bombed it, methinks...

[symbioidlj]

So I had my interview today. I think I bombed. I wasn't so much twitchy nervous as... slow/disjointed. That is, I couldn't think of good answers. As sophy said, I should've thought about potential answers beforehand. *sigh*

I did try to answer as best as I can. I am, unfortunately, not familiar with Citrix/Winframe (however I can rectify that... In fact, I plan on reading about it, just for my own curiosity's sake)... Stupidly, I forgot the term "VNC" when he asked if I had experience with and Remote Desktop usage. I said I had played a bit with it in Linux (and said remote desktop, though, not VNC, I paused, because I couldn't think of the term) I said I didn't do much with it, as I had not a lot of utility for it, personally, but did set it up and try it out.

The pay is kinda low. At least what they're looking for. However, there are annual raises, which is good. So if I cut out my xmas bonus, and expect a raise, in a few years, I can make what I'm making now.

I'd prefer being able to make what I make now, of course. Then again, I'm sure my taxes will be in a lower bracket. I'd hope so.

It's just a waiting game now, but I don't think I did very well. The VP looks a hell of a lot like William H. Macy. I couldn't place it at first, but after I left, I knew that's why he looked familiar.

So... Guess I'll just cross my fingers. The good thing is, that, I know my job inside out, so it's not a biggy if I don't get this one. As I've said, I wasn't actively looking... It just sorta plopped into my lap. So, I'll be alright here for a while yet. This was a good reminder, if anything else, how these things go. It'll be the first time I've actually not gotten a call back since Dairy Queen as my first job application back in the early 90s, if I don't get called back in.

We'll see....

Comments

[vesicular.livejournal.com]

I've found that trying to think about potential answers means you have a lot of answers for questions they usually never ask. Rather I tend to review what it is I know, what skills I have, how I think about myself and leave it at that. Half of an interview is a review of your social skills. Most people will hire someone without the exact skill they want if they think the person can learn it on the job, and if the person is able to communicate effectively during the interview.

We've had people come in before who had the right tech skills but felt weren't really a fit socially. We've hired people who had less of the skills we wanted but fit in with us perfectly, and assumed they could make up for the tech skill. You can always learn new skills, but socially people tend to be a certain way and don't waver much from it.

[symbioid.livejournal.com]

if the person is able to communicate effectively during the interview

I guess this is what I'm talking about. I felt... sluggish today. Not really as precise and clear as I would've liked to be with my answers, and this makes me look sorta... slow. And not able to be as clear as necessary for a tech support job. I guess that's why I feel I bombed. Not so much what I know or don't, but lack of clarity in my responses. I really should've popped a caffeine pill or drank some rock star.

[vesicular.livejournal.com]

I guess it's not only what you say but how you say it. Personally when i've sat in interviews, I've had no problems with people taking their time to respond. At least to me it means they don't make rash decisions, and want to think through things before they do them. Someone who says all the right things, but comes off as a know-it-all, or just says "yeah i can do that" to ANYTHING you ask them doesn't really impress me, personally.

But it all depends on the person interviewing. I knew a guy who would ask the same question to every person he was hiring for a front end dev job. He would ask some convoluted thing about what they would do if they had to code some assine thing in Netscape that did XYZ. He was looking for a specific response to guage how well they knew how to code but was so bad at explaining what he wanted (and it was verbal, not on a computer) most of the time people didn't know how to respond, and he was always pissed people didn't know.

[claw-machine.livejournal.com]

I've been the interviewer more than the interviewee - but on rather end, personality means alot. Also, perspective does as well - so, maybe, you just think you did bad. That happens to me alot when I'm teaching - I think I bombed, the students are all "Your Photoshop class FTW!". Gah, I hope you got it!