Interviews and all that jazz

[velvetpage]

I have come to the conclusion that the interview process is more trouble than it's worth.

I have done eight interviews for jobs within my own board, for which I was qualified and in which I was very interested. That's in addition to the five jobs for which I applied, but did not get called for an interview. I have yet to be offered any of these jobs. And right now, I truly don't care.

I know that by June 25th, the board will have placed me an a job which suits the specifications I give them as closely as possible - having placed everyone with more seniority than me first, of course. Worst case scenario is that the new school is no better than the current one. I will still have had a summer home with my daughter, who will hopefully be starting to speak a few words of French by then. So I'm no longer going to let this process sap my energy. My one remaining interview is not worth the stress of extra planning.

I feel the way I imagine my kids start feeling after failing test after test after test. After a while, a D becomes a good mark.

That is really sad. Or would be, if I could summon up the energy to care.

Comments

[pyat.livejournal.com]

*nuzzle*

Denying stress is not the same as apathy, necessarily. :)

In the words of the great thinker Ed Norton:

"When the tides of life turn against you, And the current upsets your boat, Don't waste those tears on what might have been, Just lay on your back and float."

[anidada.livejournal.com]

It's funny, I read that as being a positive way of looking at things (until the second last paragraph, anyway *hug*). Channelling a bit of que sera, sera, is probably better for one's health (in every respect) than a lot of other ways of handling the current situation, and of course, spending the summer with the wee lass is always a good thing (I envy you). It's not apathy, it's letting go. :)

You will be employed next year. That is good. You will be employed, in all likelihood, at something more tolerable (even if only by virtue of its not being where you are now). That's also good. The possibility that you'll actually get something fabulous is still there -- there's still time. That's definitely good.

You've done your part to get this sorted, for now, so you've earned the right to let go of the stress of outcome pondering and settle into the summer. Don't let all of this mayhem take away from enjoying it -- that's what would be sad.

[sassy-fae.livejournal.com]

Aww. Fruitless interviews are definitely depressing. I wouldn't think of it as getting a series of Ds, but more like getting the longer queue at the store. It's hard to know where you're going to have the best luck, but you will get there! Even the worst case scenario gives you loads of time with Elizabeth, which will be the thing you remember most about this year, when you look back on it later.

[nottheterritory.livejournal.com]

I feel the way I imagine my kids start feeling after failing test after test after test. After a while, a D becomes a good mark.

That's not quite fair - after all, you are competing with a series of other people who are just as desperate and (hopefully, if they're beating you out) just as qualified, while the "D" kids are onyl struggling with thier own limitations. It's not like it's a test you're failing, it's just that other people are doing slightly better on it for some reason or another. Your time will come.

In the meantime, relax and enjoy time with the bilingual baby - and reveal in the cloudy looks of jealousy I certainly plan to be giving you whenever I see you free for the summer ;)

[velvetpage.livejournal.com]

Intellectually, I know that this isn't really about failure. I think my biggest problem with this school in total has been the simple fact that I'd never failed at anything I tried until I started teaching at this school - and suddenly, events which could easily be interpreted as failures were weekly occurences. It's hard to go from "work reasonably hard and you'll succeed" to "you need tons of extra help from a lot of other people to get by, and the emotional toll will still be more than you've ever paid before." It feels like failure, and the ability to see it as a learning experience takes more practice than I've had.