Monday pulled up way too fast.
Now normally, CNA interviews be about five minutes.
They look at you.
You look at them.
They ask, “You got a license?”
You say yes.
Boom. Hired. Orientation tomorrow.
But THIS was different.
This was a Lead CNA position.
And listen… I know what a Lead CNA actually do.
They make the schedule.
They answer the on-call phone day and night.
They keep other CNAs in line.
They deal with call-outs, attitudes, and chaos before management even wake up.
But I wasn’t thinking about leadership though.
I was thinking about money.
That’s it.
That’s all.
Before I could even get out the bed, my phone started ringing.
Leon called me.
Leon:
“So why Jorge always texting your phone? 🤨”
I squinted at my screen.
Me:
“Why you going through my phone??”
Leon:
“I wasn’t going through it. I just seen the name.”
Me:
“He texting to encourage me.”
Leon:
“Mhm. Encourage right into his bed.”
I rolled over.
“Boy PLEASE. That man got a wife, kids, a knee brace, and a lunchbox.” “Don’t nobody want him but her”
Leon:
“That’s how affairs start, through text.”
“Sound like you know from experience.”
He got quiet.
I stared at the ceiling.
“So let me get this straight…
I got an interview this morning
and you calling me about JORGE texting encouragement to my phone?”
Not “good luck.”
Not “I hope it go well.”
Just negativity about some shit I wasn’t even thinking about.
Leon:
“I’m just saying.”
Me:
“Well don’t say nothing else.”
And I hung up.
Shower?
Long.
Hair?
DONE-done.
Fresh box braids.
Keitha just got me right the other day.
So you know your girl was looking good good.
I walked past my mama and she did a whole double take.
“Where you going looking like that?”
“I got an interview.”
“For what?”
“A Lead CNA position.”
Her eyes lit up.
“Oooo that mean more money?”
“Potentially.”
“Well you better get it.”
“Better??”
She ignored that.
“Because this house could use it.”
THIS HOUSE GOT A LOT OF OPINIONS FOR SOMETHING I PAY FOR.
I grabbed my bag and left before she asked me to co-sign something.
I pulled up to my interview at some facility way across town.
New building.
New parking lot.
Too quiet.
I sat in my car like…
I know damn well I ain’t never led nobody nowhere.
At the same time I’m gathering my thoughts like;
What kinda questions they finna ask me?
What exactly y’all expect from me?
At 9:58 they called me back.
Three people sitting there:
Administrator.
DON.
HR.
All smiling.
I sat down like, let’s get this over with.
“Karen,” the administrator said, “you’ve been a CNA for a while. Why do you want this Lead CNA position?”
I leaned back.
“Honestly? Because I already be doing half of it — just without the title or the check.”
They blinked.
“I help train new people, calm residents down, fix problems on the floor, and keep stuff from going left. So when I seen the pay? I said yeah… I’ll try.”
HR pen started moving FAST.
The DON asked, “How would you describe your leadership style?”
“Direct,” I said.
“If somebody wrong, I tell them.
If somebody lazy, I notice.
And if something don’t make sense, I say it.”
They gave silence.
I added, “Professionally though.”
They nodded… slowly.
HR asked, “Tell us about a difficult situation you handled.”
I laughed before I could stop myself.
“Y’all want the short list or the director’s cut?”
They said short.
“Ok”, I said.
“One of my residents hated baths. HATE ‘em.
Instead of forcing her, I talked to her, earned her trust, and now she cooperate — still mad, but cooperative.”
The DON smiled.
“And what did you learn from that?”
“That patience matter…
and also knowing when to walk away so you don’t get cussed out.”
HR cleared her throat.
Then came the question that got me fired before I even got hired.
“How do you handle conflict with coworkers?”
I said, “Depends.”
“On what?”
“If they talking TO me or AT me.”
The room went quiet.
“I don’t argue,” I continued.
“But I also don’t bow down.
We adults. We can speak regular.”
The administrator leaned forward.
“So how do you take correction?”
“Good,” I said.
“As long as it make sense.”
And right there…
I knew.
I lost that job.
They wrapped it up real polite.
“Thank you for coming in. We’ll let you know what we decide by the end of the week.”
Soon as I got to the parking lot I got an email, saying;
We’ve decided to move forward with another candidate…
I laughed.
Damn, that was quick
But I wasn’t tripping
Because honestly?
That job wasn’t ready for ME.
Later at Petals, Mr. Allen looked at me and said,
“You ever think about being somebody boss?”
“I tried.”
“And?”
“They said I was too much.”
He nodded.
“That checks out.”
When I got home, my mama asked,
“So how the interview go?”
“I didn’t get it.”
“Why?”
“Because I tell the truth too fast.”
She smirked.
“Mmm. That sound like you.”
And went back to watching TV.
No comfort.
And no encouragement.
That night I laid in bed thinking…
Maybe leadership ain’t about titles.
Maybe it’s about surviving every shift without snapping.
And honestly?
I needed a little more self work.
And Petals was the perfect place to do that.
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