THE FLIGHT OF AN EGO

I had previously written that my store was going out of business and I was in the process of being granted interviews by various prospective employers. One of these would be with a gentleman from Lincoln, Nebraska. I knew little about the retail picture in that city but an interview was not to be over looked so I presented myself at the appointed time at his hotel in New York City. He greeted me saying, "Mr. Winspear I have nothing to offer you but I agreed to this time so that possibly the interview experience might be of some future value". I smiled and said, "I am pleased to meet with you". We went into his suite and sitting on opposite couches began to talk. We spent well over an hour in which he asked questions about my retail buying philosophies, my knowledge of the present menswear market and my other thoughts of things in general. It was an easy, informal discussion with me doing a lot of the talking. As I was departing he asked me to give him some references of manufacturers with whom I was acquainted. I mentioned three or four, including Munsingwear--my major underwear supplier at the store for which I had worked prior to its demise.

I returned to my hotel and hurried through my entry hearing my phone ringing. It was the office of Munsingwear and an acquaintance of mine, again from my previous store, stated, "Jim that's a wonderful job you are being offered by ....", and he named the person with whom I had just interviewed. I replied "What job? I wasn't offered a job". My friend Curt, then went on to say, "When I took the call at the office a Bob Gold told me he was the president of a company in Lincoln and he had just finished speaking with a Mr. Winspear. How well did I know Jim"? Curt replied, I told him I had known you for several years and that you were a man of integrity and a hard, productive worker. At this point he went on to tell me Mr. Gold is planning on hiring you as his administrative assistant to assist him in running his store. Curt concluded by congratulating me on my new position. I hung up rather confused because there had not been one indication of any opportunity in his business.

While mulling this over the phone rang again and a voice said, "Jim this is Bob Gold and I would like to offer you a position in my company as my personal assistant. Please give this some priority in your other interviews as I am very serious"! I was a bit numb at this point but he further stated he was headed for the Cayman Islands but would contact me immediately on his return to conclude his offer with the minor details, such as moving my family, salary and other inconsequentials.

I was still numb and wondered how all this had come about when I finally realized that I, Jim Winspear, had taken a guy who said he had nothing to offer me to a point that he now wanted me to assist him in managing his company. And that's when my ego soared to a height never before imagined. I thought to myself, "Damn!! Jim, you are good"!! Well, after bathing myself in accolades and expressions of wonder, I came to earth and knew I would be on pins and needles waiting to hear the conclusion he would present to me the following week. To return to my normal posture of allowing me to refer to myself as "Mr. Wonderful", the following week I did receive a phone call from him and I became rather deflated when he told me he had to take back his offer. It appeared he was the president, but his father was the chairman and had sold the store while he was on vacation. Weird? Outlandish? Unreal? Yes, all of the above. And so I never went to Lincoln and I never was to be an assistant to the president. But they can't take away the time I always remembered as my flight to that incredible high I never before thought to be attainable. I had talked him into it!!!