Respuesta :
My First Day on the Job)
I was in full-on panic mode. Here I was on my first day as an inexperienced reporter having to cover an important story with little guidance. I was starting to regret my decision to take the job. What was I doing here? I wasn’t a journalism major. I didn’t have a “beat.” I didn’t even know all the rules about dealing with sources and off-the-record information.
The previous spring, I’d taken up my boss on his offer and stayed at my part-time job through the summer after college. He gave me more hours, so I was making more money, but I didn’t yet have the responsibility of a “real” job. I’d been an English major and wanted to be a writer, though I had no idea what kind of writer. I’d taken the summer to think about things and prepare for a fall job search.
By the time I began the search for my first full-time job, the job market was in bad shape. During my first few months looking for a job, I sent out countless resumes and only had one interview. Unfortunately, I was very unqualified for the job at the time. Then a woman I worked with at my part-time job told me about a reporter position opening up at the newspaper chain where her daughter worked. Though I’d never thought about being a reporter, I figured it couldn’t hurt to go on the interview. In addition to interview experience, the opportunity meant I was officially networking. All the job search materials I’d read stressed the importance of networking in finding a job.
A few days later, I was sitting down with John, one of the executive editors of the newspaper chain, hearing all the daunting details of being a “cub reporter.” Although it sounded intimidating, it was also exciting, and John didn’t seem deterred by the fact that I had no solid experience. He was happy with the few writing samples I’d brought to the interview and offered me the job on the spot. I thought about the opportunity over the weekend and on Monday I let John know I would take the job. There would be a learning curve, but I would also get to write every single day.
I was in full-on panic mode. Here I was on my first day as an inexperienced reporter having to cover an important story with little guidance. I was starting to regret my decision to take the job. What was I doing here? I wasn’t a journalism major. I didn’t have a “beat.” I didn’t even know all the rules about dealing with sources and off-the-record information.
The previous spring, I’d taken up my boss on his offer and stayed at my part-time job through the summer after college. He gave me more hours, so I was making more money, but I didn’t yet have the responsibility of a “real” job. I’d been an English major and wanted to be a writer, though I had no idea what kind of writer. I’d taken the summer to think about things and prepare for a fall job search.
By the time I began the search for my first full-time job, the job market was in bad shape. During my first few months looking for a job, I sent out countless resumes and only had one interview. Unfortunately, I was very unqualified for the job at the time. Then a woman I worked with at my part-time job told me about a reporter position opening up at the newspaper chain where her daughter worked. Though I’d never thought about being a reporter, I figured it couldn’t hurt to go on the interview. In addition to interview experience, the opportunity meant I was officially networking. All the job search materials I’d read stressed the importance of networking in finding a job.
A few days later, I was sitting down with John, one of the executive editors of the newspaper chain, hearing all the daunting details of being a “cub reporter.” Although it sounded intimidating, it was also exciting, and John didn’t seem deterred by the fact that I had no solid experience. He was happy with the few writing samples I’d brought to the interview and offered me the job on the spot. I thought about the opportunity over the weekend and on Monday I let John know I would take the job. There would be a learning curve, but I would also get to write every single day.
Answer: The narrator makes it clear from the beginning that on his first day as a reporter, he was panicking because he didn´t have any experience nor previous interest in journalism. The only reason he had to even go to an interview for that kind of job was the lack of opportunities in the job market at the time he started to search for his first full-time employment.
Explanation:
He had gone to the interview for a reporter position thinking it would be wise to gain interview experience as well as networking. He was surprised to get the job, but, as an English major, he accepted it as a possibility to write every day.
