Lazy Afternoon with a Hot Coffee

Big-Mouth In Action

For those of you who heard/read about me trying out for a new job-- here's what happened in detail:

I applied for the job via the company's online system on 16th November; got a call from their HR personnel on the 21st, scheduled for the initial computer aptitude test to be on the 22nd.

Before I got started on the actual aptitude test, there was a personality test which I had to take. It consisted of over 200 questions, and I simply had to rate how true they apply to me, on a scale of 1 to 5.

The Computer Aptitude Test
Consisted of 16 sections, each section testing the candidate on certain scpects required for the job. Some were MCQ questions, some just needed numbers as answers. Time was limited for each section and there's a short break in-between sections. But once you start the entire test, you can't stop or hold it.

The Voice Test
Read a simple phrase into a voice recorder. No difficult words or vocabulary to worry about. It's just words and numbers.

The HR personnel called me on the 28th, informing me that I've passed the aptitude test, and there's a panel interview on 1st December.

The Panel Interview
There was a manager from the HR department, the deputy-something, and head of the department ready to knock us dead in the interview.

From what I recall during that 15-minute process:

Q: What is your current job and what do you do?
A: I'm a cabin crew, and basically I serve passengers onboard a flight and make sure that everything goes smoothly and adequately.

Q: Why did you apply for this job?
A: Right now, in this point of my life, I feel ready to take on a new challenge. And working for ~that place~ as a ~that job~ is one I'm most interested in.

Q: So, as a crew, I'm sure you've gone through training about what to do in emergencies. What do you do?
A: Well, first, I'll have to brace for impact, and then try to calm the screaming passengers down, check what's happened either in the aircraft or outside, double-confirm with my adjacent colleague, when all's ready and with the command from the cockpit, evacuate all passengers. When all's clear in the cabin, then I will leave the aircraft too.

Q: When you have doubts? What do you do?
A: You mean in emergency situations? (Yes.) The fastest way is to ask the crew nearest to you. That's so much better than me searching for my manuals.

Q: What if there's no one nearby, and you're all alone?
A: ... Well... Then it's all up to me. No matter what, the most important thing is to get all passengers out as quickly as possible. So I'll open the emergency exit and do the evacuation myself.

Q: How do you deal with difficult passengers?
A: (Wanted to say-- every flight... they piss me off...) For me, passengers are generally very nice but sometimes I do get Pax who drink too much and become a nuisance to others. When I see that someone is drinking a bit too much onboard, and starts talking very loudly, I'll stop supplying him liquor. He can request for it, but I won't give it to him.

Of course, I'll start off by telling him-- Sir, you might be drinking a little too much today. Perhaps it's time to take a break. If he insists or even uses vulgarities, I'll say something like this "I'm not going to serve you any more liquor and I mean it. If you continue to behave like this, you're just making a fool of yourself. I might have to report you to the cockpit and it's not a very nice thing then it happens."

I don't care if I'm a crew and he's a Pax who paid for the seat; he's endangering other pax's and my safety. Someone has to stop him before things get out of hand, I'm not afraid to do it. He can lodge a complaint afterwards against me, but I'll just deal with the later. What I have to do at that moment is to stop him.

Q: You've done that before?
A: Sure! Once in a while, we always get people who can't control their drinking onboard.

Q: How about difficult colleagues?
A: It's no point arguing with her on the spot about why she's not performing her duties as she should be. I'll just finish everything up for her-- get the whole job done ASAP. Afterwards, THEN I'll talk to her about the problem. It's just wasting mine, hers and the PAXs' time if I were to argue with her rightaway.

Other questions include:
-- You realise you WILL be taking a pay-cut if accepted. You still want this?
-- I'm not sure you know enough about this job to want it...
-- Do you have a clear idea of what the job consists of?
-- This job comes with a bond, but it doesn't mean that you CAN stay throughout the entire period because people do get cut off...
-- You have a degree, and could easily apply for any other job that pays higher in the market. Why this?
-- Don't you find it a pity to give up your current job?

Final question: How badly do you want the job?

... ...

By the end of the whole interview, I was mentally exhausted. The interviewers were not the kind that will smile and nod their heads occasionally to scknowledge what you've said. It's just question after question.

Oh, if the seniors in my current company heard what I said in the interview, I think they'll be rushing to shut my trap and throw me out the window. hahahahaha! Hey, the HR lady who attended to us mentioned that the interviewere will want to see candidates who

-- Have energy
-- Firm in their minds
-- Willing to commit entirely to this job
-- Exercise teamwork

So... I just went in there and became a bitch.

And I liked it. At least I can 'scold' my passengers...

Anyway, there were 5 candidates for the interview, and 3 of us got through to the final panel interview, which is scheduled for the 7th.

Hehehehehhehehe... very very lucky...

posted by A Lone Fighter @ 2:22 PM