muttered aloud. He had everything else they were asking for, including a bachelorâs degree. They mentioned âcomputer science or network engineeringâ and then added âor equivalent.â His degree was in business management, but he minored in computer science. And they were asking for three years of experience; Tom had five.
He could do this job. He was perfect for it. This thing described to a T what heâd done for the bank over the last five years before they let him go.
Let me go. Yeah, thatâs one way of putting it. No, donât go there. Keep a positive attitude. Look him in the eye. Smile a lot. Give short answers. Sit up straight. Donât crack your knuckles. Stay confident. Act like youâre perfect for the job, because you are. But donât get cocky. Nobody likes a know-it-all.
He took a deep breath and stepped out of the car.
Tom couldnât help it. He was nervous. There was so much at stake. The starting pay for this job wasnât quite as much as heâd made in his last one, but it was a decent salary with solid benefits. If he got it, his financial problems would be over. They hadnât lost the house, not yet. Foreclosure proceedings hadnât even begun; heâd only missed four payments so far. From what heâd read, he could string this thing out for over a year.
He didnât want to, of course. And he certainly didnât think he could keep up this charade for that long, but if he could start making mortgage payments again, he might still have a chance to restore his credit, maybe get a bank to work with him on some kind of loan modification.
Of course, the tricky thing here was not what to do about the house, or the car loan (which was two months overdue), or the credit cards.
It was how to tell all this to Jean.
No, donât think about that now. Keep a positive attitude. Thatâs what theyâre looking for.
He looked around the waiting room, which he shared with two other out-of-work IT guys. They didnât talk much, other than to confirm they were there for the job interview. After that, they read magazines or checked for messages on their phones. Tom was the best dressed of the lot. One of the guys wore jeans and a pullover shirt. Was he kidding? Tom thought. What a moron.
Tom was next.
The door opened. A tall, thin, balding fellow with little John Lennon eyeglasses walked out. Midthirties, dark mustache. He was smiling like he had the job but then stopped when he noticed the other guys looking at him. Insecure, Tom thought. Not a leader. Not so fast, Bub, they havenât interviewed me yet .
Thatâs right, stay confident.
âMr. Anderson?â The receptionist called out his name. âYou may go in. Mr. Hampton will see you now. The first door on your left.â
Tom took a deep breath and got out of his chair. âThanks,â he said as he nodded. He walked through the same door the other guy had come out of, then tapped gently on the first door in the hallway. It was closed but not shut all the way. He walked in before being asked. Be assertive. Theyâre looking for a team leader.
âThere you are, Mr. . . .â The man looked down at his resume. âAnderson. Have a seat.â Mr. Hampton had a pleasant face. He was about his dadâs age andâTom was happy to seeâhe wore a suit. âYouâre here about the network administrator job, correct?â
Tom sat in the office chair. âThatâs right, sir.â
âPlease, call me Sid,â he said. âI see here you have five yearsâ experience. Thatâs good. Were you the team leader the entire time?â
âFor the last three years I was, sir. I mean . . . Sid.â Heâs got to be wondering, if you were such a good leader, whyâd they get rid of you? No, stop.
âSo, tell me a little bit about your old job. What were your day-to-day responsibilities?â
Tom spent the
Tim Dorsey
Sheri Whitefeather
Sarra Cannon
Chad Leito
Michael Fowler
Ann Vremont
James Carlson
Judith Gould
Tom Holt
Anthony de Sa