something done, make other arrangements. If there are other employees, see if one can fill in or do the task for you, even get a friend to post an event notice if that was the task. And by all means, inform your employer. I really would appreciate an employee telling me they would not be able to get something done due to other issues, as long as I knew in advance so that I could make other arrangements. Even if you do make other arrangements on your own, let your employer know so they know what’s happening and they’ll appreciate your initiative.

Holding a job in Second Life® is serious and should be treated that way. Sure you can have fun, and your employer will be one of the first to agree. But make sure your employer feels he made the right decision in hiring you and that you can be relied on. Not only will it give both of you satisfaction, but will definitely make a difference when you do get that review and hopefully get the salary you desire.

Ciao

Jenny