I left the amazing people of Kazan, saddened, but knowing that I'd soon return. We spent three incredible days in St. Petersburg, exploring the city with our new and improved Russian. We performed a musical of sorts for the State Dept. people. I played guitar. There was a lavish party on the beach outside the Peter and Paul fortress, followed by a sombre boat-ride, three hours of sleep, final goodbye's and the day-and-a-half trip home. In short, the experience was more than I ever expected. They were so, so good to us. That all being said, it was good to be home. I missed my fiance', family and friends.
Admittedly, I was nervous about being back in Chicago. I basically had no money, no job, and I came back to a United States where the economy was plummeting, job prospects were dim and friends were being laid off. As you might expect, the idea that I'd immediately find and begin my typical 9-5 (something I've always been adamantly opposed to) was not looking good. I spent weeks on job search sites, trying to network with people and get that ever so important "in", but nothing seemed to be working out. I was growing more and more frustrated with the whole process and by the end of it all, was willing to do just about anything for a few dollars. I was applying at bars, furniture moving companies, dog-walking, garage-cleaning...anything. What's worse is that I really started to question the choices I had made in terms of schooling. Now that I was in a tough job market, would my skills really set me apart, or just take me off the list completely. What does one actually do with the ability to speak a couple exotic languages and with the knowledge that a master of arts in comparative linguistics actually brings. After a few more weeks, when I was really approaching the freak-out point fast, I received a call back. Actually no, it was an email.
Earlier that day (early September), I responded to a Craigslist ad requesting warehouse workers for a small Russian ebay company in Northbrook (a northern suburb of Chicago). The gentleman, Andrej, requested that I call him. Actually, I believe his exact words were, "Call me. Andrej." I called him and immediately started in with Russian. He asked me my name and chuckled a bit when I said Sam. He says, "No, what's your real name? Semyon?" I explained to him that I did not have a Russian name because, in fact, I was not Russian. I was an American who had simply studied Russian enough to converse in it. There was a long silence, a long awkward silence. I don't think he thought I was telling him the truth. He immediately began asking me all of these questions and complimenting me on my Russian, which is, in my experience, the typical reaction from a native speaker. He told me to come in a few days later for an interview. I believe he actually mentioned something along the lines, "I've got to see this to believe it." I went in for the interview and everything was fine. I don't know if management was more surprised that I was a Russian speaking American who was willing to work 8 hours a day in a Russian-only environment, or that I was willing to do all of those things for the incredible rate of 8 dollars per hour. Either way, the pay aside, I knew that I could be sitting at home worrying about working for the time-being, or I could be working, improving my Russian, and continuing my search for something a bit more lucrative. I started the next week.
It was great. I had a lot of fun really getting to know those that I worked with. Essentially, I checked cellphones for a number of common problems in the hope that they might be refurbished, repackaged and resold. The work itself was mind-numbingly boring, but that was nothing a steady stream of house-beats live from Moscow, the occasional vodka shot, a new onslaught of tea, and lively conversations about guns, sex, money, drugs, music, religion, banyas, and the "old country" couldn't help to livin up. We had a really good time. Eventually, I was moved to the actual phone room and then placed into the "shipping" role. I felt like I was actually learning something, with the added benefit of learning the inns and outs of shipping in Russian. Looking back, I left with a new set of Russian friends and technical vocabulary. I'm happy that those I've encountered in Chicago's Russian community have been so welcoming and hospitable to me. But this really was no surprise. Russians, stereotypes aside, are some of the warmest, most hospitable people in the world once the initial introductions are made and a sense of trust is established. So, how does one go from working in the suburbs in a warehouse with a bunch of Russians for 8 dollars an hour to the 26th floor of the AON building? Well, it's kind of a long story.
Way back when, even before I started working for the Russians, I received a tip that a company called Thoughtworks, headquartered here in Chicago, had an opening in their legal department, more specifically in immigration. I was interested in positions like this. I had experience in processing visas, had done work with the State Dept. and had already worked with international delegations coming in and out of Chicago. My cousin in law was able to pass my resume along to a contact who was actually interning in the department at the time. They called me. Said they were interested. I did two phone interviews and eventually was called in for in-person interviews. The process, even then, was intensive. Aside from 4-5 in-person interviews, I had to do a number of assessments. These were personality tests, logic tests, and even a quick IQ test. Like I said, intensive. The company itself is a global IT consultancy. Basically, teams of consultants are sent out to clients all over the world and are given the task of solving problems and developing tools to solve problems. That's a very simple explanation, but in essence, it's what goes on. That all being said, I did not get the job. Not cool. It actually really sucked. I was thinking that Thoughtworks would be a great company to work for. Everyone I met was very, very intelligent, passionate about their work, opinionated, dedicated, ready to learn and wanted to see the world. I thought, "Man, it's not a typical 9-5. And I don't want a typical 9-5." Nonetheless, didn't get it. I did, however, receive an email after my interviews from someone stating that although I did not receive the initial position I was applying for in immigration, people liked me and an attempt was being made to find something for me. I thought, "Well, that's better than nothin'"...
Days, weeks, and even months passed and I had still not heard anything. I wrote a couple polite emails stating that I was still interested in a position with ThoughtWorks, but received no replies. I continued my work at the warehouse, while Andrea and I began to discuss other options. I began to search for jobs out of state and abroad. We did a lot of research on teaching opportunities in China, Japan, Russia, etc. All hope was not lost, but the whole situation was starting to wear on us. Thank God we had parents and grandparents there to help. Much longer and we would have literally been screwed. Andrea and I have always wanted to go abroad together, at least for a year or two before we begin our family. I realized that if I was going to make this happen, I was going to have to take a much more proactive role. I had all but stopped considering ThoughtWorks as a viable option and had basically moved on. That is, until early December when I received an email from recruiting. In short, they actually were still interested in me and wanted me to go through the interview process again. Only this time, it was for a consulting / business analyst role. I was very excited. It took a lot to keep me from jumping up out of my chair. I told Andrea on the way home. She freaked out too.
I was a long way from an offer though. ThoughtWorks, despite the country's economic woes and thanks to good leadership, stepped-up performance globally, and good ol' hard work, had just had one of its best years ever. Recruiting was looking at me as part of a new initiative seeking out "aptitude hires". An aptitude hire is a person who doesn't necessarily have the typical IT or software development background or experience, but does have the skill to work into one of these roles. As a business analyst, I would be responsible for working with clients, determining their needs and then interpreting and translating these needs into language that is usable from a development standpoint. It's my job to build relationships with clients, but also with the tech team so that everyone has their needs met in a timely matter. In the end, I made it through another round of interviews and assessments. There were some crazy logic tests, but all along I felt like I was performing well. I met with a number of Thoughtworkers and was really impressed with everyone. I began to learn more and more about the consulting role. While there would be a lot of travel involved, I'd have my chance to see the world, work on challenging projects with a global community of developers and code-monkeys, and finally start to earn a little money. I always felt like I had a lot of really good skills, but had yet to find an industry outside of academia where I could put them all to use. I soon realized that with my background in linguistics, international experience and desire for something a-typical, the field of software development / consulting could actually be a really good fit, especially with a well-respected company like ThoughtWorks. Not to mention, the perks of working for Thoughtworks are crazy!
All in all, I was extended an offer. I am the first aptitude hire. I've heard that that title might be changed, because everyone hired has high level aptitude, but I figure I'll bask in the glory for a bit. Really, I'm just a junior-consultant who has a lot to learn in a short amount of time. It looks like I'll be doing a lot of shadowing these first few weeks. For the time being, I am a pro-active sponge. At least this is what I'm calling myself. I'm looking forward to challenging new career that will develop my skills and give me some new one's to play with. So far, so good. I found out yesterday that I'll be sent to India for 6 weeks in June. I can't say that I'm all that surprised. I've also been hearing how easy it is to get year-long projects in Australia, China, Brazil, etc. Looks like Andrea and I might get our chance after all. Oh, and don't think I've given up on my Russian. I've already met some Russian-speakers here. One American and two native speakers. Now, I've just got to convince them to let me open the Moscow office.
