Hiring Stories

Marshall Mosley

First night there, it's December, and I'm like, it's California, it's December (1983), it's 75 degrees. Yeah. So I went to the hot tub, the apartment had a hot tub, and sat in the hot tub, and this woman comes and sits in the hot tub, and she's mid to late-40s. And we're chatting, and she says, what are you doing? And I explain, I just arrived, and she said, so you're looking for work? And I said, yeah. And she goes, well, I'm an employment counselor. And I was like, oh, that's wonderful. She said, what can you do? And I explained, at my most recent job was in a warehouse driving a forklift. And she said, well, not 200 yards from here is this new company, Kaypro Computers.

And if you go in there the first day and ask to apply, they'll turn you down. Go in the second day, ask to apply, they'll turn you down. Go in the third day, they'll hire you. And it was like, I don't know why she knew this magic formula, but it was exactly as she said. And so I became what at Kaypro was called a material handler.
(Interview with Marshall Mosley)