Light at the End of the Tunnel

I got a call for a job interview. Simple as that (well, not counting the weeks spent revising my resume, creating my professional profile, completing my LinkedIn profile, and applying for every job that came my way). I was coming back from my outplacement seminar when I got an alert on my cell phone that someone had left me voicemail. When I finally listened to the message from the recruiter, he simply asked if I was available later this week to talk with the writers and the engineers (and how much money did I want).

It was quite a contrast to my experience sitting with other laid off employees earlier that day, listening to the presenter explaining all of the services that would be available to us to find a job. Many of us simply stared at the slide showing the different stages of grieving the loss of a job (denial, anger, depression, bargaining, and acceptance), while others focused on the inability of the presenter to control the mouse pointer.

Either way, I kind of knew what everyone was going through because I had been there a month ago, but even before I knew it, I was already seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. You see, I managed to get in touch with an old friend I had worked with many years ago (many job titles ago, many managers ago) through LinkedIn. The next thing I know, she sent me a message that she had a friend who knew somebody who needed a tech writer. I responded by sending her my resume, then there was no response for what seemed weeks. It was actually only a few days before the resume ended up in the hands of the hiring manager, and a day or two after that before I was contacted to come in for an interview.

This series of events reminds me of a quote from my favorite author, Robert Heinlein, "Sure the game is rigged, but you can't win if you don't play." Somehow, I'm responsible for the footwork, but I don't have control over the outcome. That I have to leave in the hands of the One who does. I also need to say a prayer for those who were in that conference room with me that afternoon to also have the courage to take a chance and play the game, even if it's rigged.