Kirstie's job log: 20
Kirstie Nicols hopes to become a journalist but as a first step she got an offer of a sales job on a newspaper, before wrecking her knee... Late start Better late than never; that should be my personal motto. Three weeks later than planned, I have finally made it through my first day of work at my new job.
After all that, it was nothing to write home about. I don’t know what I was expecting, but after all the waiting it felt like something amazing was going to happen (like the editor coming in, seeing my writing and hiring me on the spot). I spent most of the day filling in forms and watching health and safety videos, along with a tour of the office and a brief introduction to the people I’d be working with. I spent the rest of the week training with a different person each day, which thankfully made it easy to learn people’s names and get to know a few of the people. Thankfully, my knee is much better. I can get away with walking on one crutch; though I’ve been told this makes me look really old, or I can even hobble along without a crutch at all; though I’ve been told this makes me look just plain ridiculous. Neither method of transportation is a particularly glamorous way to get around, and it’s a bit embarrassing to start my first week in a new job unable to move round the office with ease. However, it has provided a talking point for colleagues and if I look helplessly at one of the men then they generally help me carry things around! So far, the job is going well (bearing in mind I’ve only been there a couple of weeks). The people are nice and I’m starting to get the hang of what I’ll be doing, and it doesn’t seem too hard to pick up. Plus there’s a definite buzz about the place; even though we're based in a completely different section you can tell it’s not your everyday company. I was given a short, sneak peak tour around the news room, and it’s nothing like what I was expecting – I always imagined it would look something like the office in which Lois and Clark worked – and instead it’s just a normal room with computers and desks and things. Pretty much the same as the office I did a week’s work experience at last year! Selection dayI also managed to get the day off I needed in order to go to the selection day for the course I applied for. It was possibly one of the most horrendous days I’ve ever had, and it had barely anything to do with the fact that I spent the day walking round London in 4-inch heels. The day consisted of an examination on current affairs (which I only barely passed), a long presentation where I fought to stay awake, a writing exercise, a second test and a final interview. Keeping my brain alert and working for that length of time was incredibly tiring, and after what felt like a rather short and frosty interview, I headed home feeling just a bit depressed. When the letter came through the door two days later saying I’d been offered a place on the course, it was completely unexpected. I was sure there were many people who were there with me who did a much better job; but I guess I did ok after all. Of course this means that I now have a huge decision to make about whether to take up the place or not; it’s an amazing amount of money to spend on one year's worth of education, but then it could open so many doors at the end of it. I have a couple of months before the deposit is due to make up my mind. I honestly never planned to do a Master’s after my degree; I was fed up with education by my third year and couldn’t wait to start earning real money, which belonged to me and not to the bank. To go back into the overdraft again would just be depressing! However, just in case, I have decided to starting trying to save some money towards the course fees. So if anyone is looking for a new pair of boots/DVD/miniature pool table, check out my eBay profile… Read Kirstie's previous blogs
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