I ain’t worried ’bout nothin’
I ain’t wearin’ na-nada
I’m sittin’ pretty, impatient
But I know you gotta put in them hoursFifth Harmony (Song: Work from Home)
If by the end of this blog, I am declared as “the dumb one”, I won’t take it. I’m serious (laughing emojis). Now, like all normal people I was out looking for a job on LinkedIn. Because of the convenience I usually apply for work from home jobs (a little cash never hurts anyone). I do all this without telling my parents because they hit me with their unrealistic expectations. “Beta apply for Times of India or Hindustan times.” To this I replied “Ya, I wish they would accept a newbie writer who did her masters in Biotechnology and has no idea how all of this will work out!” So this time was no different, I didn’t tell them that I was applying for the role of a content writer.
The next day I get a call from an HR in the afternoon. Let’s call him Mr. Y. He said that I had to come for an interview. There was a vacancy at Samsung for the role of a content writer. The moment he said Samsung, my antennas went up and I was INTERESTED. I had already started visualizing the office, the reputation I would have with my first job being at Samsung, the clothes I would wear when I would visit the office occasionally, the things I could do with the salary, etc. A classic overthinker, I know (laughing emojis). So much so that I couldn’t believe he was telling the truth. I texted him again to reconfirm and he giggled and said yes.
This is what I was promised!
Mr. Y asked me to appear for an interview, the day after he called. I had to reach Karol Bagh by 11 AM. Now at that time, I wasn’t skeptical about the fact that the Samsung office he told me was in Noida but the interview was being held in Karol Bagh. This was because a few days ago my dad had told me that companies hire through placement agencies too. So I thought this was an agency too. On the day of the interview, I got up and left without telling anyone about it. I had a feeling that I would clear the interview and “SURPRISE” everyone with the job confirmed. Little did I know that nothing would go the way I expected it to.
I reached the location of the interview ahead of time. In front of me was an old and musty building. Ignoring that I went up to the 2nd floor where the interview was supposed to take place. Mr. Y was standing there to greet me. Surprisingly he turned out to be a very sweet and cooperative guy. He made me comfortable and told me all the details about the interview. While I was waiting for my turn, I analyzed the place. It was sketchy and compact with 4-5 people shouting names of the candidates. Finally after an hour I was called. The lady who was taking my interview started asking me basic questions and I answered her and showed her my work.
This is what I got!
After maxxx 5 minutes, she pulled out a paper and started explaining about a “TRAINING” that all candidates had to go through before they start with the job. This training was going to last 2 months where the candidate would also be paid. Everything seemed too good to be true. And then she said it. “You have to pay Rs. 3000 to save a seat in this training. This amount will be refundable after 45 days of you attending the training.” That is where I lost it and started questioning. A lot of people around me had told me stories of how they had been scammed by such people. I told her that before I pay you I need to talk to my parents. She agreed and I went outside and called my mom.
Now if you remember, all of this was supposed to be a surprise for her. The moment I called her, her anger came at me through the phone. She was so upset that I went out without telling anyone. This parental concern was fair TBH. Then I told her the entire story. She was skeptical too so she called my dad and asked for his advice. My dad refused to pay the money as any sane person would. But somehow I felt the good intention of Mr. Y.
I don’t know if I was oblivious or trusting my gut too much!
I had a feeling that this would not end in betrayal, so I paid the 3k and went home with an unprofessional confirmation paper. I knew the worst was yet to come. My conversation with my mom went fine because we both agreed to the fact that we had to take a risk. We won’t be able to back out of opportunities if we keep being so cautious. But as soon as my dad came home, the levels of my anxiety rose. My mom told him the gist of what had happened and he completely lost his calm. I sat down beside him, scared as shit, to hear all that he had to say. The first 10-15 minutes I got scolded on my stupidity of paying someone to get a job. The rest of the time was spent on bashing Mr. Y.
Yup, my dad instantly called Mr. Y and the first thing he said was “I’m standing in front of the police station and I am ready to file an F.I.R. How could you take money from a child (that’s me) to give her a job?” This went on for a few minutes. Then suddenly he started to calm down and the call ended with a slight smile. Mr. Y had apparently convinced him that he wasn’t a fraud and if my dad didn’t trust him, we could get our money back anytime (I heard him say that he is a Punjabi too– What a brilliant tactic).
I shouldn’t explain this, it will be disrespectful (laughing emojis)
The training was supposed to start a few days after this interview but it was postponed. A few days later Mr. Y called and told me that I had to go to a firm and attend an introductory session. Coincidentally that firm was near my dad’s office. So I went there with my dad. I was given an I-card and had to sit along with the other candidates until my turn. After waiting for more than an hour, I was called.
The person there asked me about the post I had applied for and told him that Mr. Y had referred me to another person, Mr. A. This person who was initially taking the interview said, “We don’t have an opening for a content writer right now but I can offer you a job of a sales analyst”. He went on to explain the package, but I just asked him to call Mr. A.
This is where I was called for the so-called interview!
After a while Mr. A came and without even sitting down for a second he said “I have talked to Mr. Y and we don’t have an opening right now.” As soon as I started telling him that I had been promised a training here for content writing, he interrupted and said “I’ve told Mr. Y everything. You go and talk to him.” And he left. I was furious. So I left the building and called Mr. Y to ask how he could even set me up for a job when an opening wasn’t even available. I shouted at him for a few minutes and he said “Give me some time and I’ll get back to you with a new opening.”
I told all this to my parents and as you know their reaction was nothing less than the previous one! They were extremely angry at how these people wasted our time and effort. I totally agreed with them. The day passed and even till the afternoon of the next day, I received no calls from Mr. Y. That was enough for me to lose my patience. I texted him and said please transfer the 3k back to my account and I didn’t want his assistance anymore. He agreed. This was followed by a call from my dad to him with an underlying threatening tone.
Me to Mr. Y every few days
For a few days, I texted and reminded him continuously about the refund. And he has since then been stuck on his story of refund after 45 days. It’s the 26th day today and I’m waiting. This was the story my friend, on how I burned 3k by applying to a job on Linked in. I am holding onto my dear life for this man to return my money, coz I really trust his intention. He does seem to be a really good person (sob emojis). With all my faith and hope I have my fingers crossed. Coz if this money doesn’t come back, a “Surprise” by me won’t ever be accepted in my house (laughing emojis).
Journal time: Actually today I want you to tell me in the comments an interesting story like this. Have you ever been scammed? Have you ever been robbed? Have you ever gotten a scar this deep (oops went too deep, didn’t I)? Just let me know, coz I need to laugh to forget this pain.
Also if you want to know read my story time of being a CHIEF GUEST at a Science exhibition (smirk emojis), click HERE to read about my experience.
Until next time, Adios Amigos.
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