Via Business Week., January 23, 2007, by Kate Ngo, a member of Cornell's MBA Class of 2007.
"As it turns out, there is in fact a certain amount of anxiety in how I feel right now. A permanent full-time job is, well, so permanent"...
..."After careful review of your application, it is with sincere regret that we are unable to offer you a position at this time."
..but the company's way of letting me down easy...
..."Not only is my ego bruised at this point, but my feelings are hurt."...
Price of the "Perfect" Job
As it turns out, there is in fact a certain amount of anxiety in how I feel right now. A permanent full-time job is, well, so permanent. While the summer internship is a chance to try something risky, develop skills, and test unknown waters, full-time recruiting requires real introspection. To find the perfect job, I have to figure out my passion, the pace with which I want to advance my career, and—in the long term—what will make me truly happy.
Having weighed these factors for the past few months, it's becoming clear to me that my crankiness over recruiting does not originate from being rejected for a job. As everyone knows, rejection is not a business school reality but a life reality. In truth, I believe that I am my own cause of anxiety and crankiness. In the time and effort I invest to find my perfect job, I deprive myself of the same things that I want that perfect job to preserve—my relationships, my personal interests, my expectations for quality of life. As obsessive as it may be, it is quite common in business school to ignore something attainable and stretch for something a little closer to perfect. One can argue that this approach only sets me up for failure. On the other hand, maybe I should've just checked my voicemail first...
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