Please take a seat

I have an interview today. It's always a little nerve-racking as in my experience you never know what you are going to get. Will the interviewer be formal and ask a lot of probing questions, or will they be more relaxed and simply tell you about the position. Will they treat you with respect, or as an annoyance? Will they be friendly or keep you at arms length? I guess I've experienced all of these things.

A few years ago I had my worst interview experience. It was for a position at the local music school. Not really a big place or a large program. It was a administration job really. Not a lot to it really. So I show up and I meet the head of the program. She was real nice, friendly and seemed interested in what I had to say. She had let me know that I would be interviewing in front of her, the lady who was leaving the position I was applying for and someone from the Board of Directors that paid for the program. Fair enough. I had never interviewed in front of three people before but it actually went well. I was invited back for a second interview, which was also a new thing for me.

At the second interview I met the head of the program again and this time she is with the lady whom I will be working alongside. "Fine" I thought "I guess she'll have a few questions for me too." And she did. How flexible was I? What could I expect from the position? How motivated was I? etc.. then she says "Now we are going to do a role-play, I will be an angry parent of a child taking music lessons and you can answer the phone". "What??" I thought to myself. They were going to test me on my skills handling an irate customer. So we went ahead...and this woman was such a pain in the ass. I mean she was asking me questions that there was no way I had the answer to, like special accommodations that can be made, which suppliers we use etc... I came up with a solution but she didn't like it and I think it annoyed her. Worst interview and interviewer ever. She was on some crazy power trip if you ask me. Am I bitter about it? Yes and no. No, I'm not bitter than I didn't get the job. I suspect it was going nowhere and admin isn't my interest. Yes, I'm bitter that she acted that way and I put up with it. Still, we live and learn.