Job search #1

What have I been doing with my life?

Ever since graduation, the summer seems like an endless blurr of downloading books on my kindle and shredding paper (the never ending task of a law firm lackey) So, just last week I looked at the calender and realized its the middle of July. The summer is almost over, and unless I want my summer at the law firm to continue into the winter ad infinitum I need to start looking for a real job. So with the help of my brilliant and sexy boyfriend (who already has a job, a good job...why didn't I majore in electrical engineering?!?!) I got a monster account, compiled the best resume I could from my slim job pickings and started looking.

To my dismay, there is hardly anything in the Baton Rouge area for recent college grads. At least of any substance. I mean there are plenty opportunities for me to sell phones and clothes or become and Avon lady, but nothing that I could say "yes, this is what I got a college degree for" Yet, after endless scrolling and searching and banging my head against a desk. I found something!

"Are you a self motivated people person?" Yes, I answer. "Are you creative and intellectual with a drive to succeed?" Yes, my voice growing stronger. "Are you interested in a long term career path?" Errr, not so much but they don't have to know that now do they? " Are you available to start work now?" Yes, Yes, Yes! " Contact Sam Ming at ***- ***-***.

Okay, I've changed the name and am not going to tell you the name of the company because I don't want to get sued for libel. But if anyone reeeaaally wants to know I'll email it to them...you'll see why.

There, I was sitting on my laptop looking at quite possibly my dream job. My savior for the year I would otherwise spend in limbo between now and hopefully (fingers crossed) law school. I checked their website to make sure they were legit and everything looked great (oh how looks can be deceiving). They were an extremely new company, started in 2007, based in Baton Rouge, who did Sales and Marketing, and PR work. I called Sam, who I thought was a guy and turned out to be a girl, so I made sure to change my Mr. Ming on my cover letter to a Ms. And emailed them my cover letter and resume that morning. By that afternoon she called back to schedule a preliminary interview.

Great, my first job interview! The only problem was that I was in St. Louis MO, at that moment with my boyfriend visiting his family. No problem, she said, and so an interview was set up for the following monday. Business professional attire. Long story short, BF and I are racing around Missourri trying to find me a suit and closed toe black heels for my interview, which we do. And by 9:30 a.m. monday morning I am looking damn smart in my black pinstripe single breasted suit and patent black pumps, killing time in the parking lot of the building where I'm going to be interviewed, becuase I've arrived 30 minutes early.

At 9:50 I breeze through the door, meet Sam and notice that there are two other people there for the interview and that I am decidedly the most business professional. Jon the president of the company finally calls me in at 10:10 and we progress through the usual round of interview questions. Where do I see myself in five years. What makes me right for the job. blah blah blah.
Anyway, I passed the preliminary interview and am invited back for round two on Wednsday morning a 9 a.m. I go home thrilled that this job is in the bag and curious as to why Jon told me to where comfortable shoes.

Wednsday morning bright and early, I'm staring at myself in the mirror wondering if my copper brown cole haan loafers go with my charcoal pinstripe slacks and, if paired with my white button down shirt and green sweater, they look business professional or school teacher. Oh well, I throw in a jacket just in case and am out the door arriving only fifteen minutes early this time for my round two interview.

Before I continue I feel I should explain what this second round interview was supposed to be. At the end of the first interview Jon explained that the second one was a shadowing of one of their marketers. A "day in the life" style thing so I could see what the job was really like. Great I remember myself thinking, how cool is that.

Anyhoo, I'm waiting in the waiting room for my marketer person to come get me and chatting with Sam whenm from the back, I here loud chanting and shouting, like warm up shouts and cheers. Odd, I think, but whatever works. After another five minutes of people filing out the door with papers and breifcases, Jon comes from the back and introduces me to one of his top marketers, Michael. "This is who you'll be shadowing today" Jon says, "He'll be reporting to me about how you do, on your communication skills, etc. so remember his impression of you counts" Okay I think, no biggee.

I introduce myself to Michael and he tells me we'll be taking his car to Lafayette which is his territory and escorts me outside to a blue honda civic. And now, ladies and gentlemen, his car.

What I saw before me sent a slight tremor down my spine. Before my eyes was a blue honda civic missing one of its side mirrors and with a huge dent in its right fender. But that was nothing compared to the inside. Beige cloth interior covered in stains and cigarette burns, with the distinct smell of old tobacco and unwashed bodies. It was the kind of filthy mess that makes you want to get checked for an STD just because you sat in it. All over the car were papers and clothes and, and filth, oh god! the filth. But, I want you to know I put on a brave smile and sat in the car without a pause. And then we were off to do important marketing stuff.

After an hour drive, during which I only feared for my life three times (those three times which Michael thought it would be absolutely fine to pull out his iphone and start texting people while driving on the interstate, surrounded by eighteen wheelers) we arrived in Lafayette, when the real fun began. Because.......wait for it.....the job I applied to in sales, marketing, and PR....the job I bought a suit for....the job I so desperately thought I wanted......was a position as....
a door-to-door salesman.

Yes, that's right a door to door salesman. I spent my entire day following around a smelly, dirty looking man, whose "professional business attire" had stains on it, while he tried to sell people office supplies. Like pens, and paper, and ink office supplies. The worst part was, I couldn't after I figured this out say, oh no thank you I don't want the job, you can take me back to the office now, because I was stranded in friggen Lafayette with this guy an hour away from my car. So I had to smile and pretend that I was really interested etc. until we got back to Baton Rouge.

Oh my god. I have never been so happy to see my car in my entire life.