"It's not ideal, but I need the money. I mean I don't really want to travel that far, and the role is quite limiting in comparison to what I'm used to, but I need to pay the bills don't I?"
This was me, talking to my friend about a job interview I had lined up for today. Who was I kidding? As soon as the words left my mouth she raised her eyebrows quizzically.
When I was made redundant in my last role I promised myself (and my now former boss) that I wouldn't just rush into the first marketing job that came along. But when you're faced with no income and bills to pay, the reality becomes rather more difficult than the ideal.
Don't get me wrong, it wasn't a bad job. It was as a Brand Executive at one of the major utility companies. But the idea of having to travel along some of the Black Country's most traffic clogged areas during rush hour filled me with dread. I tried to snap myself out of that, I really did. After all, lots of other people have to drive even further and even more treacherous routes to work.
But then there was the role, it was interesting, but was it me? It seemed quite 'entry level' and I'm at a stage in my career where I really need to be moving onwards and upwards. It also seemed a bit limiting. While I'm used to getting involved with the entire 'marketing mix' here I would just be one of the 'ingredients' in a much larger recipe.
Queries about salary were met with a cagey response - which concerned me.
And to top it all off, when I received the job specification (only a couple of days before the interview) I noticed that their 'ideal candidate' was someone with Call Centre experience who was looking to move into Marketing. Hmm, after studying like a maniac for my CIM Diploma last year, and almost five years experience in the field of marketing, that somehow didn't sound like me.
Meetings with other agencies only further confirmed my suspicions. I'm darn well, well qualified, employable and I've got a good level of experience. But surely I should go along to the interview and see what they were like, right?
Well, no actually. This time I decided not to. I've been here before. When I first moved back to the Midlands I took on a couple of jobs which at the time I convinced myself were the right 'career moves'. Now, looking back, (isn't hindight a great thing?!) they were backwards moves for me and my career is still recovering from those. I'm still building my way back up to where I was. I'm not prepared to do that again.
In the short term there seems to be plenty of temping work out there for me. Fingers crossed I'll be starting an assignment on Monday - just waiting to hear from the agency at the moment. Granted, temping doesn't pay mega bucks, especially as this first job will only be part time. But it will pay some bills while I'm searching for that next strategic career move. Wish me luck!
PS> I got even more suspicious when after cancelling the interview I received a grovelling phone call from their HR people saying that they were 'still really keen to meet me'. Flattering? Yes. Them trying to get someone super-duper qualified on the cheap? Probably!
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