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#English

一個朋友曾說過：「人生後悔的事常常不是做錯決定，而是沒做想做的事」。

儘管先前德國打工度假的時候有將所見所聞稍微記錄下來，但還是過於零散。因此我將試著寫下前往新加坡前後的想法和經歷，希望未來的我在回顧時能重溫當下的感受。

大約是3個月前，有個陌生人丟了一份JD (Job description)問我意願，當時我的工作步調還在我掌控之內，雖然前一次和獵頭的經驗不是很好(婉拒邀約→了解求職者需求→杳無音訊)，但聊過之後發現可以試試看就請她安排面試，這時才知道原來她是仲介。

(個人見解：我覺得仲介和獵頭是很不一樣的，仲介單純只是媒合工作，獵頭除了媒合工作以外，應該也對該產業的生態或求職者的能力具有敏感度)

 

關於面試：

1. 兩週後安排了第一次的線上面試，面試官(技術+人資)有3個新加坡人 + 1個美國大頭，並在一週後安排和新加坡大大頭的二次面試。面試過程出現蠻多典型的面試問答，Google搜尋interview questions就會出現一堆了，最主要都是想了解「你是怎樣的人」和「你過去的經驗如何」。
   
   
2. 比較驚訝的是，兩次面試以及後續新認識的大頭都很關心我有沒有辦法一個人在完全陌生的環境(新加坡)生活😁，以及驚艷我的英文能力。對比4年前我剛到柏林住宿時，我就被櫃台用很不耐煩的口氣說 "Ah!!! Your English is so......😫" (阿！你的英文實在是...)，害我之後都有一點陰影😂，看來有特別為了面試做準備真的有差。
   
   
3. 儘管網路上或有人跟我建議不要在履歷裡面寫打工度假經驗(我一位美國英文老師：「這會讓你看起來像是出去玩」)，但我還是寫進去了喔！(當然有包裝過)
   而且很高興可以在面試時暢談這個議題而面試官也很感興趣，畢竟德國經驗也是我的一部分。當你心中訂了一條準則是要你聽從朋友的建議，有時候別忘了第二條：忘了第一條準則吧！
   (Rule #1: Listen to what your friends have to say. Rule #2: Just forget Rule #1)
   
   
4. 或許是受到日式文化的影響，我們會不自覺的認為「我會在將來向你證明我的能力」，美國大頭D直截了當的跟我說：
   "You don't have to prove it to me, or you'll just do a job , not a career."
   (你不需要向我證明你自己，否則你只是在做一件工作，而不是當作一份事業)
   這句話讓我印象深刻。
   
   
5. 有個小插曲是，在二次面試後沒多久，突然收到仲介通知說公司有個內推的人選要面試，所以結果會再晚一點公布😱。新加坡公司要聘用外國人時，必須將職缺公布在公開平台，優先聘僱本國人，一段時間後確認沒有適合的人選才可招納外國人，而且每間公司可招聘外國人的名額有限，是個「新加坡優先」的政策。
   
   
6. 不到一個月的時間就收到offer了(說不定是我的感謝信發揮了作用)，而且還接到美國大頭D的越洋電話恭喜我(受寵若驚😱)。作為一個沒在國外求學過的土碩，唯一在國外上學的經驗是學德文XD，這樣的結果當然是很感動。
   
   
7. 後來我未來的老闆介紹另一個美國大頭R給我認識，未來可能會是我的直屬大頭，所以又約了一次線上會議聊天。另一個讓我印象深刻的點，他說：
   "If the manager always makes decisions, then you'll never fail."
   (如果都是主管在做決定，那你永遠都不會失敗)
   "If you make a decision and it fails, that's the failure for both of us, not just you."
   (如果你做了決定結果卻失敗了，這是你跟我的失敗，不是只有你失敗了)
   除此之外他還有其他相當創新的哲學，時間會證明他是不是個心口如一的人。

 

仲介收費分為向雇主收、向求職者收、或兩邊各半，以我的案例屬於第一者，因此理論上仲介和我的利益一致。密切的合作過程讓我覺得她是個沒有架子、可以信任的人(對於雇主公司、仲介業者、職缺當然也已做過調查)，而且當時工作上我已經焦頭爛額，所以就交由仲介去向公司喊價，也幫我爭取到比我預期更高的薪資跟福利。

即使仲介當初沒有額外爭取，我還是會接受，錢很重要但更重要的是，這個機會像是替我打開一扇窗，讓我能往外探到底外面有些什麼。人生有些moment會讓你無論如何都不想放棄這特別的機會，能在新奇的地方做有趣的事最好不過了😁

寫了這些不是為了炫耀(hopefully😝)，是希望揭開外商面試的神秘面紗，帶來討論和分享。公司招聘的過程往往只能找「當下」「最適合」的人選，也剛好有機運才會找上我。至於未來能待多久？是不是在新加坡長期發展？有太多事無法掌握，那不是我要去考量的。

 

開版首篇文長，下篇再來分享3個影響我心態的關鍵點～

 

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A friend of mine once said: "Most people regret what they haven't done, not the wrong decisions they've made."

Despite that I've made some notes and posted them on my FB during my journey in Germany, somehow I still feel something's missing. Knowing that I'll leave for Singapore in the near future, I decided to start a blog and take notes on some memorable events while I'm in Taiwan and after my arrival in Singapore, and hopefully reliving the adventurous old days a few years from now.

 

It was about 3 months ago, a stranger threw me a job description and asked my willingness to a job interview. My workloads were still under my control at that moment. Although my previous experience with a headhunter wasn't good (I declined the opportunity. She asked my preferences. Great! No more contacts afterward.), I accepted the invitation to an interview after having more understanding about the job. At that time, I realized she's an HR agent.

(Personal opinion: HR Agents are different from HeadHunters. An HH does similar work as an agent does and should be keen on both the trends of the industry and the capabilities of the candidates.)

 

About the Interview:

1. They arranged an online interview with 4 interviewers (3 Singaporeans + 1 American) two weeks later, and a second interview with the head of Singapore a week later. There were some typical interview questions that showed up, which you can simply find a lot on Google. The main purposes are trying to figure out "what kind of person you are" and "how good are you".
   
   
2. Surprisingly, the interviewers and a big head (known afterward) showed more concerns about my stay in a completely unfamiliar place (Singapore). (They asked if I'd been to Singapore before and I always answered "Yeah... I've been to Changi airport to take a transfer flight there...lol") They found my English command unexpectedly good. Compare it to the time when I first arrived in a hostel in Berlin, the counter grumbled with great impatience saying "Ah!!! Your English is so..." I might have been a bit traumatized by her words ever since (glass-hearted😂). 
   
   
3. Even though people on the internet and some of my friends suggested that NEVER PUT YOUR WORKING HOLIDAYS EXPERIENCE IN YOUR RESUME (an American teacher of mine: "It will make people feel that you were there just for fun!"), well... I'd not only written it in my resume but also had a pleasant conversation about it with the interviewers😂. After all, this experience is a part of myself. 
   (Rule #1: Listen to what your friends have to say. Rule #2: Just forget Rule #1)
   
   
4. I don't know how the mindset was affected (maybe by Japanese culture), but it's like we are used to thinking unconsciously that "I'll prove my ability to you". The American big head D told straight to me: "You don't have to prove it to me, or you'll just do a job, not a career."
   
   
5. An incident happened after the second interview. I was informed by my agent that the company had just an internal candidate and it was mandatory to have an interview, so the final decision would be made later. A Singaporean company has to post the vacancy on a public platform. Only after the company makes sure that no Singaporean fits the job can it recruit foreigners. And the quota for foreign workers is limited in each company. It's a typical "Singaporean first" policy.
   
   
6. I received the offer in a month (my thankyou email might have worked). And someday at night D gave me a welcome call (astonished😱). As a Taiwanese having never studied abroad (the only experience is going to a language school to learn German😁), I couldn't ask for more about the outcome!
   
   
7. My boss-to-be introduced me to another big head R. We arranged another online meeting. Things that impressed me in the meeting:
   "If the manager always makes decisions, then you'll never fail."

   "If you make a decision and it fails, that's the failure for both of us, not just you."
   He seems to be a good guy and I bet I'll have more interaction with him. He had some open-minded and creative philosophy and time will tell if what he does is aligned with what he says.

 

The agency might charge the employer, or the applicant, or both on broker fees. In my case, the agency charges the employer, so our interests shall be connected, theoretically. I'd also done some research on the companies and this job vacancy just to make sure they're real. My agent seems to be a trustworthy person and easy to approach after having intensive cooperation with her. I let her negotiate with the company about the salary by that time I'd had my hands full. She did have won me some benefits that are out of my expectations.

Whether I've got the benefits, I think I'd still accept the job. Money is important but most importantly, this opportunity opens a window where I can lean out and see what's out there. In some certain moments of life, you'll shout out "That's it!" or you find an opportunity you're dying for and there's no way you'll let it go. Dealing with new things in a completely new place sounds terrific to me.😁

I don't intend to show off or something by writing these (probably not😏). I would like to unveil the mysteries of working abroad since most people rarely have a chance to it and possibly arouse some discussion. Obviously there're people more intelligent out there, but the purpose of recruitment is to find "the most suitable" candidate "at the moment", and I've got luck. As for residing in Singapore a long time or even the whole life, I say, there're too many things out of my control, so that's the last thing I should worry about.😉