On 10-11-2001, I interviewed for a job at a local hospital. No other choice…my current job contract is set to expire at the end of this month. (At the time of the interview, it was set to expire at the end of the year, but October was such a dreadful month financially that my current employer bumped up the expiration date.)
The job I interview for is a dream job. Literally. I have dreamed about having a job like this. Not only would I be working in my preferred area of pediatrics, but I would be responsible for getting the clinic up and running in the first place. I would be running the show. A big change from where I currently am, where I am the lowest monkey on the totem pole and get treated accordingly.
The interview goes well. I get the distinct impression that the department director likes me. She lets me know she’ll contact me on November 1st to inform me of her decision.
About a week after the interview, I learn that the director will be out of town for a few days. Her mother is terminally ill in Chicago. I figure this will set back the application process a few days.
It turns out to be longer than that. According to her voicemail greeting, she was away from her desk until Nov. 2.
Joy.
It’s now November 11. I still haven’t heard from her. I did leave a voicemail message last Friday asking for an update on the status of my application, but so far, no response.
The thing is, I never reach her by telephone. She originally told me when we first spoke that she is almost always away from her desk, and so everything goes to her voicemail. Therefore, she gave me her pager number when I was originally trying to set up the interview.
I’ve still got the pager number. I’m sorely tempted to use it and get her on the phone where I can ask her directly what’s going on.
But my dad & stepmom say not to do it. “It would be seen as nagging,” my stepmother says. My brother just simply says, “Damn. Tough decision.” My gut tells me to page her…I think it could be seen as a sign of persistence, a quality I personally would look for in someone brought in to get a clinic up and running.
Normally, I wouldn’t be this anxious. But I’m under a BAD time crunch here. I’ve got to find something before the end of this month. This week I’ve got two more interviews, one at a place here in town, the other by telephone with a place in Denver. But neither of those jobs are as desirable as the one I’m stressing about.
Of course, it doesn’t help that this woman has probably undergone a very stressful time recently with her mother being terminally ill, and was almost certainly swamped with overdue work when she returned from a near two-week absence.
No matter how I look it, it seems that any choice should be handled delicately. The key thing to me is that she told me she would call me back on Nov. 1st. I believed her. I still believe she is going to call back, but likely fell behind on her work due to her absence.
So…do I page her and ask about the status of my application? Do I leave her alone? Do I give up on all hope of getting this position?
[sub]But I don’t want to give up, you see, it’s my DREAM job, and the phrase “I give up” has always been like poison to me.[/sub]
:mad: