Of all the posters that were hung on the wall, only one seemed to stand out. It caught the full attention of the angelic, becoming, dashing, effulgent lady. She advanced towards the poster which radiated eminent readability. She walked briskly in her high-heeled stilettos carefully calculating each step before she took it. Her Tiana-esque, long-flaxen hair glowed in the midday sun with a satiny sheen.
She scrutinized the area thoroughly before tearing off the poster from the wall. She went over it for a short while and, "Finally!" She remarked, putting the poster in her rosy handbag, "This is the exact job that I should apply for.
That's what she did immediately after she reached home that afternoon.
She was summoned for an interview in a fortnight. She could barely sleep the night before the material day. Her anxiety was that of never having been employed before. Her father was some sort of business tycoon during his time. He'd amassed a great deal of wealth before his demise, before which he wrote a will. 40% of the wealth was written under her name, 30% under her step-sister's name, and 30% under her beloved mother's name.
Unfortunately, she was too blind to realize when all her fortune was gradually crumbling down before her very eyes. This forced her to start from square one; when she eventually realized the kind of misfortune that had knocked on her door. Thoughtfully, she invested the little money she had left in her bank account and sought a job.
The material day finally reached.
After creating a killer resume and cover letter and passing the first round, it was time to face the final challenge; her job interview. And that scares even the best of the very best. Knowing she was going to be judged and evaluated by people who had her future in their hands induced her anxiety. She was more anxious than she'd have been; meeting her in-laws.
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She was seated alongside other seemingly outstanding young ladies who appeared competent enough for the job; that's what her mind deduced from their official appearance.
"I don't understand what these people are doing interviewing all of you. They should have chosen me already. I have five years of experience in this field of work." A light-skinned lady in her mid-twenties voiced boisterously.
"Madam Lucy Keitah." The HR manager called out for the next interviewee. The light-skinned lady stood up and walked high-spiritedly into the office. Unexpectedly, she barely took five minutes in there. She walked out of the office with her head bowed low. It turned out that all of her paperwork was falsified.
"Ma'am Olivia Lopez." The Hiring Manager called out.
Her turn had finally reached. She had composed herself well however, the anxiety within her filled her heart as if it was there to stay for eternity. She walked into the office and shut the door behind her.
"Have a seat." The man told her. He was, well, different from all 'others'. He was handsome, not perhaps in the conventional sense, but he had that appearance that could make him stand out in the crowd. He was fair, almost pale white. His unfathomable, golden brown eyes contrasted exceptionally with his light-toned face. The business suit he clad himself in was noticeably as crisp as a new banknote and dyed to a uniform shade of carmine. Above the white collar line, it was as if his face had been fashioned from those inky dots.
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HR Manager: Ma'am Lopez, tell me something about yourself.
Ma'am Lopez: Hey! So, my name is Olivia Lopez and I've worked as a business analyst for about 3 years in Major Lawson and Son's company. I have some background in data analysis, having studied Information Systems at Wolphrine University. Throughout my career, I've done some pretty impressive stuff (if I do say so myself, haha!). For example, at Major Lawson and Son's company, I led a project for migrating all operations data to a new data warehousing system to cut down on costs. The new solution was a much better fit for our business, which eventually led to savings of up to $200,000 annually.
HR Manager: How did you hear about this position?
Ma'am Lopez: Um... A poster.
HR Manager: A poster, you say?
Ma'am Lopez: Yeah! Yeah, Yeah, A poster. It was on the... um.. on the wall. Yeah, on the wall. (She swallowed her saliva and smiled nervously.)
HR Manager: (He smiled back awkwardly, exposing his set of egg-shell white teeth, and looked at her for a short while. ) Yeah, I get it. I do. We hang job advertisement posters on the wall, sometimes, that is. So I get you. (He smiled awkwardly again.) Okay then, tell me. Why did you decide to apply for this position?
Ma'am Lopez: (Well, I need the money, and you guys tend to pay a lot. -This thought crossed her mind before she snapped back to reality.) I'm very passionate about Information and Communication Technology. In addition to that, I minored in Software programming and data analysis at Wolphrine University.
HR Manager: Oh! That's very interesting. Now tell me why we should hire you.
Ma'am Lopez: Well, as a start, I have all the skills and work experience required for the job. I have just the right skill set to excel as an executive software programmer. While I haven't previously worked as a personal programming assistant, I pretty much fit the bill for the role. Oh!, and on top of that, I have experience working with tech companies, so I'll be able to pick up what's required of me much faster than the other candidates.
HR Manager: (He put his fingers together, -in the manner one does when he/she is praying- rested them on his chin and his elbows too on the neatly arranged office desk before him. His suit shrank in his arms revealing his 10 ATM water resistant wristwatch.) Do you think so?
Ma'am Lopez: No, I know so.
HR Manager: That's quite confident. (He smiled again - but this time, not awkwardly; just a non=Duchenne smile- .)Well, your academic credentials, your paperwork, they're just... should I say... perfect? I must say I'm impressed.
Ma'am Lopez: Thank you, Sir.
HR Manager: That's it for now. It was nice meeting you. We'll inform you of your progress in a week.
Ma'am Lopez: Thank you for making time to interview me for the open role. I am thrilled about the prospect of working in this position and being a part of a highly reputable team.
The Hiring Manager stood up to shake her hand. He adjusted his scarlet finery. Olivia stood up and shook his hand. He stood there in the aristocratic cutting lines of a great tailor, one who could take his under-exercised and over-indulged form and make him a figure of power. She stood and shook his hand, and he escorted her out of the office. He sat for about ten minutes in his task chair, swinging around, before calling the next interviewee.
'This is going to be tough!' He thought to himself.