:: Life on Planet Dan-E ::

:: Friday, February 08, 2008 ::

:: Job Search: Day 2 ::

Days since I've been fired: 3
Applications I've filled out: 8
Resume and coverletter revisions: 2
Hours spent outdoors walking from restaurant to restaurant: 8
Liters of Diet Coke and ice water chugged to stave off dehydration: 6+
Possible dead ends: 3
Possible strong leads: 2
The possibility that I'll have two job offers tomorrow: Priceless

My first stop today was at the Irish place I mentioned earlier. My buddy apparently put in such a strong recommendation that the interview almost seemed like a formality. After I told her I could start immediately, she told me that she'd call me Saturday as to when I'd be start my training.

Everything happened so fast that I barely had time to celebrate. I didn't get to ask many questions, nor did she ask me about my strong or weak points. Which leads me to believe that unless I blow the doors off the place, I'll look bad and my buddy might lose credibility. Nothing like a little pressure, right?

Still, I wanted keep as many options open as possible so I went to another hotel Open House on Ocean Drive. This one was considerably more organized than the last two I went to, which was a good sign. I fill out my application and waited around for my name to be called. And waited. And waited. I noticed a woman who showed up after me get called in for the one on one so I wondered what was up. I realized then that maybe I should have handed the application back after I was done with it. Oops. At least the lady running Open House had a sense of humor about it.

It was warm so I grab a bottle of water for us and wait. While I'm waiting, I see a guy wearing his cook’s uniform walk up to the manager and ask for an application. He turns around and it's a guy at my old job. Did he get fired too? Wouldn't surprise me. I talk to him for a little bit. He's there to get a second job and make a little extra money. That's cool. I wish him luck.

A tall blonde woman wearing a pantsuit walks over the our area and asks, "is there a Dan... E, here?" I get up, shake her hand and she leads me inside where there's air conditioning. We go through the interviewing motions, and it vaguely reminds me of my experience getting interviewed at Starbucks. She asks me various questions and takes notes of my answers. She tells that it's a very corporate environment and that I would have to cut my hair and shave my goatee. My first though was "umm, yeah... bite me." My actual response, was "If that's what it takes, it won't be a problem." Especially if this place ends up hiring me for whatever reason, nothing else comes through, and the choice is cut my hair or move back with my parents, then hand me the sheers. A question she asked me was what makes me different from our other applicants.

"Well, I'm not some actor/model/promoter wannabe looking for something on the side till I get my big break. I'm here because I want to work. I have a strong with ethic, I show up, I'm always healthy so I never miss a shift. I'm even tempered so I won't freak out if it gets too busy. And I'm friendly without being overbearing."

"I see."

"Oh, I don't do any drugs."

She smiles at that and makes additional notes. "That's good to know, especially here in Miami."

There are a few more questions, and I ask a few. Afterwards, we shake hands again and I leave. It was only two interviews so far but it's been productive so far. I'm going to be okay. Just to make sure I have as many options as possible, I stop by a couple of other places and drop off my resume before heading home.

I feel pretty good. Two days, eight places, and two solid leads. I think I'm going to be okay.

Labels: drugs, job search, moving on

:: Miscellaneous Ramblings by Dan-E at 5:38 PM [+] :: | 0 comments
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