I had an interview with the county agency today and I thought it went pretty well. Since we‘d had problems connecting to the Microsoft Teams meeting last time, they reached out to me this morning and we did a test. Worked great. So, we were prepared and I got out my suit and my shiny black and blue tie and scraped all the barnacles off and I was ready to go.
This interview didn‘t go anything like I expected. They weren‘t quizzing me on scenarios or talking about how I‘ve tried to prepare myself for the job. Instead, they focused on my attitude and motives. Met the executive director of the agency and the deputy director of operations. Both were sharp guys and said they felt like I was equally sharp, which felt nice. They also said that I‘d be coming to work with lots of sharp people and I would have a lot to learn, which I could appreciate.
In the end, I think the answer that clinched it was when I said I wasn‘t just looking for a job, but rather a career that would let me make a difference. I wanted a chance to go to work and know that I could try to do something to help people. The DDO cut in and said he knew exactly what I meant and relayed a story about his time as a trainee, how he dispatched a bad call and the fire and EMS responders wanted to know what they were rolling up on. He told them (car versus mother and child pedestrians, mother with broken leg, child…considerably worse) and the radio went silent for a moment, then they started to acknowledge him and got to work and he just knew he‘d made a difference.
I got goosebumps because I knew these two understood where I was coming from and where I wanted to go.
At any rate, they said they‘d call in a few days with any possible next steps. I thanked them for their time, closed the laptop, and went to hang up my suit. I sat down on my bed to go over the call in my head when my phone rang. It was the HR director, the person who took my desperate call a month ago and was willing to give me a shot.
They wanted me. If they could get a copy of my polygraph and psych evaluation, great. If not, they‘d schedule me forthwith, but iA I should plan on starting on June 1.
Persistence pays off.
911 Dispatches 