Little Hero

Yesterday was Halloween, my favorite time of the year.  I didn’t get a single kid knock on the door. Even with a few decorations. I kept looking out the window and didn’t see any kids walking down the street.  When I lived in Toronto I had 200+ kids every year trick or treating and some adults. My two Halloweens in Montreal, living in two different places, I have had a total of 0 kids combined knock on my door.

Back in Toronto my niece did something a little different for Halloween. She and her friend traded in her trick or treat pillowcase for a box. Instead of candy she went door to door and asked for food donations for the food Bank. They collected two boxes of food for the needy.  She is a constant breath of fresh air and she saw a great opportunity to help others and she took it. This isn’t the first time she has done something that has inspired me or surprised me.

She once made a vow of silence with her friends so that they could feel what it was like to have no voice or say like some women live every day. I can imagine this was extremely hard for her as she is so talkative and curious. I am sure that her parents thought no way she would be able to do it, but she did. She felt the feeling of not being able to communicate for herself, not be able to stand up for herself or question others.

As she grows I hope she never loses this mindset and keeps trying to empathize with people in different situations. She is a true hero.

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The Best/Worst Interview I Ever Had

A few years ago I took a year off of work. Once I wanted to go back into the workforce. I looked for jobs I thought I would find interesting. I didn’t want to go back into advertising, however almost all my experience was as a Studio Manager. I didn’t apply for any job only for jobs that I thought I would learn something from and that I thought the hours would have a good work/life balance.

One of the jobs I applied for was to be an assistant for a Fashion Designer. I actually went and bought new shoes for the interview because I didn’t think any of my shoes made the cut. Not only did I buy new shoes, but I straighten my hair. That doesn’t seem like a big deal, but with my hair that is a 2 hour job!

I walked into this loft that was completely painted white, it reminded me of what heaven’s admissions office would look like. The only thing that was out of place was the new designs hanging on a moving rack and me. The smell of microwave popcorn filled the loft. Only one person worked on the main floor. The girl I was there to try to replace and she greeted me and took me over to the middle of the room where my interview was about to start.

Three people came to interview me. The first question they asked me was to tell them about my previous job. I explained what my day to day use to be and they were extremely interested in the dealing with stock houses side as they knew some of the same contacts I did. I thought the interview was going well. The next thing I knew the “boss” put her hand on my shoulder and told me I was selling myself short. She said that I would be bored and that the only way she could hire me was if I could prove to her that I wouldn’t be. I pretty good at reading people and I knew that nothing I said would have changed her mind. I was typecast.

She asked me to wait and went back to her office and grabbed me a business card. It was for an ad agency, she told me to give them a call and tell them she would recommend me. I thanked her and left the interview, walked around the corner, down two flights of stairs and sat down. I was upset, angry and my feet were hurting from those stupid shoes. My phone rang, “how did the interview go?” that question lead to instant tears. At the time I felt really crappy and I gave up my search for switching career paths and started applying for jobs in advertising. Once I did, I found one pretty quickly. The place was amazing, the staff and my boss was great. It was a one year contract, but I was offered to stay on board. The only problem was I didn’t have a passion for it. It was work and hard work.

Now I’m in Montreal where my French skills make it impossible for me take the easy route. I’m working on things that will help me to be happy and to achieve my goals. I’m no longer telling people my goals because I don’t want to hear that I can’t do it or how hard it is going to be for me. Worse comes to worse, I fail and that isn’t the end of the world, it just means another beginning. That lady was right when she said I was selling myself short. It just took me a few years to realize that she wasn’t typecasting me, she just saw something in me that I didn’t see in myself.