Being Prepared

(Interviewee Quick Tips)

Have you ever thought that you had all the big things prepared and then at the last minute realize that the small details are sometimes overlooked, and can eventually turn into big things. I was extremely excited when I finally got a callback from the company I had recently applied for, they wanted me to come in for an interview the very next day. Scanning my closet I knew I didn’t quite have everything in my wardrobe that I would need to wear on the interview so I went out to buy something. A nice white blouse, a new belt and pantyhose would complement my black skirt. I laid my outfit out for the next day and was all set, or so I thought. I would leave around noon and that would give me plenty of time to get where I was going, besides the interview was only 10 minutes away so I didn’t need to rush.

What happened next was a series of unforeseen events.

Right color, wrong size. Wrong color, right size: Most men may not know this, but pantyhose aren’t a one size fit all…and these pantyhose were all wrong. As I attempted to put on my hose I realized that I had gotten the right color but the wrong size. Since I had no other options I decided to rush back to the store and grab another pair. When I arrived at the store I searched for my pantyhose but this particular store had the right size, but wrong color. I almost walked out but then I heard my sister, who is a HR professional, in my head telling me to not go bare legged. So I took the wrong color and

walked towards the register. As I surveyed the area I noticed that it was incredibly crowded and every line was 4 people or more. I knew I couldn’t wait and that I would need to ask someone to “cut” the line. This didn’t go over too well for all the people patiently waiting but finally a woman begrudgingly allowed me to go ahead of her. I thought great I’m on my way.

When I did a time check I realized that I only had 15 minutes to get to my interview. It would be a push but I could make it. Wouldn’t you know, as I’m driving down the road I see traffic begin to slow down and then come to a complete stop. Up ahead, a bulldozer digging up part of the roadway and a worker in an orange vest is holding up a stop sign. I waited for what seemed like 5 minutes for him to wave us on. Because traffic was so backed up, I had no time to stop and change my blouse or skirt, plus I was already going to be 3 minutes late according to my GPS. Thankfully I had worn a nice dress and cardigan, as my sister had recommended, that would work for an interview.

The other small thing that I failed to do was check the directions. I had passed by this company several times and knew exactly where it was. To my surprise, the company had two locations in close proximity to one another and I was going to the second location. Had I taken the time to Google the directions, I would have known that it was about 5-7 minutes further than the 1st location.

As I arrived and talked to the security officer at the front gate it began to rain, not a drizzle, a heavy rain. I had an umbrella somewhere in the car but it wasn’t close enough to grab and run. I had to search for it and in the process got a little wet. This is the one time that I wish I had looked at the weather report.

Everything was going haywire. I walk in the front door wet, wrong outfit and worst of all late. Circumstances had gotten the best of me and I could have let them ruin my interview but instead I apologized for my lateness, asked for a restroom to dry myself off and got down to business. The most important thing I realized was that my not having checked the fine details caused all of the issues I experienced and I would never do that again.

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