High Stakes and Dashed Hopes
Some events in life generate such a mixed bad of complex emotions, it's hard to know where to start writing a blog entry about them. But never fear - at the Career Casino all tastes are catered for and we shall attempt even this challenging feat.
Having adopted the high risk strategy of only having two jobs that I had applied to that I was genuinely interested in, imagine the situation I was placed in when one of them dinged me on Monday. I could try and write reams about the how's and the why's of the ding, but to be honest, I'm kind of looking at it as a black box. The employer in question has a specific policy of not providing any feedback. Given that I thought all my interviews went something like last time - great but not stellar, I can only assume that the standard required cuts somewhere between here and the stars. Alas it seems I do not meet it, and so attention must turn to alternative options.
But before we do that, perhaps it it worthwhile noting the immediate reaction yours truly had on the train back to Paris. Although gutted, a little space in my heart felt a wave of relief. Relief that after 6 years of work in down and dirty High Tech engineering I will be forced to do something a bit more left field after INSEAD. Being asked to write code in interviews really made me question what the point of the past 10 months has been. The sense of de ja vu I got between walking around said employers' office on Monday and experiencing bus loads of bright young things being hired to fill a posh half filled office full of the shiniest technology money can buy reminded me of my first job ever at Cisco Systems back in 2000. I stayed there for 6 months, before decamping to a startup. And although the de ja vu is most likely my mechanism for coping with the rejection, I'm glad it's there. It makes that bottomless pit I find myself staring at at the moment that more manageable.
Just what is at the bottom of this pit? Well, when you have 2 and you lose 1, you're typically left with just 1. In my case this is a job with a VC fund I'm interviewing for in a couple of weeks time. Somehow that seems highly interesting the more I think about it. Funny how a reduction in options focuses the mind. I am now busily trying to somehow hedge my position. In an industry that employs around 500 people Europe wide this is not an easy game to play. But I try. I'm off to have my first power dinner with an external speaker at the school. Please sir, can I have a job?
CQW: Are you finished with classes yet?
Having adopted the high risk strategy of only having two jobs that I had applied to that I was genuinely interested in, imagine the situation I was placed in when one of them dinged me on Monday. I could try and write reams about the how's and the why's of the ding, but to be honest, I'm kind of looking at it as a black box. The employer in question has a specific policy of not providing any feedback. Given that I thought all my interviews went something like last time - great but not stellar, I can only assume that the standard required cuts somewhere between here and the stars. Alas it seems I do not meet it, and so attention must turn to alternative options.
But before we do that, perhaps it it worthwhile noting the immediate reaction yours truly had on the train back to Paris. Although gutted, a little space in my heart felt a wave of relief. Relief that after 6 years of work in down and dirty High Tech engineering I will be forced to do something a bit more left field after INSEAD. Being asked to write code in interviews really made me question what the point of the past 10 months has been. The sense of de ja vu I got between walking around said employers' office on Monday and experiencing bus loads of bright young things being hired to fill a posh half filled office full of the shiniest technology money can buy reminded me of my first job ever at Cisco Systems back in 2000. I stayed there for 6 months, before decamping to a startup. And although the de ja vu is most likely my mechanism for coping with the rejection, I'm glad it's there. It makes that bottomless pit I find myself staring at at the moment that more manageable.
Just what is at the bottom of this pit? Well, when you have 2 and you lose 1, you're typically left with just 1. In my case this is a job with a VC fund I'm interviewing for in a couple of weeks time. Somehow that seems highly interesting the more I think about it. Funny how a reduction in options focuses the mind. I am now busily trying to somehow hedge my position. In an industry that employs around 500 people Europe wide this is not an easy game to play. But I try. I'm off to have my first power dinner with an external speaker at the school. Please sir, can I have a job?
CQW: Are you finished with classes yet?
posted by The Apprentice at 6:11 PM
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