London Interview 2 (8th July 2009)
It was with different people than were at the previous interview. Although it’s supposed to be an interview, it felt more like a meeting between peers.
Travel Times
- Driving from home to Fleet Station takes about 15 minutes.
- Waited for about 10 minutes on platform.
- Took about 40 minutes to reach London Waterloo.
- Decided to walk to the location, which took about 20 minutes.
All in all, about 1.5 hours in transit. The woman at the interview had added this up and summarised a split-second after I finished listing it.
Pincer Movement
They run the two interviews separately without comparing notes much. This avoids biassing the two halves of what they are looking for:
- Technical ability:
- Doing the job to the necessary standard.
- Personal ability:
- Thriving in the office environment.
It went well. Showed them some sites I’ve worked on and audited. Remembered to cover the wide variety of stuff I do, including cross-browser CSS layout troubleshooting.
I Like What You Like
They are keen on accessibility, both in a holistic way and in terms of checkpoints. I opened with the more social aspects of accessibility I think it was just what they were looking for. Talked about WCAG knowledge, results and footage of disabled usability studies I’ve come across and so forth.
Further Impressions of London
Walking back from the interview and several things strike me about this area of London:
- There’s a sense of ambition. You can feel it in the air and see it on the buildings.
- The Thames River is seriously wide.
- Wearing a suit changes how people react to you.
- The Houses of Parliament are amazingly impressive when you’re actually there, just across the river from them.
- Disengaging my brain helps me feel less nervous whilst navigating the bustling streets.
- There is a buzz, an excitement, of the busy Metropolis. It is growing on me.
The commute is really long and pretty hard going. Returning on the train really took its toll on my back. Those seats are so uncomfortable for me!
Final Thoughts
These personal aspects are the only thing holding me back. But these are half of the story when it comes to working in an office.
The opportunity to have a proper job doing something I love is as exciting to me as it is daunting.