Now, introducing a new section to our blog: Interview with a Freelancer!
During these articles, we’ll be interviewing our Freelancers so they can share a little insight and some updates on their lives with us. It doesn’t matter if they work behind a desk attending IT issues, or constantly update our social media as a Community Manager. We’ve all got stories and anecdotes to share.
To start this segment off, we’ve got our first interviewee: Aniger Villarroel! Our Recruitment Specialist. During her work hours, Aniger reaches out to possible candidates to help our clients fill staff vacancies – an oversimplification, I know! But after all, we’re not here to go into details about Aniger Villaroel’s tasks, are we? What we’re here for is to ask her a couple of questions that’ll help us know her better.
At the office, we prefer to call her Ani, short for Aniger, and it sounds just as sweet as she is. Only last month, Ani was named our most altruistic teammate during our Freelancer of the Month ceremony. Who named her that? You may ask. Well, we, the freelancers, did.
We voted for her as we believed she perfectly fit the following description:
“Altruism is characterized by selflessness and concern about the well-being of others. Those who possess this quality typically put others first and truly care about the people around them, not caring if they have a personal bond to them or not.”
That’s just who Ani is: a true helper. Her sole presence will brighten up even the most boresome days at the office. But now, without further ado, let’s get into the questions:
How do you start your day?
My day starts at 7:00 a.m., or it sometimes starts at 7:30 a.m. when I hit snooze on my alarm a couple of times. As soon as I wake up, I have some morning snuggles with Sammy, my little dog, and then I check my social media.
Then, I get up. I take a cold shower and I get ready. It usually takes up to 15 minutes, as I leave everything ready the night before. Now, getting my hair done — that’s a whole different story! Next up, I have breakfast with my family and we talk about our plans for the day.
When you’re not working, what is it that you like to do the most?
I like watching TV, especially crime series like CSI, Criminal Minds, or The Mentalist. Also, I like checking new cooking recipes out. I always find some on Instagram or Facebook.
I enjoy cooking too, and cooking with my sister is even better. Any time we get into the kitchen, we get very creative! Last Saturday, we made some creamy broccoli with cheese on top. It was delicious.
Having two different positions can be quite time-consuming. What are some tips you would give on how to manage your time?
Something very important when you have two different positions is knowing how to establish your priorities. In my case, I always use to-do lists. I write things in order of importance, and that’s how I get them done. That way, I make sure I’m not leaving anything out.
Respecting the schedule for each position is very important, too. The time I have for one position, I focus and work on that position. I try not to mix them up because I could get confused.
On those days when time’s not enough to do all the things I have to do, I usually work on them as much as I can and leave them on hold to be worked on first thing in the morning, the next day.
What was your first reaction when you first found out you were named Freelancer of the Month?
I remember making jokes about it, I asked people who they thought of when they read the description of the Freelancer of the Month, and everybody was like: “Ani, that’s you”. I was still very skeptical, you know? The votes were up to them, not me!
During the meeting, which was online, I was at my boyfriend’s house and I was helping our recruiter with the dynamics and all that, and then she said: “Ok, now it’s time to announce the Freelancer of the Month”.
At that moment, I kind of hoped that it would be me, but in the end, it wasn’t my call, we’re a lot of Freelancers and I didn’t know people were going to vote for me!
I asked my boyfriend to check the phone first. “Would you let me know if it’s me or not?”, I asked him, as I didn’t want to look at my phone, so when that showed, he said: “It’s you”. I couldn’t believe it! I was very happy. It was nice to see that people took the time to vote for me.
How important do you think being an altruistic person at work is?
I think that being an altruist person at work helps not only you but also the company. It helps to create a bond between coworkers that’ll be beneficial.
The environment will be better, the interaction between people will improve, and, the more connected and supportive we are to each other, the better the results we show to our clients will be. I think that’s the most important thing to consider. Being an altruist person leaves a good impression on the company and the team in general.
Working as a recruiter: what is it like?
Well, I started as an assistant. I just contacted people and arranged meetings and interviews. During my training to become a recruiter, I was kind of nervous because it was the first time I worked as such.
Once I started talking, I got more comfortable with the position. It felt nice since I sort of missed that kind of constant interaction with people. That’s the part I enjoy the most.
What advice would you give those applying for a new position?
I’d say that every beginning is a little bit scary sometimes. If you’re not interested or you don’t have a feeling of connection with the position you’re applying for, then things won’t work out as easily.
If someone wants to apply for a position that may be out of their area of expertise, but you’re still interested in learning about it and growing within that field, I would advise them to go for it! You just need to keep yourself motivated. With a little bit of heart in it, you can learn and get familiarized with it.
How does having worked as a teacher before impact your current mindset?
Working as a teacher, I had the chance to meet all sorts of people! Different ages, different personalities, different people in general. I learned how to deal with people in many different aspects, you know?
When they’re having a good day and everything is sunshine and rainbows, and even when they’re having a bad day.
To this day, I still use that. In recruitment, you meet lots of different people too. I’ve had interviews with people who are good at talking, and I had people who get nervous!
How has your experience working as a Freelancer been so far?
So far, it’s been nice. I’ve enjoyed it a lot. Sometimes, there are days in which I feel overwhelmed, but I work with people who are willing to hold the bucket under my hand so whatever falls, we get it together again.
The best part about my job is to be able to work with the people I work with. The ones I knew from before, and the ones that I just met. They’re the best.
All in all, we got to the end of the interview between nods and giggles. Half an hour’s worth of questions later, and we can say we know our Recruitment Specialist better than we did before, can’t we? Her dog Sammy was truly a sight to behold, what a good boy!
For more interviews like this, and to get to know our freelancers even more, stay updated on our social media.
See more articles by Jenaro Perdomo.
