I decided to use the $50 gift certificate I got earlier, and bought a bottle of A314 with it. (I had to add some money from a credit card, but oh well.) I received the bottle just one day before the interview was scheduled. It was with a recruiting agency, so I thought I had more leeway with what I can use, than I would if the interview were directly with an employer. About 20 minutes before heading out, I put on 2 drops of A314, 1 drop on each wrist. Then I took the usual job interview gear (extra resumes and stuff), and left the apartment. The driving took longer than I expected, but I made it there on time, with minutes to spare.
Receptionist
The receptionist (female, Caucuasian, late 20’s) was smiling a lot when I approached the front desk, with that contagious, light-up-the-room smile, as opposed to a polite business smile. She pointed toward a visitor sign-in sheet, asked me if I needed anything, and told me to wait while she calls the recruiter. At one point, she mispronounced my last name, and started apologizing profusely for it. I told her it’s OK; she wasn’t the first person to mispronounce it, and I’ve gotten used to it over the years.
Recruiter
The recruiter (male, Caucasian, early 30’s) came out and greeted me in a typical business manner. He made some small talk about the traffic, the job market, and the economy, although I ended up doing more of the talking. Then he asked me questions about my skills, work experience, and qualifications. I did remembered to do the usual “eye contact, confident tone, self-marketing” things all the career advice sites tell you do, and clearly answered what he asked me to do. About 30 minutes into the whole thing, talked about about how impressive my skills were, then described the jobs the agency could place me into. He even talked about ways he could help me, and encouraged me to contact him anytime I needed help in the job search. Basically, he was bending over backwards to win me over. While I’m sure he gets commision for bringing in a new contractor, I’ve never seen an agency recruiter talk like that.
Concluding thoughts
It was a great hit, all right. While other recruiters were respectful toward me, this time, he was bending over backwards. I’ve never seen someone act like that. Since I have a full-size bottle, I know it’ll last me a while, and I can’t wait to try it when I find a full-time job. Good job, Adrotics; keep 'em coming.
