Tuesday, December 14, 2010

follow up interview

Eiko says...

It's a freezing cold, rainy December day, and it's just my luck that I had to go for a follow up interview at Shinjuku with Minerva English. I really shouldn't be complaining though, especially since this interview could very likely mean the end of my worries for finding a job. But I complain regardless because me and cold weather have an ugly relationship. When I say 'ugly', I mean really ugly. For example, my hands turn a grayish purple and its' soft look is replaced by a dry wrinkly one. My lips crack and consequently flake and bleed. My shoulders begin to ache, and they start hunching up. Oh, and did I mention my frost-bitten toes? Like I said, me and cold weather have an ugly relationship.

So, as I hurried in my heels through wind and rain, (I had stupidly left my umbrella at home), I felt totally under attack from all sides, not to mention nervous for the interview. To top it off, the company had also just recently moved to a new location which was an additional 15 minute walk away, and as you all know how women (me, in particular) are with directions, you could imagine how many times I walked around in circles ( in the rain, feeling ugly AND lost, hoping to get there on time) trying and somewhat failing to make sense of the map before finding the building.

Once at the Minerva office, warmer and relieved that I was 5 minuets early, I felt much better. I was interviewed after a short wait by two people. I remembered one of the interviewers from my last visit with them, and the lady that was sitting next to him was a new face. Rather than an interview though, it was more of an explanation of what position they were hoping me to fill, and what would be required of me should I accept the job offer. I really had no reason to be nervous as I had been...or so I thought.

Right around the end when it's usually the time to get up and say good bye etc, they handed me some flash cards and asked me to come up with a simple game while they got some manuals to show me. Memories from the demo lesson I gave came tumbling back and I went blank for a short moment. They had asked me to be creative and fun in front of all those 40+ year olds acting like bratty kids, checking to see how I would control a completely out of control classroom, and how I would respond to every teacher's worst nightmare! That was really horrid of them! But I quickly got a hold of my self, and started planning something simple, and kept reminding myself that this isn't a demo lesson, and they just want to see creativity. I did my best, and the man told me he was impressed. I heaved a sigh of relief, and headed out. Now waiting for to give an afternoon English class at Kinshicho, I'm expecting the call of confirmation. I can't help but hope that all the others they will be interviewing before they're final decision have something along the lines of a heart attack or a panic attack.

I'm getting this job!!


Oh, and BTW, Merry Christmas!! Forgot to say that in my last post.


P.S.

I like 'em Mc Cafes. I'm at one now, actually, as I type this post over my third cup of hot coffee.

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Eiko says...

Updates on English teaching

Despite the demo-lesson being quite out of hand, thanks to the rowdy 12-13 year olds who were really 40+ year olds, and having a retarded contact lens torturing my left eye to tears, the company called me to schedule another meeting, this time with the Coordinator of the company. This is very good news, everyone. I might have a job in less than a week!

That aside, this past week has been very busy and quite exhausting mentally and physically. Therefore, I decided to treat myself to a shopping spree at some nearby clothes shops. The winter sales are on, girls! Let's live up to our reputation and shop till we drop!

Not...

Well...

Buy what you need and absolutely can't live without. When the entire clothes line fits that description...well, make sure you find yourself a very rich husband.

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Engllish teacher?

Eiko says...

In the previous post, I mentioned how I quit my job at Gusto. It's definitely for the better that I did, since they were very uncooperative, but now I have found myself job-less and in danger of not being able to pay the very low rent that my place requires! It was time for job-hunting all over again! This time around I wanted a job other than your average part-time that pays shit money for shitty shifts that consist of shitty work. This left me with fewer options to chose from, and naturally, one of the options that stood out to me was English teaching. This was something that I really wanted to steer away from doing, but when you're out of a job, and you're desperate enough, everything and anything is a possibility! I found my self working hard on a resume and a general cover letter for English teaching and started applying on various sites that were looking for employees. I applied for at least 10 jobs, mainly revolving around English teaching, but I also threw out a few applications for other jobs that required a bilingual speaker. I realized that finding a good job is really a full-time job in itself! You need your resume looking good. You need a good cover letter, and you need to do a bunch of research. After people contact you and are interested in what you have to offer, you need to continually sell yourself, not to mention the interviews, mails and phone calls to attend to! And this is exactly what I have been up to these past 2 weeks.

Out of all the applications that I sent out, so far, 2 companies responded and contacted me. One was a position for a customer service in a real estate company. The other was a English Teacher position with Minerva. Both companies replied the next day I applied for the job, asking me to send my resume and to fill out a simple form for more details. The position for customer service is presently on hold as they reevaluate my resume, but Minerva called me for an interview as soon as I sent my resume, and so I went. After the interview, I was contacted for a demo lesson. Once again, I went. And man, I wasn't expecting what I experienced today, during the demo lesson!

Upon arrival, I am given, (along with the 4 others who were applying for the same position) a general class plan, and I am suppose to give it my own twist, and give this class to all the others in the room, including the interviewer and his assistant. Now, all of them are acting like 6 graders, with no clue whatsoever about English and who have short concentration spams. It was quite frustrating to deal with these 12-13 year olds who really are 40+ years old who are on their worst behavior. ( and who are also evaluating my teaching skills and my classroom control skills, etc. ) It was tough, and quite long, as I had to sit through the others who had role play the 'teacher', while the rest of the room were stupid, difficult 'students'. I left home at 11:30 and got home at 5:00. It was a full day, and I'm ready to treat myself now that the worst of it is over. I'm expecting them to contact me within the week. I'm up for some wine and chocolate! Now!!

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