Tag Archives: defining moments

Life as I Know It Work Life Balance

Best job interview questions I had the privilege of answering, Part 1

April 19, 2013 – 3:01 pm

Having worked for a total of 5 companies in over 8 years, I had my share of judging and profiling applicants by the way they answer questions, as well as being in the opposite end of the table trying to impress a potential employer. Some of those interviews became defining moments in my career, and I have a few more added just recently.

What are you doing here?

Two months ago, I started entertaining job interviews again. Why I resigned from my previous job, and why a full-time, work-at-home setup didn’t work for me this time is a story for another post. For now let’s just say, I’m thankful for this recent set of job interviews, if only for the opportunity to poke into my heart again and surprise myself with my very own answers.

Applicants come to job interviews thinking that they’re at the mercy of the one asking them questions. The truth is, job interviews are both for the benefit of company hiring and the person applying. For applicants, it’s our glimpse into the company and the position we’re applying for, a chance to see for ourselves if the job is really for us.

In one of my recent job interviews, I was asked:

Q: “So what are you doing in this industry?”

The question came like an afterthought. We were already wrapping up an hour-long interview when the CEO of this company I was applying to noticed in my resume that I graduated with a degree in Communication Research. It’s not really an unusual question. In fact, it’s not the first time someone asked me to explain the connection between the course I took in college and the career path I chose.

It was how I answered this particular question that surprised me.

A: “Oh, I wanted to be a writer.”

For the next 30 seconds I blabbered about how, fresh out of college, I was really looking for a writing job, and I accidentally ended up in the online marketing industry as a Web Copywriter. I went on saying other unnecessary things, like how I love writing content for my clients’ websites more than anything, and how writing has always been what I’ve wanted to do. It’s probably in those last 30 seconds that I lost my shot at that job. Who in his right mind would hire someone who just professed she wanted to be a writer when she’s shortlisted for an “SEO Director” role? I figure they’re looking for someone who’s experienced in mobilizing people and coming up with solid marketing strategies. Or someone who loves looking at spreadsheets and counting costs.

And me, well, I was the applicant who wanted to be a writer.

The guy shook my hand, thanked me for my time, and sent me off right after that last question. I never got a follow up call nor a rejection letter from that company. I didn’t even follow up my application myself. But that’s okay. I came out of that building knowing that the job was not for me. How did I know it wasn’t for me? I knew it from the way the CEO asked questions. (Hey, companies are not the only ones who get to assess applicants, applicants assess them too!)

The whole time we were sitting across each other, he was implying to me that the job was demanding, the requirements toxic, the hours long, the schedule shifting. And, the ultimate turn off, that it didn’t involve any writing. Except maybe writing memos, or writing business proposals. The job just didn’t fit in this new life that I have. It didn’t.. excite me.

Still jobless, I spent the next couple of days trying to process the answer I blurted out in that job interview.

Like I said, I surprise myself sometimes. Sure, I’ve always wondered if writing was for me, or if I could really consider myself a writer. But I can’t remember a time I declared or even thought about wanting to be a writer.

I realized that to accidentally be something is different from actually wanting to be it.

Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks

I guess that’s one other thing I like about job interviews. You have to answer questions under pressure, and no matter how prepared you are (or how many times you’ve answered the very same questions), sometimes you still end up blabbering what’s really in your heart. Well, good for you! And good for the company you’re applying to. Because these days, it’s not enough that you just get a job, you’ve got to find that one job which makes your heart flutter. You’ve got to find that company who’s willing to hire you for your passion, your true calling.

Anything short of that is not good enough.

(To be continued.)

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Chasing Dreams, Year 3: What I was doing exactly a year ago

July 6, 2012 – 8:42 am

I’ve been blogging for almost a decade now, but it’s only been 3 years since I registered Chasingdreams.net and made a permenant residence in this space. I’ve jumped from one domain name to another all these years, and from various blogging platforms too, but I’m happy to report that I think I’m staying here for the long haul. :)

And yes, I’ve been practicing.

It’s always good to celebrate milestones, yeah? And since we’re halfway through the year, I thought it’s time to mark June and July in my blog calendar too. For this purpose, let me answer this question my husband and I had fun asking ourselves as Year 2012 was about to begin:

What were you doing exactly this time last year?

My answer: Holding our breath and being blown away by how God was answering our prayers one by one, is what we were doing exactly a year ago.

Thank you, Facebook timeline, for making my trip down the memory lane a breeze. I smiled and laughed as I browsed through my Facebook posts from June and July of 2011, and how full those months were. A new job, two months to prepare for a wedding, family gatherings and bridal showers in between long days at work, David coming back to the Philippines after more than 10 years living in New York, answered prayers here and there.

The days were so full, in fact, I only blogged once during that period, admitting that I was at the end of my strength. There was just too much happening that time I can’t remember now how God managed to pull it all off, but myy, did He pull it off so awesome-ly.

Looking back, I honestly don’t think I want to do those months over again! It’s the kind of feat that’s meant to happen only once in a life’s journey, I guess that’s why people are supposed to get married just once their whole lives. No, really.

Today I share the joy (and the stress, hah!) of my friends and loved ones who are  taking the highway to marital bliss these coming months. Jasper and Darlene. Kuya TJ and Tracy. Kat and Ish. Ivy and Angel. Robert and Tin. Jody and Vince. I’m rooting for you, guys! It’s an exciting adventure, challenging yet fulfilling, stressful but worth it. There won’t be butterflies and unicorns all over the place, you may even have to make difficult choices and go through heartbreaking situations, but trust me.. the best is still yet to come.

So yay, it’s been a year since our own pre-wedding adventure, and it’s been 3 years since www.chasingdreams.net started to exist. I think I’m getting myself a Banoffee Pie and a Grande cup of chilled milk to celebrate. :)

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Destinations Life as I Know It

No More Denying, I’m a Coward

July 5, 2009 – 12:09 pm

I’m still not done pondering about last Friday night’s trip to Cubao-X. I don’t know what happened to me there, but somewhere in the middle of looking through the glass window displays of those boutiques that already closed for the day, and being in Vintage Pop as it closed its doors for good, I realized something about myself that I’ve been trying so hard to deny for a while now.

I’m a coward.

Photo credit:creampuff.tumblr.com

It sucks, being thought of as successful in what I’m doing, but really, I feel so far behind. I’m too attached to my comfort zone, and it’s sad, because I know that I could do so much more.

Lately, I would try to absorb as much words of wisdom and inspiration from random strangers, thinking that I need all the courage-booster I could get for when it’s time for me to take the leap. But often, instead of being inspired to be better and to do something about this wealth of knowledge I’m exposed to everyday, I feel frustrated instead. Why can’t I just do it? What am I waiting for? What am I still doing here? Why can’t I, like her, just take the leap into the unknown? Why why why?

Questions, questions. I have lots of them.

I hate that about myself — having too many questions all the time. Must be rooted to my pessimism. Yep, that’s me. Pessimistic to the very core. My natural instinct is to see imperfection in things. Show me a beautiful picture and I swear, I’d see something wrong about it. Offer me a brilliant opportunity, and I’d see complications, and problems that might arise, and unimportant reasons why it would fail. Put me under pressure, and the best solution I could think of is to back out.

I’m not sure when I started to become like this. I wasn’t like this. In the words of a former boss, ”Cynicism is not your thing. You’re sunshine, you’re guitar music. But cynic, you are not.” I remember feeling insulted by those words before, but now, tell me I’m that and I’d be, if anything, proud of myself. At this point, I’m a coward hiding behind my sunshiney, I’m doing-exactly-what-I-want-to-do-with-my-life, oh-hai-I’m-going-to-chase-my-dreams mask.

Today, I arrive at the conclusion that if I stay a coward like this, I will surely fail. But I don’t want to fail! Which perhaps makes me more of a coward. (No wait, chicken or egg? I got lost, too.)

I may be pessimistic alright, but my Dad used to tell me that I can be very passionate about some things too, if only I would put my head and my heart into it.

And so I promise to be better. (Shut up, I know you heard that already. I’m not talking to you, I’m reminding myself.)

Notes-to-self to start the week, maybe you’ll need them too:

It’s not too late to start again somewhere. Bong Salaviera, the owner of Vintage Pop whom I had the wonderful opportunity of meeting last Friday, is migrating to Canada with his family next month. Along with this comes the difficult decision of closing down his lovely store. Just when he’s already established something remarkable, he’s got to leave everything behind and start from scratch in an unknown place and culture without a clue how to do it. He’s in his late-thirties or early-forties. And here I am, at 26, frantic about my career, and my life, and what direction I should take. Stop worrying, Riz.

Stick with what you love to do. One of the things I learned in the 5-years that I was a corporate slave is, I can only excel in what I love doing. When you start to feel like you just have to endure being there, then that’s the time to go, no more prolonging the agony. There’s gotta be something in the job (more than the income) that’s worth being there for. At this point in my life, I have pretty much imagined what kind of ventures I’d like to invest my time and money in. While there are a bunch of opportunities out there — some seems more profitable than the others — you have to choose that one opportunity that makes your heart flutter. It just won’t work without passion, and love. Bank in on love, Riz.

Don’t be afraid to fail, coward. Admitting that I am one, I’m starting to feel good about myself already. Acceptance is always the first step, anyway, and now, I’ve accepted the grim reality why I’m stuck where I am. See, I’m making progress already. It’s okay to fail, Riz. That only means you tried.

*Photo credit: Creampuff.tumblr.com

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