Conclave: Mock Interviews and Mario Kart
I can’t believe Student Conclave is next week! If you didn’t get a chance to be one of the more than 500 students to register online, you can still attend Conclave and register on-site in Baltimore.
Recently while on vacation, my husband and I rented a car and when we were asked if we wanted to upgrade the vehicle gratis we said sure, why not. Then we walked outside of the rental office and saw a huge Mercury Grand Marquis sitting in the parking lot. Basically it’s a car that is also a boat and a tank. It’s huge. And when it was my turn to drive I noticed that I was having trouble staying within the lines on off ramps (Mini Coopers handle curves a little bit better).
I told my husband that if we were playing Mario Kart, I’d be losing some serious points for not staying in the lines, which had me thinking about the fun times of being a kid and playing Mario Kart on Super Nintendo and having to dodge those slippery banana peels, flying mushrooms, and staying within the lines so as to not fall off the course completely like on the rainbow course. Years of playing Mario Kart prepared me for the moment when I had to drive a Mercury Grand Marquis. It was much like driving Donkey Kong's car, and I did really well after only a few minutes of getting used to navigating what basically is an aircraft carrier.
And no, this is not a post about Wii-hab, instead I wanted to use this Mario Kart Grand Marquis metaphor to encourage you to take advantage of the mock interview sessions on Friday, November 20 at Conclave. Hear me out. A mock interview is pretty much like playing a video game. You get all the benefits of actually practicing your interviewing skills, without the headaches, sweaty palms, and nervous chatter of what could be the real deal. You can try out things that might work, you can see what things most definitely don’t work, and most importantly you can get the experience and confidence you need to conquer your first real job interview.
So, if you’re one of the 500+ students already registered, you can sign up to reserve a spot during the Mock Interview and Resume Critique session (Friday Nov. 20 from 5-6:30). The session is first come, first serve, so you will need to act quickly. Send your name, school, whether you are an OT or OTA student, and e-mail address to studentconclave @ aota.org.
