Disappointments & The Dating Game

Thinking back to my single days, I can relate getting a job to a blind date.  Someone sets you up for a blind date thinking you are a good match for a friend.  You agree to go even though you would rather have Prince Charming come knock at your door and sweep you off your feet.  You go on the date with a nice guy.  He treats you well and is handsome.  You have a fun time.   You think things are going well and you are interested in getting to know him better.  At the end of the date, he gets your number and says, "I'll call you."   You think, "What do you know?  Maybe blind dates aren't so bad after all."  So you wait for the call.  He doesn't call.  Then you think, "Why doesn't he call me? I liked him.  He said he would call."  Then you begin analyzing everything that was said and done up to this point, trying to read minds and figure out what you did or said that didn't meet his approval.  Maybe it was my hair or my thighs?  Meanwhile, the guy you DON'T think is good enough is calling you and you don't want to hurt his feelings, but you just are not interested in going out with him.  What is wrong with this twisted world?  The only time it really works is when you finally meet "the one" who is right for you and you can end the awful games dating brings. 

How does that relate to getting a job?  Well, let me tell you about my experience this summer.  I wrote about some of this in a previous blog post.  I put my resume on Monster.com hoping to generate some interest if a Dentist happened to look for a new Hygienist there.  I did not get any calls from dental offices, but I did get a whole bunch of calls from people asking me to interview to sell insurance.  No thank you.  (Kind of like the guy not good enough calling and you don't want him to.)  Meanwhile, I had some luck getting work over the summer for 2 different dentists.  I worked fill in for Dr. Cantwell and worked for Dr. Davis all summer.

When I went in to interview for the job at Dr. Davis' office, he told me that he would be needing to hire someone a day per week, as the current Hygienist would not be working every day after her maternity leave was over.  He also had double booked 1-2 days per week since it was quite busy.  I worked every single Wednesday the whole summer plus filled in for a week while another Hygienist was out of the office.  He told me initially that I would do 2 working interview days to see if we worked well together.  It turned into working every week.  In the beginning of July, I asked him if he had made a decision about hiring, as I needed to know for my schedule.  He said, "Oh, yeah.  It's working out great.  The staff likes you, the patients like you.  I think it's going really well.  I will have to get back to you about the schedule because I need to talk to Tabitha (on maternity leave) and Kelly (front office coordinator).  He didn't know which days Tabitha was coming back and Kelly would know if we were busy enough to keep double booking.  I interpreted that as, "Yes,  I will hire you, just wait and see which day you will be working."  Kind of like, "I'll call you" from a date.

Over the summer, another Hygienist was brought in to do the other double booked day.  She is fun and a good Hygienist.  We have different personalities and styles.  Then there is another Hygienist doing the full week fill in for maternity leave.  All three of us want a job that is only for 1 day per week.  Kind of like having 3 girls interested in the same guy.  Fast forward to now...only a week away from Tabitha coming back.  I talked to Dr. Davis last week about the plan.  He said the schedule had slowed way down. (True-I saw the schedule in the computer.)  He no longer had enough work to do any double booked days.  So then I asked about the Monday that would be open.  He had hired another person, not one of the 3 of us who had been working all summer.  She was a past employee that left and wanted to come back.  (The beautiful Ex girlfriend).  Me, being non-confrontational, accepted what he said with utter disappointment.

Had I misunderstood what he said before?  What had I done wrong?  Analyze, analyze, analyze.  There were plenty of tears after I got home, feeling rejected and unloved.  To twist the knife, one of the 3 of us "summer workers" pushed him until he consented to have her work every Wednesday, double booked.  However, there are NO patients scheduled in her schedule.  It looks like she is getting played too.  So I am here thinking, "Why did he agree to hire TWO Hygienists over me? Why are they better?"  Don't know...that is just the way it is in this game.  You just let it go until you find "the ONE."  Wish he'd come knocking at my door so I don't have to do this job search all over again. There has to be a good Dentist out there somewhere that appreciates what I have to offer.  After all, I am a VERY good Hygienist and I am easy to work with.  Someone will take me, thighs and all.