By Joshua Ogden-Davis

Cynthia： Good morning， Jackson！ Youre up early.

Jackson： ①The early bird gets the worm， Cynthia！ But apparently， you know that， as well. Why are you up at this hour？

Cynthia： Im going to a job interview.

Jackson： Ah， no wonder youre looking so 1）snazzy. ②The clothes make the man， they say！

Cynthia： Or woman.

Jackson： Ah， right. But why did they 2）schedule your interview so early？

Cynthia： Oh， they didnt. Im going in without an appointment.

Jackson： Wait， what？ Youre 3）cold-calling a company and asking for an interview？

Cynthia： Thats right！ ③Ive been sending out my resume for a while， but since I havent heard back from anybody， Ive decided to take matters into my own hands.

Jackson： I didnt know you were such a 4）go-getter！

Cynthia： In this day and age， you have to be！ ④The job market is so 5）swamped with qualified 6）candidates， you have to do something to make yourself stand out of the crowd， find some way to show that youre serious about the job.

Jackson： Thats true， but are you sure this is a good idea？

Cynthia： ⑤Well， lets hash out some pros and cons. Why wouldnt it be a good idea？

Jackson： For one， companies usually have hiring systems in place. If you show up with no appointment， they might think you dont know how to work within a system.

Cynthia： Thats a good point. Its good to be a 7）maverick at times， but you also have to know how to be a team player.

Jackson： On top of that， they might mistake your 8）assertiveness for being 9）na？ve， as if you never thought that they might be too busy to drop what theyre doing and 10）humor you.

Cynthia： Also a good point. If Im too eager， I might come off as inexperienced.

Jackson： Exactly. Now that weve talked it out， Im not sure that this is a good idea at all.

Cynthia： ⑥Not so fast. All of those obstacles can be overcome.

Jackson： You already have answers ready and waiting， eh？⑦OK， then， convince me that youre on the right track.

Cynthia： The thing to remember is to be 11）courteous， professional， and patient. If they say that they dont have time to see you， be respectful and ask when you can come back.

Jackson： Thats a good way to strike a balance between being assertive and understanding， I suppose.

Cynthia： Exactly. Cold-calling shows that youre willing to face challenges 12）head-on， but being courteous and patient shows that you can also be a team player.

Jackson： Indeed. But I imagine lots of companies would still be pretty put off by someone just showing up out of the blue， no matter how courteous he is.

Cynthia： Of course. It wont work every time， but then again， I dont need every company to like it. I only need one job， after all.

Jackson： Wait， you mean youre going to more than one company？ How many are you going to today？

Cynthia： Ive planned three in the morning， then four more in the afternoon.

Jackson： Wow， you really are playing the field！

Cynthia： The more chances I take， the better chance I have of success！

Jackson： One thing I dont understand， though. Why not just call ahead of time and let them know you plan on coming？

Cynthia： Theres a higher chance of getting rejected over the phone， I think. But thats not the real reason why Im not calling ahead.

Jackson： Oh？ Then what is？

Cynthia： My phone is broken！

辛西娅：早上好，杰克逊！你起得真早！

杰克逊：早起的鸟儿有虫吃，辛西娅！但是很明显，你也懂得这个道理。你干嘛这么早就起床了？

辛西娅：我要去面试。

杰克逊：啊，怪不得你今天如此盛装打扮。人们都说：男人靠衣装。

辛西娅：女人也是。

杰克逊：啊，对。但是他们为什么把你的面试安排得那么早呢？

辛西娅：噢，他们没有。我没有预约就去面试。

杰克逊：等等，什么？你不请自来地去一家公司参加面试？

辛西娅：没错！我投了简历好长一段时间了，但是由于没有接到任何人的回复，我决定自己主动出击。

杰克逊：我过去不知道你是个那么能干的人！

辛西娅：在今时今日，你必须这样！求职市场到处都是合格的候选人，你必须做点事让自己从人群中脱颖而出，找到方法来显示你对这份工作的重视。

杰克逊：这是对的，但是你确定这是个好想法？

辛西娅：好吧，让我们讨论下这样做的利弊。为什么这不是个好主意呢？

杰克逊：其中一点，公司通常都有固定的招聘制度。如果你没有预约就去面试，他们会认为你不知道怎么在制度下工作。

辛西娅：这点说得好。有时持不同观点是好的，但是你必须知道如何进行团队合作。

杰克逊：另外，他们会把你的自信误认为幼稚，就像你从来不认为他们会放下手中正忙着的事情来迁就你（看你的简历）一样。

辛西娅：这点也说得好。如果我太急进，可能会被认为没有经验。

杰克逊：正确。现在我们讨论完了，我不确定这是个好主意。

辛西娅：别这么早下定论。……