After reading some of the comments on Trine's last post, I thought I would take a minute to fill in how (and where) I accepted employment. To begin, let me just say it has been and insane process but in the end we have seen the Lord's hand it. Alright, Let's start at the beginning...
My last month of school was a stressful time, there was a lot of papers, projects, and presentations that needed to be completed. On top of all of the requirements to graduate, there was this gloomy cloud of employment upon graduation. I mentally could not begin applying for employment during the hustle and bustle of school; this is is where Trine stepped in and put her skills to work. Trine began applying for every job opening in social work the during the month of April while I completed school.
The week after I finished course work, I was given a job interview 45 minutes away from our apartment. This job was a case manager position for a local behavioral health agency (for the purpose of clarification purposes we will call this Job #1).The interview went well but I was unsure if I wanted the commute and I felt I was way over qualified for the position. I did not hear back from this agency until much later.
On Monday during the week of graduation (May 8-14), Trine sent my resume to two different agencies. Both of those agencies sent me an email within the hour asking me to complete additional pre-screening paper work. I completed both agencies' paper work and emailed them to their respected agency by late Monday afternoon. Within the an hour of sending in the paper work, both agencies called to set up interviews for Thursday (05/12).
I interviewed at a local behavioral health agency for a therapist position on Thursday morning (This will be referred to as Job #2). The interview lasted over an hour and I came away feeling confident I would get a call back. Within two hours after the interview, I received a call from Job #2 for a second interview for the following Monday (05/16).
Thursday evening (05/12) I had a group interview at a community based behavioral health agency for a family preservation specialist position (this will be referred to as Job #3). The interview lasted about 45 minutes was peculiar; there were three applicants and two interviewers present in the interview. Half way through the interview I decided I probably did not want the job, and actually stopped trying to sound like I was interested. Within two hours following the interview, my parents came into town and I had to pick them up from the airport.
Friday (05/12) was graduation day. Trine and I decided it would be nice to take my parents out to a nice outdoor mall 20 minutes away from our home. We loaded everyone up into the car and drove to the mall. As we were exiting the freeway, our tire blew out. I put the donut tire on and drove to the local tire shop for a repair. Needless to say, $500 later we have four good looking tires. While our car was getting worked on, everyone went to the Chickfila for lunch because it had a big playground for Asher to play on. During lunch, I get a call from Job #3.
Job #3 offers me a job at a mediocre salary and wanted me to accept the position right away. I told them I had a second interview scheduled at another agency the following week and wanted some time to think about it. Straight way, Job #3 offered me over a 10% increase in pay to commit to them. I continued to insist on having the weekend to make a decision because of graduation and Job #2. Job #3 allowed me to have until Monday (05/16) to make a decision.
Friday afternoon, Job #2 called me and told me they needed to reschedule my second interview with them to Thursday (05/19) because of some scheduling conflicts. Friday evening I graduated, as Trine mentioned before.
Over the next few days I called everyone to discuss my dilemma; should I accept Job #3 or decline it because I felt confident Job #2 really liked me. After prayer and consultation with others, I decided I would accept Job #3 but continue to interview with Job #2 so see how it goes. On Monday morning (05/16), I called Job #3 and left two messages with them but did not hear back from them until the following day. On Wednesday (05/18), I completed new hire paper work and told them my start date could be 05/25 (because we were going to UT to see Elijah before he left on his mission).
On Thursday (05/19), I had my second interview at Job #2. The interview was less than 15 minutes, and I walked away feeling confused if I impressed the interviewer. Job #2 stated they would make a decision the beginning of the following week (05/22-05/28). While in Utah (05/20-05/24), I received an email from Job #1 offering me a position at a very low rate of pay. I declined the offer because Job #3 was better pay and closer to home. On Wednesday (05/25), I began training at Job #3. Oh, I forgot to mention, Job #3 ended up being the team lead position even though I did not apply for that position.
On Friday (05/27), I received a voicemail from Job #2 informing me they wanted to offer me a position. While on a 10 minute break from the new hire training at Job #3, I called Job #2. Job #2 offered me a therapist position for more money, better benefits, and better hours than Job #3. I asked Job #2 for some time to think about it, they agreed. On my lunch break, I called Trine to tell her the news, she was excited and told me to take it. I then called my old boss, to get her advise on how to navigate quitting an agency within a week timeframe.
After lunch, I decided I was going to take Job #2 and tell my supervisor at Job #3 the situation. I also thought it would be best to tell her at the end of the day's training to lessen the awkwardness (there was four of us in training together). So, at the conclusion of Job #3 training for the day, I pulled my supervisor aside and told her the situation. I told her it would be a better fit for myself and my family at this time; she wished me luck. She asked me what the other position was out of curiosity. I told her it was a therapist position, she told me she always envisioned me as a therapist and that it would probably be a better fit.
So, there you have the story. I am officially a therapist for at-risk youth on a local reservation. I start new hire orientation next week.
Our friends, Marc and Jill, invited us to go camping over the holiday weekend. This was our first experience camping since Trine and I have been married. We spent weeks preparing; mentally and temporally (we had to buy all the equipment). Finally, the day came and off we went to Pine, AZ. I think Asher had the best time.
Asher also got to experience his first donut. He didn't care for anything other than the chocolate frosting. After eating the chocolate frosting he reverted back to his regular breakfast food; cereal bar, milk, and fruit. I, on the other hand, got to drink fresh mint tea (thanks Marc for finding that plant and brewing the tea). All in all, a good experience. We probably will do it again when we have another long weekend.
