A Parrot at the Interview

Sam Porter needed a new job. For three months, he applied for jobs all over the city, and finally one company called him back. A big travel company wanted to interview him by video on Monday morning at ten.

On Saturday, his sister Rita called him. "Sam, I need a favor. I have to go away for work until Tuesday, and my neighbor can't take care of Mango. Can he stay with you?"

Mango was Rita's parrot. He was green and yellow, and he loved to talk. Sam didn't really want a loud bird in his small apartment, but he loved his sister, so he said yes.

Mango knew about twenty words. He said "Hello!" to everyone, and every time he heard the doorbell, he shouted "Pizza!" Rita ordered a lot of pizza.

On Monday morning, Sam put on his best shirt. First, he moved Mango's cage into the bedroom and closed the door. Then he sat down at his desk and turned on his computer.

At ten o'clock, a woman with short gray hair and a friendly smile appeared on the screen. "Good morning, Mr. Porter. I'm Diane Walsh, the sales director. Thanks for joining us today."

"Thank you for having me," Sam said. He felt nervous, but the first questions were easy. He talked about his last job and about his trips to Mexico and Spain. Ms. Walsh took notes and nodded.

Then the doorbell rang. It was probably a package for a neighbor, so Sam didn't move. But from the bedroom, a loud voice shouted, "PIZZA! PIZZA! PIZZA!"

Sam's face turned red. Ms. Walsh stopped writing and looked up. "Mr. Porter, did you just order a pizza?"

"I'm so sorry," Sam said. "That's my sister's parrot. He's staying with me for a few days."

"A parrot?" Ms. Walsh smiled. "Can I see him?"

Sam couldn't believe it. He went to the bedroom and came back with the cage. Mango looked at the screen, turned his head to one side and said, "Hello! Pretty bird!"

Ms. Walsh laughed. Then she turned her laptop around. Across the room, on a shelf, there was a big gray parrot. "This is Oscar," she said. "I work from home on Mondays, so today he's my coworker. He knows fifty words, and most of them are about food."

For the next ten minutes, they didn't talk about sales at all. They talked about parrots: their food, their cages and the funny things they learn. Sam forgot to be nervous. Finally, Ms. Walsh looked at her watch.

"Mr. Porter, I need to talk to my team, but I really enjoyed our conversation. Something went wrong today, and you stayed calm and honest. In sales, that's important."

Two days later, Sam got an email. The job was his. He called Rita right away. "I got the job! And I think Mango helped."

"Mango?" Rita said. "How?"

Sam laughed. "It's a long story. I'm going to tell you everything over dinner tonight. And I'm buying the pizza."