Premonition

On my daughter's birthday, the 17th November, I went for an assessment for a new job.

I passed that.

On my birthday, the 26th November, I went for the interview.

I got the job; provisionally until the checks and the rest are completed. I start in January. I will be a Call Handler for the Police. 999 calls being one aspect. It will suit me and I will suit it. It's why I went for it and, if truth be known, pinned my hopes on getting it.

But what a strange journey. I had my interview at 11 am. They phoned me at 2.40 pm. Quick eh!

Between leaving the interview and about 2 pm I stared into a chasm. I saw despair for I knew then how much I wanted that job. The interviewers had been good, the best I have been to. The process had been very efficient and professional.

And I had now shot my bolt for good or ill; I had got to that point where I could not do any more.

At about 2 pm my mood changed. From staring into the abyss of possible failure I suddenly 'knew' I had that job. Wishful thinking? Inability to stare into possible failure anymore? Self-Protection? Some sort of telepathy?

I don't know if it was any of those but it frightened me. I wondered if I was going mad but all I could think of was getting the phone call from them to get it out of the way......for them to confirm what I already knew. Instead of worry I felt frustration; very strange.

I've had premonitions before of a kind. I get jittery and then the following day some bad news arrives. Or I get elated for no reason and some good news arrives later. It's never been so specific though.

With this I just 'knew'. I cannot explain it. I didn't dare tell my wife. She was as tense as me and if I'd come out with that she wouldn't have known what to make of it.

The phone call arrived and when they told me it was something I already knew.

But it didn't stop me behaving like one of the X-Factor finalists - imagine, a middle aged old fart like me whooping like a daft teenager. I did though. And my wife burst into tears followed closely by me.

Tears of relief and vindication. She had seen the rejection, the humiliation at the hands of people with agendas - an example; I had performed brilliantly in one other assessment for another job. I heard later about my performance. One of the very top applicants. I was kicked back at the interview. ALL the successful applicants turned out to be young graduates. Half have already left. What a bummer. And what a con. They hadn't advertised for graduates.

I've sat in interviews and looked across at people with that tick box mentality and squirmed. They've looked through me. I've been there to make up the numbers I think. Most, I think, just haven't 'got' me. They've had this high earning executive looking guy in front of them wanting to do something for a third or less of his previous earnings and haven't understood why. Nor have they tried to understand even though I have tried to explain.

They've looked at me and seen a square peg that they haven't had a hole for; and more to the point, they haven't been prepared to look for one.

It's been a shock for me. I've got used to dealing with people of my kind of calibre who think outside of the box. Those interviewing me were not in my box LOL, not of the same calibre as those who I have worked with for years.

This last one was different. They interviewed ME, not a middle-aged old fart. They were interested in ME.

And they have hired ME.

They will get ME too.

In the last 6 months or so I have learnt more about myself than I have in any other similar time span in my life.

Not bad at 56.