A lifelong animal lover now cares for rescue pets while working remotely
By Mag Boron
Pearl has been pursuing her passion for caring for rescue animals while working remotely for over 10 years.
After joining Pangian and landing a brand new remote job she is embarking on a new chapter in her life.
Supported by a loving family of 2 dogs, 3 cats, a fish, and a husband, Pearl is ready to explore the world looking for picturesque desserts and traveling to unknown destinations in search of music that doesn’t make it her Spotify account.
From learning German and Brazilian Portuguese, smiling and waving at dogs and feeding birds in her neighborhood, she is ready to share her kind, positive and happy approach to life with the world.
Pearl is a true Pangian but like many of us, her journey to location independence started in the office.
Pearl, your story is so inspiring but how did you begin your career?
I’m a lifelong lover of experiences and trying to encounter as many people as possible, I gravitated to Customer Support/Success/Service naturally.
That led to a lot of great experiences including working for a baby bedding retailer, T-shirt printer and a Triathlon shop.
My personal life was filled with animals, which led to adopting animals that were hard to place.
I was already working remotely when my family (husband, one dog, 3 cats, and a fish) moved from California to Arizona and we adopted Luna.
That is when working remotely became a necessity instead of a bonus.
Leaving her alone caused enough anxiety to lead her to self-harm and we were her only hope.
I realized finding another remote job, after being given notice I was being laid off, was more important than ever.
I had the ability to change a life, what better motivation is there?
How did you first start working remotely?
I started working remotely 10 years ago.
I got a job working locally, in California, for a company based in Boca Raton, Florida.
The team was already remote, Tennessee, Florida, California, India, and Ukraine but I worked in an office for the first year.
Things changed and my boss moved to Costa Rica and poof, my first remote position happened without me even trying.
I worked there for another year and moved on to office jobs.
My next position as the Operations Manager also began as an office job and slowly transition to remote over time.
I stayed there for 7 years and spend the final 2 years working 100% remote.
It was great, it allowed me to move and not have the added stress of looking for work and I enjoyed the experience.
When the time came to move on again, I was lucky enough to find a job that is for a global company and hires many 100% remote workers.
Why do you love about working in customer service and what motivates you at work?
I’m a support pro and I’ve spent many years working for start-ups.
I get a sense of purpose knowing I’m there to help people through tough times, whether it’s a customer or a team member, I get satisfaction being able to share what I know to solve a problem.
I’m empathetic, passionate and I pride myself on giving my all.
While at work, I really enjoy the ability to work closely with multiple departments and having the chance to wear multiple hats.
I value any opportunity to continue growing while contributing to company growth.
I’m not afraid to try new things as I believe that’s how you get better and find what you really want to do.
I’m a giver and don’t like feeling like I’m the weak link or letting my team carry me.
Pearl, tell us about your recent remote job search experience and any advice you may have for other Pangians?
Shortly after I started looking for a job, I came to realize that a remote job search is much more difficult and time-consuming.
While I’d worked remotely before, both of those jobs started out in an office and were transitioned to remote later on.
My first step was to check my resume and I realized it was outdated in more than one way.
I joined Pangain and saw Mag’s webinar about resume tips and joined.
I am SO glad I did that because it gave me a great foundation to work with.
Here’s where I think it pays to be diligent.
I reviewed EVERY job and would make small adjustments to my resume and cover letter to make it more specific for that particular job.
I created a list of all my professional skills and experiences but I’d re-order the tasks or highlight different areas if I noticed that they were within the description.
I also looked for jobs daily, usually for an hour or two, minimum.
I created a list of remote job sites and would check them daily for new postings.
Yes, a lot of sites had the same jobs but the times that the jobs were posted were different.
I landed a few interviews within a couple of weeks.
None worked out but what I did gain from those interviews was how remote companies asked much more of their candidates and they have a significantly longer timeline for their interview process.
It wasn’t unusual to have 1-2 weeks between contacts for jobs I was an active candidate in.
Need help with Remote Resume/CV?
How was your experience with the interview process?
When it comes to the interview process, there were skills tests, grammar and writing tests, videos, and even mock chats with the interviewer, all of which took a lot of time to complete.
My advice is NOT to skimp on these.
Yes, the questionnaire is 12 pages long and the skills test is tough but these results are part of how you represent yourself to the company.
They are not going to meet you in person, you need to find a way to wow them at every opportunity given to you.
I also realized that you are what they want. Not, “work” you or “professional” you (unless the job calls for it).
Companies want diversity and what makes you shine can be the deciding factor if your skills are similar to another candidate.
Don’t sell yourself short by hiding what makes you great.
And I cannot say this enough, do your research!
Information is very easy to find, check out the company anywhere there is information.
Read their stories, watch their videos, read the blog posts, it’s a way for you to learn more about them and show you are willing to put in the work to learn about who you work for.
I brought up things I read in their blogs and their culture video and it got a great response from the interviewer.
Finally, please be patient. I had great days where I would apply to multiple jobs and not so great days where I would apply to a job just because I wanted to feel like I did SOMETHING towards the search.
This process is tough and if you begin to focus too much on time, it can begin to feel hopeless.
I can tell you, it is not hopeless.
I began my job search around January 28. I started my new job on May 6.
I have 20 years of CS experience, 10 years of management experience and 5 years of remote experience and I had to look for a job for over three months.
Competition is strong, companies are very selective and no one wants to commit a lot of time to a job search only to have it not work out.
The companies don’t want to hire someone they aren’t 100% sure will be a great fit and will stay with the company for a significant amount of time, otherwise, it’s a potential waste of time to both the company and the candidate.
I know this is tough but you can do it.
Keep your head up, be confident in who you are and do not let another person work harder than you because it will show when it matters.
Good luck Pangians, you got this!
How do you envision your life with remote work? How does remote work change and enhance your life?
I chose to work remotely because my life doesn’t HAVE to be in an office for me to contribute to a company.
I love my animals and couldn’t understand why I’d leave them alone 8-10 hours a day?
Our newest rescue dog was not treated well and couldn’t be alone.
She was returned to the rescue multiple times.
If I could do something to take one animal and give them a secure, safe home, why wouldn’t I do it?
I’ve also realized the freedom that comes with being remote.
No more commuting, flexibility with my hours, and I can’t even begin to explain how wonderful it is to work with people from all over the globe!
I learn something new about parts of the world I have never been to and I get to share my American experiences in return.
We are so excited for you Pearl, but before we go… What are some cool things about you that we may not find on your resume?
I am a curious person. I’ll read almost anything.
I love studying languages (currently working on both German and Brazilian Portuguese) and of course, I love animals.
I smile and wave at every dog that passes in a car and I have taken to feeding the birds in the neighborhood because I like seeing all of the different birds show up by my office window.
I’m positive and try my best to drop as much kindness into the world as I can.
I can’t wait to travel more because I want to see how much better desserts are in other parts of the world and find out about the music that doesn’t make it to my Spotify account!
About Mag Boron
Global citizen. Huff Post and Business Insider Contributor. Fearless and unapologetic about living life without regrets. Excited about connecting employers with talent around the world. Learn more about Mag
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