The Wind May Rise, but I Refuse to Give Up
A while back I posted on Xiaohongshu (China’s Instagram-meets-Pinterest), basically saying:
I got a new job, quit my old one. Then 2 days before my start date, the new company rescinded my offer. And I can’t go back to my old company. Who’s having a worse day — you or me?
Over 400 likes and 46 comments. The most ridiculous one was someone saying “I read that as ‘I divorced my husband.’”
Seems like people find this kind of story pretty relatable. So here’s the full version.
How It Started
I was working at Robinhood. One day a recruiter reached out, saying a startup called Scorability was hiring a Mobile Engineer, and asked if I was interested.
We chatted, it sounded good, the interviews went smoothly, and I got the offer.
February 3rd — I received the official offer.
During my conversations with the recruiter, I made three things crystal clear:
- I’m a Canadian citizen
- I don’t need H1B sponsorship to work in the US
- I need a TN visa, but I can handle it myself — the company doesn’t need to do anything
She said no problem.
Signed, Resigned, All in One Go
February 6th — both sides signed via DocuSign.
It happened to be a Friday. I submitted my resignation to Robinhood that same day.
In the US, you typically give two weeks’ notice, so I followed standard procedure. Everything felt perfectly arranged — offer signed, resignation submitted, just waiting to start at the new company.
2 Days Before Start Date — Offer Gone
February 19th — two days before my start date.
I reached out to Scorability myself to confirm some onboarding details and mentioned: I’m a Canadian citizen, here’s my passport info.
And then — the offer was rescinded.
What Actually Happened
I pieced it together later. When the recruiter communicated with Scorability, she only said “he doesn’t need H1B sponsorship.”
She never mentioned I was a Canadian citizen.
In other words, Scorability assumed the entire time that I was a US citizen or green card holder. When I revealed my actual status right before the start date, they backed out.
The ironic part? The TN visa is exclusively for Canadian citizens. The application process is extremely straightforward — I could handle it entirely on my own, and the company wouldn’t need to lift a finger. But they didn’t care about any of that. They just rescinded the offer.
Stranded on Both Sides
Robinhood — resignation process was already complete. No going back.
Scorability — offer was gone.
Just like that, I went from having a stable job to being unemployed. The whole thing took less than three weeks.
The Wind May Rise, but I Refuse to Give Up
Honestly, I was stunned for a moment when I got the news. But after the shock wore off, I thought — well, this is life. Who hasn’t dealt with a few curveballs?
What doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger. It sounds like a cliché, but only people who’ve actually lived through it know — it’s not a cliché, it’s just the truth.
Nobody’s life is smooth sailing. What matters isn’t how hard you fall — it’s how you get back up.
This experience? Just a life lesson with a steep tuition fee. But I’ll remember it well.