Taking the initiative

I began working last Monday.

Today, my boss asked me to find some data about a company. I started googling for the relevant info. But even after an hour of searching, I could not find anything very useful. I looked at hazaar websites, news reports, discussion boards, but came up empty-handed. This was the first time I had been asked to look for such specific info, and I obviously wanted to do the job well.

One thing I really find difficult is to call people to get some work done/find some information. I would rather walk for 20 min to get some information or buy something than call for it. I don't know why, but that is the way it is. But today I was desperate. Somewhere I found the phone number of the company's head office. Called them and asked if they would provide me that information. I expected that they would hang up on me instantly.

To my surprise, I was redirected twice and finally someone started asking me questions. "Who are you?", "Where are you calling from?" types. Finally he told me, "The information that you are looking for is all there at the company web-site." I was a bit stunned, but managed to ask, "But what is the address of the web-site?" He replied, a bit flummoxed at my stupidity, "It's [company-name].com!" I was really stunned. How did the site not show up in Google?

Nevertheless, I went to the site, and sure enough, all the data was there, neatly presented. A job well done! What a difference a little initiative (and desperation) makes!