Nov 13

Editorial Pursuits #2 – Do you need a babysitter?

Career, Jobs, Networking, Uncategorized, Writers Add Comment (1)

Julie Matysik (Yamanashi-ken, 2006-07) is a freelance copy editor and aspiring in-house editor who recently moved to NYC with her husband (also a JET alum).  She is seeking an internship or entry level position in editing/publishing/writing. Editorial Pursuits will chronicle her job hunting efforts, experiences and lessons learned.

Here’s one thing I’ve learned about job hunting: Always follow up with contacts because you never know where they might lead. Even if you don’t get the job, or even an interview, you might find that something completely unexpected evolves from the relationship.

What do I mean by these somewhat cryptic “words of wisdom”? Here’s what happened to me.

Last year I worked as a Teacher Assistant at a Madison preschool. No, this has nothing to do with my editorial pursuits, but it was a job that paid the bills and a great place to work for a limited period. I am still in contact with some of the parents of children in my after-school class, and they know all about my job search woes.

One of the parents remembered having a contact at Macmillan Publishers, and he graciously introduced me to his friend who expressed great interest in getting extra attention for my resume.

I was tickled pink at all the possibilities this could mean for me, and I even started dreaming about walking into the Flatiron Building every day for work at a major book publishing company.

Meanwhile, in addition to going to bat for me, she also invited me to her house to meet her and her two-year-old son! How fantastic! She wanted to meet me face to face!

And so we met and had a wonderful morning, talking, sharing stories about Japan, and walking through Central Park with her son. I left feeling elated and refreshed – perhaps my time had come!

Well, days went by. No one from Macmillan called. The postings for the jobs I applied to were, one by one, removed. My hopes were being shattered right in front of my eyes. How could such a potentially solid lead prove fruitless? These were the inner workings of my frustrated mind.

But then, suddenly, out of the blue, I find an e-mail in my inbox from my Macmillan contact. Could it be? Did she have some life-changing news for me? My heart started beating as I moved the cursor over to the new message and clicked.

I read the message, a smile grew on my lips, and I think I even giggled. She was writing to ask me a favor: could I babysit for her in a few weeks and then we’d go to brunch and talk some more?

She was looking forward to seeing me again. And even though it wasn’t the e-mail I was hoping for, I realized that this person and the relationship we continue to establish does, in fact, mean something.

Though I’m not working for Macmillan, I am fostering a new friendship with someone who does work there. And who knows where that may lead…