A Note From Someone Who Noticed Too Late

I Caught the Stain Right Before Walking Into the Interview.

Fifteen minutes before one of the biggest interviews of my career, I looked down and saw it — that faint yellow ring already showing through my shirt. Not exactly the confidence boost I needed walking in the door.

I didn't have a backup shirt. I didn't have time to go home and change. What I did have was a small stain spray I'd thrown in my bag on a whim weeks earlier.

Sprayed it on in the car, gave it a few minutes, blotted it with a napkin. Not perfect, but enough that I walked in without thinking about it for the rest of the day.

Now it just lives in my bag. Not because I plan for disasters — just because apparently I need to.