I was filled with pride, starting my new job that morning. On the strength of my resume, along with some strong recommendations, I'd landed a great opportunity with a start-up operation within an established local company, working directly for a highly respected businessman. For a first job after graduating with my business degree, I couldn't have done much better!
I'd met my new boss only once before, during my interview, so I was eager to talk with him again that morning, and learn more about my new role. My understanding was that I'd be his go-to person to get things up and running on a new project, but that was vague, and I was eager to learn more of the day-to-day details.
I remembered thinking how surprised I was at his youthful appearance, knowing what I did of his extensive resume. He had to be in his mid-40s, but looked more like mid-30s, given his athletic physique. As I headed into that first day in the office, I remembered more about him, preparing for our meeting: he had a strong handshake, piercing blue eyes, and a warm voice.
"Yes, Amy," I heard him say through the door when I knocked, "I've been expecting you, please come in."
I glanced quickly at my watch, worried that I was late, then realized he'd only meant that he was expecting me for my first day of work. Yikes, was I nervous.
I opened the door to his office and entered, and finding him seated at his desk, studying his computer screen, I sat down across the desk from him, waiting for him to be able to give me some attention.
"So, Amy, welcome," he said, looking up after a few more moments, tossing his reading glasses aside, and his eyes meeting mine with a smile. "Glad to have you on board. I suppose you'd like to know more about what your new job will entail?"
"Yes, Mr. Collins, absolutely, I'm eager to get started."
"Oh, please, Amy, call me Jay."
"Oh, um, OK."
"So, I assume you've read the materials I e-mailed to you?"
"Yes, absolutely."
"Great. So, you understand the project, any questions?"
"Not really, just want to make sure I understand what my role will be."
"Great. Well, let me be completely honest with you. I see myself as the idea guy. I don't like to be bogged down in details. So therefore, I need someone to work at my side, attend meetings with me, keep track of what I've said I'll do and make sure I do it. I need someone to keep track of my calendar, make sure I'm prepared for whatever's coming up, keep me on task. Essentially, I need you to attend to all of the details to keep my life on track, so I can accomplish what I've promised to our partners on this project."
"I can do that!" I didn't actually have much real-world work experience, but I was confident I could handle this, inspired as I was by the impact a connection with Jay could have on my future career.
"If you can commit to serving my needs in this way, I guarantee you it'll be an exciting ride, and when you're ready to move on to bigger challenges of your own, I'll be able to open some important doors for you."
"That's wonderful, thank you. So, what's first?"
"Well, just a few more things we need to go over, and then there's an 11am meeting I'd like you to attend with me. I'll introduce you to some of the partners, and it would be great if you could take notes."
"No problem."
"So, just a few more things. I hope you won't mind doing some things for me that some people might consider to be, shall we say, beneath your level of education?"
"Um, like what?"
"Well, I know it might seem old-fashioned, but there will be times I'll ask you to bring me coffee, do some shopping for me, even pick up dry-cleaning. I realize you don't need a business degree to do these things, but I just don't have time to be worrying about trivial details like this, and I can't trust just anyone to get it right."
"Certainly, I understand."
"But please know, you're more than welcome to use my company account to pick up coffee for yourself when you get some for me, or do some of your own shopping when you're getting something I need. I wouldn't expect anything less - some perks should go along with responsibilities like yours, after all."
"Well, thank you, that's very generous." I had no other work experience to compare this to, but it certainly seemed like a reasonable arrangement to me!
"Your workspace will be just outside there," he said, pointing to the door to his office, "so that you can easily answer my phone and receive visitors. And if there's anything you need, don't hesitate to let the office manager know. She's under instructions to charge anything you request to my project's budget."
"This sounds wonderful, Jay, anything else I need to know?"
"That covers it, I think, Amy. Oh, but I should tell you what a glowing review I got when I called your old professor for a reference."
"Oh, really?" I'd listed Dr. Tompkins as a reference for the job, hoping that an academic reference might help to make up for my lack of real-world experience.
"Yes, you might not know, he and I go way back, met in grad school, actually!"