Making the decisions.

Before I left New Zealand I worked full time in a large Government office and loved my work as Personal Assistant to a wonderful man. I had full control of the office, and it ran like clockwork. After many years there, I handed in my notice and moved to Australia. Again I worked in a Government Department. But this was different. This was a well-oiled machine, and I was the bottom cog. This position was exceeding stressful, constantly dealing with queues of customers. Everything was regimented. There was ten minutes for your break, not more and not less. Everyone basically timed it. The girls in the office were lovely, but I felt smothered. There was no room for putting your own stamp on the job; and I was used to being a bit of a leader and not a follower at the very rear.

So I changed jobs and went from the frying pan into the fire. When my new boss was not being totally bad tempered he was really quite nice. His wife, also a full time employee, was a total ditzy blonde who was often running around after her family, or at the beauticians. The rest of the time she fitted in doing the accounts, which she messed up on a daily basis and attended to the marketing. It’s not an easy thing for a boss to sack his wife, even if she is causing mayhem in the office, especially if she doesn’t want to go!

The wife found out I was looking for jobs in China, and made life rather difficult for me. Here was our chance. China was calling loud and clear. If going to China to teach English wasn’t different, then nothing was!

There was just one fly in the ointment. My mother.