Who Do You Know?

 March and April were scattered with fun outings and events, along with the normal job searching duties, resume rewrites and attending a class on interviewing. I remain jobless, despite some solid leads and application or interview completions. (Sigh here.) I had another job interview last week. This job lead came from a friend you are familiar with; Derek.
 He is the Business Manger at a local Economic Development Council organization. He called me when the business wanted to hire a new; Front Desk Receptionist. He called me one evening with the news, and during his conversation, he said, "Claire, I told you I'd let you know if I hear of anything-so, I wanted to let you know." Then in a softer, friendlier tone he stated, "Claire, this is so beneath you. It's just a receptionist position and not as much money as you used to make, but it does have benefits." I smiled at his hidden compliment and said, "I haven't found anything better. I appreciate you letting me know. Besides, it would probably be fun and I know the company is growing and expanding programs." He told me where to find the posting, and I diligently rewrote my resume to target the posted duties and sent the job information to the directed email address. While I was on the site, I noticed they had a posting for a Program Assistant-so I revamped my resume again, and emailed it to the listed recipient. Derek called me over the weekend to schedule my interview for Wednesday. He chuckled during the conversation and explained that he is so far behind at work, he has to spend personal time catching up, and that is why he called me over the weekend. He said, "This is why I need an excellent person running the front desk. My workload is driving me crazy. I need help". I reminded him I'd be able to do that and after he agreed, we confirmed the appointment, and I shared with him I also applied for the other position. He thought that was great.
 Within a couple of days and much mental deliberation, I called one of my Toastmaster friends; George, to take him up on his invitation to call on him anytime I needed help, practicing for an interview. We scheduled the mock interview for Monday night with he and his wife. It went well, and it was extremely helpful to practice this scenario with a friend to receive feedback on my answers, mannerisms and such. His wife looked at my resume and at me, then said, "You are probably overqualified for this." I laughed and said, "Don't look at it that way, look at it as if I am extremely qualified." They both decided I should use that comeback if the same statement was used at the interview. George also recorded the mock interview with his cell phone and I learned a lot from watching myself; 1) I roll my eyes to the clouds too much when trying to think of an answer-I practiced maintaining direct eye contact-always! 2) I do not overuse hand gestures, which was a positive. 3) If asked about reasons for leaving last employment, he suggested I state I needed to recharge my batteries after such a long career with the same company. I looked at my savings and mapped out how I could manage until I was hired elsewhere. This practice session and video playback was very helpful, and I did utilize the knowledge at the interview, with Derek and another gal.
 Derek has contacted me a couple of times to say I did well and that I am still in the running for the position, however, the choice is not solely his. He stated he has discussed my skills and situation with his Director.
 Wouldn't it figure that after almost a year of this process for pounding out a new career path, it turns out to be who you know-not what you know?