Thursday, March 09, 2006
The First Job Interview
I wore a pair of brown trousers and a black pinstripe suit jacket to my first job interview in Germany, because I did not want to pay for a suit. My interviewer was impossibly German chic.
I understood two words in the job advertisement before I applied: ‘English’ and ‘web’. It was more words that I normally understood so I applied. I was very enthusiastic back then.
“Don’t bother” said Bruno, who understood all the words in the job ad. “They want someone who speaks German”.
I applied anyway because sometimes people don’t know what they want until they see it.
“Why?” said Liana. “You don’t know anything about web design”.
“Why not?” said Kristy. “You can learn”.
Innocently playing their parts in the new world/old world cliché.
I arrived at the interview on the Monday enamoured in what I hoped was an aura of German professionalism; something I imagined to be akin to an undisturbed lake of some steel like substance. In other words I spent the entire interview sitting like I had a steel rod attached to my spine and making sure I did not smile.
A few probing questions revealed what anything more than a superficial reading of my resume would have: I should not be left in charge of any companies website. However she suggested I might be able to write for their English language magazine.
“Do you speak German?” she asked.
“Ein bisschen“ I hedged.
She then produced a typical information pack that must be condensed into a one page article. It was all in German. Business German.
She looked expectantly at me as my heart jumped in my throat. As a trance like state descended, my senses shut down and I felt myself place my hand confidently on the pack, I made eye contact:
“This” I indicated the pack “shouldn’t be a problem”. Did I slightly smile to waylay any small hesitations she might have had?
As that was in mid January, and I have not heard back, evidently it was a problem. But then again maybe she is going to get back to me any day now… Germans are notoriously unreliable, no wait, that must be some other race.
I understood two words in the job advertisement before I applied: ‘English’ and ‘web’. It was more words that I normally understood so I applied. I was very enthusiastic back then.
“Don’t bother” said Bruno, who understood all the words in the job ad. “They want someone who speaks German”.
I applied anyway because sometimes people don’t know what they want until they see it.
“Why?” said Liana. “You don’t know anything about web design”.
“Why not?” said Kristy. “You can learn”.
Innocently playing their parts in the new world/old world cliché.
I arrived at the interview on the Monday enamoured in what I hoped was an aura of German professionalism; something I imagined to be akin to an undisturbed lake of some steel like substance. In other words I spent the entire interview sitting like I had a steel rod attached to my spine and making sure I did not smile.
A few probing questions revealed what anything more than a superficial reading of my resume would have: I should not be left in charge of any companies website. However she suggested I might be able to write for their English language magazine.
“Do you speak German?” she asked.
“Ein bisschen“ I hedged.
She then produced a typical information pack that must be condensed into a one page article. It was all in German. Business German.
She looked expectantly at me as my heart jumped in my throat. As a trance like state descended, my senses shut down and I felt myself place my hand confidently on the pack, I made eye contact:
“This” I indicated the pack “shouldn’t be a problem”. Did I slightly smile to waylay any small hesitations she might have had?
As that was in mid January, and I have not heard back, evidently it was a problem. But then again maybe she is going to get back to me any day now… Germans are notoriously unreliable, no wait, that must be some other race.
