Jeff recently received his MBA, and was antsy to use it. I guess all of that new knowledge in his head was bursting his skull, so he decided to team up with another grad and start a business. The only drawback is that in order to avoid reducing our family health coverage to bloodletting and faith healing, I have to find a job with benefits. My current job is extremely part-time, and barely includes pay, let alone insurance.
I haven’t been in the workplace in almost two years, and I find myself excited and apprehensive about going back. Right now my life is pretty simple. I get up around 8:00 am, but I’m able to schlep around in my jammies until at least 10:30 am. In the morning, I drink coffee leisurely while cleaning the bottom floor of the house as I listen to The Howard Stern Show. I eventually make my way upstairs, change my daughter into clothes, put her down for a nap and take a shower. The rest of the day revolves around the length of her nap, and the chores of minimal importance that need to be accomplished. Yes, my life is one non-stop roller coaster of adventure!
Getting a job will mean that I have to be out of the house by 8:00 am or earlier, and no more bumming in the pjs. It also means that I actually have to spend time searching and applying for jobs, which I now find difficult. Several years ago when I was unemployed, I was willing to take anything that remotely fit my abilities as long as it had some sort of decent salary and wasn’t too high stress. Now, I’m picky. I really only want to do event management, which is something I excel at given my many years in the music industry setting up intimate parties and humungous concerts. The non-profit world has been good to me, but the whole “not for profit” attitude not only describes an organization, but the pay they tend to offer employees. Basically, I want to throw events and get paid well for it.
Due to my particular job specifications, I have only been on a couple of interviews, and I guess I had forgotten what torturous fun that was. I know I’m being judged when I walk into an interview, but I often wonder what I’m truly being judged on. They all say they are looking at your resume and experience, but in the back of my mind I know that somewhere at sometime a job candidate was dismissed for not wearing the right shoes. I kind of laugh at the idea of politicians always trying to outlaw discrimination in the job interview process, because essentially it’s an impossible thing to do. Sure they will tell you that another candidate’s experience fit what they were looking for when they really want to say, ‘putting a red knit sweater with dark blue slacks and white flats is just to static for me, and since you are so pristine, I would probably hate working with you.’ Don’t worry fashionistas, that wasn’t my interview outfit.
There is nothing like the nagging feeling of having a good interview and wondering if you will be called back for round two. Right now, I’m doing that wait, and it’s not fun. At least I know at this point that my experience, particularly in events, is immaculate, so basically it will come down to chemistry. If they think they will like working with me, I’m in. If they suspect that I might not fit into their clique, then I’ll be happy not to have the job. There is nothing worse than finally getting a job and realizing that you don’t like or can’t relate to anyone you’re working with. I once had a job (for two weeks) at a pizza parlor in college. Everyone seemed really nice when I went in for an interview, and were very welcoming when I was hired. Once I actually started working I found out that my female co-worker was a manic-depressive who would yell for no reason. The guy making pizza was a 40-year-old perv who kept trying to stare down my shirt when I bent over, and continually offered me rides home despite the fact that I lived within walking distance, and the delivery guy was a drunk. I collected my first (and last) check and never returned. It will come as no surprise that this particular establishment has since gone out of business.
Right now, I have the luxury of pickiness and hope that the right thing will come along. As I get closer to the launch date for my husband’s business, I’ll begin entertaining a broader range of job possibilities. I don’t look at my eminent employment as a negative; it is a challenge that will bring about a whole new experience. It will give me the motivation to actually get my ass in gear in the morning, and will still allow me to catch some Howard in the car on the way to my new workplace. It will enable me to take care of my family’s health benefits, while making enough money to take care of the household. Best of all, it will bring an entirely new forum of angst on which to bitch about amusingly at least once a week in this blog.
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