Last Saturday I took Gregory (black foster greyhound) up to Burleson for a home visit. The couple had small children and wanted to make sure that the greyhound, which they have researched, was truly the right breed for them.

Shortly after we returned to Austin, I had an email from the family. They loved Gregory but felt he was too big at this time. I could have felt heartbroken, instead I saw a family that knew that while they keep looking for the right hound, their youngest would only get bigger. They absolutely loved Gregory. It was just the size. Gregory was gentle with their children, who were in turn very calm and gentle with him. So much so that Gregory followed them around while they showed him their toys. This “failure” to match Gregory with this family was a good thing. He won them over for the breed. That was the biggest accomplishment. And they won me over for a family who would be a good match for another hound. They’re even so patient to think that they could wait a while for the youngest to get bigger. Rumor has it that children grow, so I have high hopes.

Why does a story from four days ago resonate with me today? Job interview. A biggie. A 90-minute technical interview followed by 30-45 minutes of Meet da Peeps Q&A. If I bomb this totally or even just get a few scrapes of negative shrapnel, what I get out of it is success: I got an interview! No complaints there. I have technical interview experience. No complaints there, either. And if they give me feedback along with the “Thanks, but you’re not for us”, then skipper-do and whoo-hoo! I’m worried about me, but I’m not worried about them. They did not set off my jerk-radar.

So. Here I go. Not every failure is a bad thing. There’s no place like home. You’ll shoot your eye out. Wait. No. Not that last one.