I left the interview thinking I could have done better. The conversation was at times a bit strained and I think I could have done a better job explaining the “why Chicago” argument. I saw these as points to improve for my next interview.
That evening was particularly cold so on my way to the interview I stopped and bought a blue knit hat from a street vendor. This turned out to be a mistake, as I will explain later. I removed my hat before meeting my interviewer in the café at the appointed time. Things went smoothly until she started asking me about my current job, which involved designing a software product to aid salespeople and traders estimate the market impact of trades. I got bogged down in explaining the intricacies of the product and she promptly changed the subject, a sign that she was becoming impatient with my explanation.
She then asked me why I wanted to go into sales and trading. I started listing my reasons but then put my foot in my mouth when I told her I didn’t think I’d actually be very good at sales and trading. Realizing my mistake, I tried to take backtrack, but the damage was done. At this point my confidence had reached rock bottom and for the rest of the interview I was hoping just to get it over with.
I left the interview feeling dejected. Later, when I got home I glanced in the mirror and noticed some strange blue fuzz on my head. I realized this was from the new hat I had bought before the interview, and was shocked to think I must have had blue fuzz on my head during the entire interview. I was amazed she didn’t laugh at me.
I learned some good lessons from this unpleasant experience. First, I shouldn’t have entered into a highly technical discussion with her on a topic I was unable to explain concisely. Second, I failed to project confidence during the interview. Admitting a serious weakness, as I did, was honest but it was also stupid. Third, I didn’t pay enough attention to my appearance, which resulted in the embarrassing if not comical blue fuzz situation I described above.
