One on One

On the morning of October 19th, depending on your time-zone of course, I was interviewed by a recruiter at a company in Japan. I've been working with the recruiter in order to see if I was qualified for a Visa sponsorship and if I was a worthy applicant in general, and I was deemed so on both accounts. The weeks leading to the interview were very stressful. I knew what to expect after looking at job reviews on Glassdoor.com and I have good people skills, but it's really what's at stake here. I never minded living in Lebanon for another two years and just threw my name there for the sake of it, but after getting that first email that asked me for more information I quickly became a gaijin-wannabe (Japanese word for "foreigner"). I researched the company very thoroughly, researched Japan (which was unnecessary, Japan has always topped my list of countries I wanna visit), and even started looking at apartments in the region I wished to teach in (they have over 40 learning studios across the country with more to come!). This was before I even filled in my application.

True, I counted my chicken before they hatched, but it was mostly to satiate my hunger for this. A day of me being lost in Japan is a dream of mine, the prospect of living there for months, years even, was just unimaginable. I applied.

Days have passed and no response was given. I, naturally, assumed the worst. I'll spare the details. I ended up emailing them asking for the application's status. They replied the next day with a scheduled appointment. I went back to rewatching a lot of their videos on the website and seeing Youtube videos and reading forums concerning life in Japan. I was prepared, nervous, excited, and a mess of other emotions. I looked forward to it for days... and then I missed it.

They notified me with an email saying that they'd called me on Skype and that if I didn't show up in 5 minutes the appointment would have to be postponed at another date I could provide. Sadly, I didn't show up for that either. I thought the interview would be at 10AM Lebanese time, the time I provided in the application. It turns out, I should have checked the email stating when the interview was going to occur, it being 8AM Lebanese time. I saw the email 8:35AM. Naturally, I was crushed. I emailed them back apologizing and rescheduling for anytime next week, and they scheduled it a full week after the first interview. Great. Another week of anticipation and nervousness. Not to mention, this is a sign of my lack of punctuality.

The week passed and I had the interview. The recruiter was very professional, spoke eloquently, and asked relevant questions. I tried to answer most to the best of my ability but fumbled on some of the questions, though I saved myself a couple of times throughout those missteps. This interview was more on the casual side at the start, probably so she can get a feel of my English speaking ability. I was asked on why I wanted to go to Japan, why I wanted to work at their company, if I had any friends living there, etc. It then became more difficult, like what would attract clients to me over other instructors, what steps I would take if I didn't get enough booked sessions a month, what my opinion of their contract was, what challenges I might face, etc. I took my time answering them but I tried my best to be as eloquent and calm as possible and I doubt I would have performed near as well had I not majored in TESL where presentation skills are honed in nearly every course.

I may be due for another interview. I shall find out within the next 5 business days if I am eligible for another interview and it's draining me emotionally. It's all I'm thinking about really. I'm having a hard time looking at me staying here should Japan not work out because I've been living the past few days thinking the interview, at least the first one, is going to guarantee me a position. Now I'm not so sure, even knowing I probably had a decent interview, I look back pedantically thinking I messed up somewhere... Worrying though will be of no consequence, so I may as well wait the 5 days for a final reply.