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From:  Debra Johnson <debbiejo53142@y...>
Date:  Wed Apr 24, 2002  11:59 pm
Subject:  Re: [vocalist] Re: weird audition

Since I read anything that has Mercedes' name attached
to it and I download her advice frequently, I offer
these thoughts with some trepidation -- not as a
professional musician, but as a professional woman in
her late 50's who has held, and holds, professional
positions and has helped interview other hires for
several of the same.

(1) The position or "job", so to speak, is the
company's. It is the task of the applicant to the best
of his or her ability to help contribute as
successfully as he or she can to the part of the
company's mission that the job represents. If that job
happens to showcase the employee's talents, so much
the better ? but the task, from the company's point of
view, is to help the company to success, not the
applicant.

(2) Any company will have constraints in resources ?
be they human or material. Clever applicants find ways
to use or leverage existing resources to accomplish
the mission. Unless the company is expected to hire
the applicant's support chain along with the
applicant, the applicant would be expected to use the
resources the company supplies. really good employees
find ways to do so creatively.

And, since part of the skill set required of any good
job is the demonstrated ability to work with others,
it might just be the better part of valor to attempt
to work with them cheerfully from the beginning.

(3) It can be a sign of insecurity in an applicant to
act as if he or she knows the job better than the
people who need to fill the position. And while it is
quite possible that the applicant might know a great
deal about the job, an attitude that indicates
superiority to the job or to the people hiring for it
is often not very helpful to the applicant. Better get
the job first and then demonstrate the superiority and
receive the bouquets.

It is very possible that the production is run by
mediocre people with slipshod habits in an amateurish
way. It is her choice whether to participate or not ?
but I, personally hope she chooses to lay aside her
apprehensions for the moment and attempts the
audition. And, I hope if she chooses to audition or
take part in the production that someone at the
audition or someone on the production or someone
attending the performances will pay attention to her
talents and further her career in the ways we all hope
for.

I wish Mercedes all the success in the world.

Best

Deb. Johnson


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