Nana Skypes An Interview

Update:  They called early this morning and left a message that they had hired another candidate.  I'd be wallowing in misery all day except my Woot! bag of crap is being delivered today and one can't be depressed when there's a BOC to look forward to!

I just finished my first Skype interview...it was awful!!  It really is difficult to dazzle people with my winning personality through a computer screen. I took Linda's advice and didn't wear the bright fuchsia jacket...I went with my basic black and white and I wore my slippers!

I was ready to  answer the question, why do you want this job?  But they didn't ask it.  I hate to waste a good answer...

Why do you want this job?

After a year in retirement I miss being in the action, making a difference for kids.  I enjoyed subbing, but I miss the ongoing relationships.  Yeah, I've got some skills.  I can write grants.  I'm a great presenter for staff development.  I've written hundreds of teacher evaluations.  I'm calm under pressure and screaming parents don't throw me.  I'm a team player and will go the extra mile to make sure I don't let you down.

When we were establishing our smaller learning communities at my former school, one thing we wanted to do was make sure that every student had at least one adult who knew him by name and knew him on more than a superficial level.  The research is pretty clear on kids who have been successful against great odds.  Many report that it was one person who made a difference, one person who believed in them, one person who gave them a break  I want to be that one person.

Oh, and I want to live closer to my grandchildren in Texas!

There are eight candidates.  Five of them interviewed in person, one by phone and one other misguided applicant used Skype like me.  I'm telling myself that if it was meant to be then it will happen.  But it will be hard to not be disappointed.

So, I guess I'll have to be retired for awhile longer...and I really don't see a dowside to that.  Except, I'm so far from the grandchildren.  I think I better schedule a vacation so I really feel retired.  I'm leaving for San Diego tomorrow!

Nana Prepares For Another Job Interview

Remember Nana’s last job interview? The one where I forgot how long it takes your tongue to wake up after a visit to the dentist and scheduled my interview a half an hour after I left the chair. (Click here) I’ve got another interview this week and decided that this time I would prepare carefully.


Because I am interviewing for a position in another state, we’re going to do the interview over Skype. This will be my first Skyped interview. I’ve only used Skype once and that was to talk with my granddaughters. I thought I’d practice on them again before the interview.

Since the interviewer will only be able to see me from the waist up, that makes some of the pre-interview preparation easier. I did need to get a haircut, so on Monday I went to the stylist. I figured getting it cut a few days early was smart. I didn’t want that just clipped look. I chatted with the beautician and told her about the interview. “Oh, you’re so brave” she said to me. “Doesn’t the camera add like ten or twenty pounds?”

Damn, I hadn’t even thought about looking fat and I don’t have time to drop twenty pounds before Thursday.

My daughter gave me suggestions about where to setup my laptop. “Be careful about what you have in the background” she warned me.  I’ve got a couple of rooms in my house that are messy, but nothing approaching what you see on “Hoarders.” What does she think I’d have in the background?  Oh yeah, since she left home I turned the back bedroom into a crack house. I’ll have to clear out those junkies before the interview.

I decided to hook up a web cam to the computer in the back bedroom. I had purchased it several years ago and never taken it out of the box. I was using the camera to see which shirts and dresses looked best on camera when my son walked by the room and asked what I was doing. He rolled his eyes and said, “Maybe you could just hire someone younger and more attractive.” Yeah, that’s a vote of confidence! He also suggested I could hire a minority to do the interview for me and then sue if I didn’t get the job.

The down side to doing an interview on Skype is that there’s really no excuse to buy cute new shoes…oh, and the ten to twenty pounds the camera adds. I always try to dress professionally. I’m more conservative than trendy. My closet is full of black and white. My wardrobe isn’t very camera friendly. I’ve decided to wear a navy print dress and a bright fuchsia jacket. Perhaps I’ll post a sign on the wall behind me that says “Caution, camera adds ten to twenty pounds.”

Wish me luck...Nana's ready to come out of retirement!