99 Blogs on the Wall

Yep, this is blog number 99. I'm about to hit triple digits. Took me a while to get here since my last post but with the ups and downs of the unemployment ride one never feels like blogging during the downs so I had to wait for some good ups when I would have something interesting to report on rather than just silence. And the downs are all about the silence - waiting for the phone to ring and being stuck all alone with the thoughts in your own head: "This job is perfect! I'm so qualified! I can do this in my sleep. They'll love me. Is there something wrong with my phone? Maybe my applications aren't getting through. Did I really say that in the interview? Why didn't I just quit while I was ahead? I'm going to be unemployed for the rest of my life!!!!!!!!!" Actually, the application and interview process is going well. However, thanks to the wonderful timing of the holiday season no one is in a hurry to get on to the actual hiring process. Everybody would rather take vacations and stuff. Dummies.

So of the applications that I sent out, three have already resulted in an interview. I'm averaging one a week so far which isn't bad. The first one, thumbs down. Not interested. I don't think they could afford me anyway. However, the next two are both very exciting prospects. One in Commercial Lending for a major bank and the other a credit position with a very successful Leasing Company. The interview with the bank was last Tuesday and it was a slam dunk. I was exactly what they were looking for and they were exactly what I was looking for. I emailed the HR rep today to tell her that I would be out of town for the holidays and let her know when and where I could be reached. She emailed me back and said they plan to make a decision next week and would be in touch as soon as she had more information. Two hours later I heard from both of my former bosses that she had just called and they had both given her glowing reviews. So it sounds like that one is in the bag but you never know until it's all said and done. The other one I interviewed with just yesterday. The interview went very well and the credit manager and I hit it off immediately. I don't have as strong a read on that one but I am certainly qualified and there is a strong chance that they may make me an offer as well. They also intend to make a decision by the end of next week.

Now, on the superficial side, the bank has way better benefits but a longer commute, while the leasing company is much closer and includes a variety of other incentives. Both of them have excellent opportunities for professional growth that will continue to make me even more marketable and advance my career in the direction I want to go. If offered both, I do not know at this point which one I would choose. It does not come down to money. Both are competitive salaries and I have no intention of holding out for the highest bidder. But I have already passed through the entry level and even mid level stages of my career and established myself at the advanced level in my industry which to this point has been a combination of equipment financing and banking. These two positions will allow me to now start focusing in the longer term toward the management level with the specialized knowledge that each industry offers and could define my career from this point forward. Basically, the decision that I have to make at this point is whether I want to be a Banker or a Lessor. They probably sound like the same thing to most people but they are actually some considerable differences and I'm not going to make the effort to try to explain it to you so you will just have to take my word for it.

Wow, and when I put in those terms - whether I am a Banker or Lessor at heart - I actually know now which I would chose if both offers presented themselves. This blog has actually been really productive for helping me straighten out my feelings toward this. However, since I know that the unemployment cycle includes ups and downs and revolving feelings and cycles of thought that can change on a whim, and since I haven't been given an official offer from either one yet, I will refrain from publishing it on the internet and keep you all in suspense until the actual miraculous event of being hired actually occurs.