Interview mk II

5 October 2013

Monday was wet. Very wet. Streets running with water, can’t see out the window wet. Any plans I might have had for a morning walk went by the wayside and I spent my time putting things into my suitcase and taking them back out again. It’s one thing packing for a nice beach holiday where the main requirements are swim suits, sun glasses and things to cover my pale skin to stop it burning. Packing for New York and Toronto in mid October is a whole different ball game. The weather forecast didn’t help, it was changeable to say the least. Never has packing seemed like such hard work.

Of course it was still raining when the time came to leave for my second interview, just to give me a taste of how horrible the journey could be if I got the job. Luckily Commando gave me a lift there so I arrived relatively dry but, even in the car, the journey took longer than I’d expected and I had to dash from car to office to avoid turning up a bedraggled mess.

There were just two of the original five being interviewed but I don’t know who else got through because I didn’t see her. The interview began with a half hour competency test. This mostly involved an excel sheet and a letter writing exercise, neither of which gave me too much trouble. Then there was the Q and A session, you know the kind of thing, tell me about a time when… It’s hard to know what they want to hear and, having interviewed people myself, I know there are no right or wrong answers just key words and impressions. All I could do was try to sound interesting, professional and throw in as many administration type key words as I could think of. The office manager said they’d let us know within the next couple, of days so at least I won’t have to wait too long.

Soon it was all over and I was out in the rain again heading for the bus stop. By the time I got there I was wet, despite the plastic mac over my normal rain coat. Then I sat on the bus thinking of all the things I could have said but didn’t. The best answers always come after the event I think. By the time I got to town where I had to catch my second bus it wasn’t raining as hard and I grabbed a take away coffee on my way to the next bus stop. My main impression is that it’s a place I’d like to work but, if I get the job, I can’t say I’m looking forward to that journey every day, especially in winter. Why don’t they make cars you can fold up and put in your handbag?