I’ve only had one truly unbearable job. It was awful - The code base sucked, the boss had pointed hair, and to top it off I got a terrible review.
Let’s rewind. Four months prior I’d just aced a job interview with HappySoft. I nailed the questions, and the job was a nice fit for my career. But, I wasn’t ready to sign on the dotted line until I evaluated all my options, namely my next interview with EbolaSoft.
My EbolaSoft interview was at 9am and it started off on the wrong foot. The interviewer didn’t know the answers to his own questions, and couldn’t tell me what I’d be working on. With 15 minutes left in the interview I’d given up on EbolaSoft. At that point the interviewer excused himself and Rene entered the room. Rene was the recruiter for EbolaSoft, and my heart skipped a beat when she smiled at me. As she discussed the company, she twisted a long strand of brown hair around her fingers and I forgot how the interview began.
That night, with a job offers from EbolaSoft and HappySoft in my left hand, an IPA in my right hand, and Biff, my college roommate, sitting across from me, I worked through the details. “Sure the job might suck, but Rene is hot, and man her smile… Look if the job sucks, I’ll work less and spend all my time seeing the city with my favorite recruiter”. Biff, knowing better than to argue after I’d made up my mind, just paid for our beers and left. The next morning, I signed the job offer with Rene’s company.
I started work for EbolaSoft in September, in the middle of a long death march. Too busy trying to get his feature out the door, my new boss hadn’t spent any time thinking about what I’d be working, and he certainly didn’t have the time to talk to me about what I should be working on. Worst of all, even though I was always hanging around recruiting I never saw Rene’s smile again.
Moral of the story 1: Do not take a job because your recruiter is hot, I don’t care how much she smiles at you.
Moral of the story 2: Rene – if you’re reading this – You made the biggest mistake of your life.