Blogs: Danielle nearly bags a job, but time gets in the way

Danielle King graduated from Aston University, Birmingham, with a BSc in English Language. She's now pursuing writing jobs after realising that's the career for her.

Time: a formidable foe that has caused me some real problems over the past month. 

Since my last blog post, I've grabbed some more writing experience and officially rocked the mortar board, graduating with first-class honours and an extra award for the highest degree grade. The cake has been eaten, my balloon has deflated, and I'm now back where I begun - job hunting.

Out of four pre-graduation applications, I've heard back from two. One, a sub-editor role for a national newspaper, was impressed with my application but I was pipped at the post by others who’ve had more experience. The other, a content editor role for a global company in its London office, was keen for me to go to the next stage and complete a proof-reading assessment. At 11am, I would receive the assessment by email and have just 15 minutes to send it back.

Easy peasy, right?

I mean, the past three years of my life consisted of proofreading hundreds of items in tight deadlines. Hundreds of items that, by comparison, were the Niagara Falls compared to this little puddle.

Wrong.

No matter how much I tried to bluff myself out of nervousness, I did not predict the unfortunate events to come. At 10:59am, my internet went off. After standing still for a split second, time suddenly rushed passed in a flash. I managed to get the internet back on by 11:05am, and rushed through the assessment to send it back at 11:15am on the dot.

'Not that it mattered,' I thought, 'time definitely got the better of me here and I'm sure I missed plenty of mistakes.' Well... I did. But they were so impressed by my unique style that they invited me to an interview anyway. Dani: one, time: nil.

Or so I thought.

After hours of trying to reschedule prior commitments I had on interview day, I just didn't have enough time to fit it all in. As if that wasn’t bad enough, I had to succumb to the possibility of standing the company up due to O2's service disruption. Just one hour before my interview, service resumed and I was able to contact my once potential employers directly. Better late than never, I guess!

It was there and then that I vowed to never take on time again. I also learnt that, sometimes, it's okay to say no to a prospective employer. If you've shown yourself to be a good candidate, they'll also try to shuffle around their commitments as much as you to make it work. Although my post-graduation holiday meant that it would be too late to reschedule the interview, I was given the option to keep in contact with the company and be considered for its next vacancy. If it's meant to be, it'll be, but wish me luck anyway!