This post originated from an RSS feed registered with Web Buzz by Cheah Chu Yeow. Original Post: Interesting job interview today Feed Title: redemption in a blog Feed URL: http://blog.codefront.net/xml/rss20/feed.xml Feed Description: ramblings of a misfit - web development, Mozilla, Firefox, Thunderbird, CSS, programming Latest Web Buzz Posts Latest Web Buzz Posts by Cheah Chu Yeow Latest Posts From redemption in a blog

Fresh graduate that I am, I have been submitting applications for quite a number of jobs, mostly revolving around the "web developer" and the "software developer" careers. Of course, I am always supplementing my income with web design and development work, and have always been on the lookout for freelance work. Sometimes I wonder about work, about whether to work for someone else, or to strike out on my own... ah, ah, ah... That's a topic for another day.

So, back on track, I went for an interview today with a SME, and the interviewer was seemingly the owner (educated guesswork involved). He was young, he was entrepreneurial (he had at least 1 major startup that crashed, the current one is the one I was seeking a position in, and it's successful enough). But what was most interesting was how the interview went.

You see, he was looking over my resumé, and he actually made suggestions on how I should rearrange it and present individual sections, in the most friendly, I'm-here-to-help-you-friend manner. I was surprised, pleasantly. This guy was actually spending time offering very very valuable advice to me. Great stuff.

And he was honest, he said he couldn't meet my salary expectations, he said that the job I'm applying for ("Java Developer") is a tedious, repetitive job. He also said something to the effect that starting at a small company like his is not something he'd recommend I do, "as a friend". Everything made a lot of sense. Excellent career advice.

I didn't get the job. He said "it'd be a waste" for me to go with this job, when I should be aiming higher. I believe that this is what he felt (not that "it'd be a waste" - that's subjective), that he wasn't going through this amazing amount of trouble just to make me feel better about myself for not getting the job. Sincerity shone through. Either that or he is a sterling actor (which I doubt).