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2003-04-05 Oh.My.Gawd You know, it's funny how sometimes, things pop up when you had just started to think that thing-x would never happen. I've mentioned a couple of times that I've been looking for a job for when school ends. This was made very difficult considering the fact that I didn't know really what I was looking for exactly. I kept searching, however, but didn't feel excited about any of the jobs listed on the many internet job banks. I didn't feel even the slightest impetus to send my cv in an email. Yes, I'm a picky person, but shouldn't I also feel a slight tingle, at the very least, about a possible job? So, the other night, I was in a bad mood (see last entry) due to this frustration. School is winding down. My Work-study contract at the School of Architecture is winding down. I might be able to squeeze out a week or two if necessary there, and my boss is kinda hoping for that too, but really I want to find a job that just might take me somewhere. And hence, start all that "normal life" stuff that I've been so anxious to enter. I'd just about given up. I was starting the process of accepting that I probably wouldn't find my dream job, at least not yet. And then said dream job materialized before me. I was on one of the job banks and came across a job offer to be a proofreader for an advertising firm right here in Montreal. What's really amazing (well, one part that's amazing) is that I don't need to use my French, which is a damn good thing and hard to find in the province of Quebec. It's good because while I can speak French reasonably well, my actual grammar skills in the language suck big-time. It's full time, pays $35,000 a year. The only drawback is that it's "temporary". Well, I've heard of a lot of temporary jobs turning permanent. Apparently, businesses like to put temporary because it gives them a bit more lee-way to get rid of someone if he/she doesn't work out after the usual 3-month trial period. Plus, from the description, the advertising company is actually planning to set up an English proofreading department - see, if I get this job, I'll be the only english proofreader (eee!). I was (and still am) so excited. They wrote in the requirements section that they're looking for someone with 4+ years of proofreading experience. Now, I realize that they probably mean professional experience, but I made a case in my email for my experience in 2 years college and 4 years of university. I mentioned how much I love to read and write, how when casually reading a novel, I pick out typos and misspelled words (and get very annoyed). And then I took a chance. As I was preparing myself to write the email, I put myself in the shoes of the person who's in charge of hiring. Now, if you're looking for a proofreader, wouldn't it seem like a good idea to put in some subtle mistakes in the ad? I decided to read it over carefully. And lo and behold, I found a few. Nothing major - they used "insure" instead of "ensure" (common mistake but they mean different things), and commas, capitalization where there shouldn't be any, that sort of thing. So I wrote the email, and put it in as a Postscript. I worded it very carefully, even putting "... considering the nature of the position...". Afterall, it's a proofreading job. This is the sort of thing I'd be doing. So, whether intentional or not, I'm hoping that that scores me brownie points. I REALLY want this job. I got butterflies just by hitting the SEND button. I guess I'll just have to wait and see. My email and cv are out there, and hopefully it'll pan out. Yikes. |
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