Being on-call is the most nerve wracking, idiotic, chaotic, mentally taxing, but yet rewarding thing you can do for your job. I have a deep love-hate relationship with it, and I'm going to explain why you need to give it a shot if your line of work has a need for someone to be ready to go at the drop of a hat.

It's not for everyone. I'll admit that right away. I have seen it break people. I have seen it make people regret their career choices. Just this past week I watched someone have to resign from their position, because being on-call constantly for nearly 8 years was weighing on them. They needed a break. It's a hard job, but I still love it even though I hate it. It's what I think I was meant to do.

Being on-call means losing sleep some nights. It means cutting dinner or a shopping trip short. It means getting out of the shower half way through washing your hair not being able to tame it until the next day when you can take a shower again. It's late nights, tired eyes, broken hearts, angry minds, and sore legs, and it can even mean having to cut ties with some people that feel like you aren't giving them enough of your time when they don't understand. However, being on-call has yielded some of the most humbling and life altering moments that I have come across in my few years of being part of a Residence Life on-call team. Whether it was just one night or an entire weekend I was on-call, each experience has been rewarding even if it didn't seem like it at first.

I have helped people cheer up from times that seemed like there was no hope. I have helped people get the proper care and treatment that they needed when they were too weak or not in the correct state of mind to care for themselves. I have watched people see the error of their ways and turned around to become upstanding citizens when all you would think of them was that they were a bad egg. I have seen people with the least amount to give give it all, and I have seen people with the biggest hearts make room for more love and understanding. I have seen and experienced all of this and more while doing what I do.

Now, being on-call is not for everyone. It is not for the weak hearted or the high strung. You need to have a good level head on your shoulders to be the most calm you can be for those around you to rely on and look up to. You will be the person who is called for emergencies, and you need to be okay with that. If you are, it'll be one of the most rewarding things you will ever do even if it's just for a little while.

I love being on-call. I want to continue doing what I am doing for a very long time. It makes me happy to know that I am the person who helps people during times of need. I also like being the person who tells people what they need to hear even if they don't want to hear it. I like being the person who gets to be the most real they can be.

Go give it a try. Even if you don't like it, you will learn from it.