30 Times Folks Realized They Didn’t Want To Get The Job While They Were Being Interviewed For The Position, As Shared Online
Employment – love it or loathe it, you're never getting away from it. Though the process has been around for thousands of years, our society still fails to make the conditions comfortable. Many organizations are the victims of toxic cultures; microaggressive managers, overly competitive, and, at times, backstabbing colleagues – basically all the things that make your working hours practically unbearable.
Moreover, the job search itself can also be pretty unpleasant. For instance, when you're attending an interview for a position, it's not uncommon to feel like you're being interrogated. Most of us tend to forget that the whole point of employment lies within a service exchange, meaning that both parties are equally important.
"What happened during an interview that immediately made you realize you wouldn’t take the job no matter how much they offered you?" – this online user took it to one of the most popular subreddits to find out about other people's experiences with job seeking. The question has managed to receive over 6.4K upvotes and 2.8K worth of stories.
More info: Reddit
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Stupid interview games. The d**kheads put me at a low table with a low chair, placed water in a carafe with an empty glass - all just out of reach so that I'd have to stand and reach for it, and then interviewed me as a panel of six employees sitting at a tall table with tall chairs. The questions were all more about my character then my skills. The whole thing was so obviously staged to make me feel uncomfortable.
An interview is a conversation, not an interrogation. Treat it like an interrogation, and I'm f*****g out. It's a clear sign of a toxic workplace - I've yet to see an exception to this rule.
When she started explaining that my 'role' in handling payments would involve depositing 'client payments' into my own personal account before transferring it to 'the company'.
I may be dumb, but I didn't fall off the turnip-truck yesterday.
Man, people aren't even trying to hide that stuff anymore. That's crazy.
"and what is the starting wage for this job?"
"Does it matter?"
BYE
WTF is wrong with American employers? The only reason ANYONE works is for the money!
I interviewed at a "no excuses" charter school. They gave a scenario where a student comes in to class and doesn't have his homework done. He says it's because he spent the previous night in the ER because his brother was shot. School policy is that unfinished homework is a mandatory detention.
I could not, in good conscience, answer that question the way they wanted.
I had a 3 hour interview where everyone on the interviewing team was friendly, enthusiastic and making constant comments about "you'd fit in well here", "you're a gamer? we are too - we could organize some LAN games", "you know XX? We really need someone with that experience".
Then the C-Levels came in. They feigned disinterest, had side conversations and comments to me were all in the line of "maybe we'll go with you, maybe we'll just outsource - why don't you convince us", "maybe we should just take you on a contract basis to start until you prove yourself", "maybe we'll just hire two juniors for that salary you're asking for" - while the team cringed.
I cut them off saying "it seems like you've got a great team here, but I'm not interested in working for hostile management". Then they completely changed their tune and were trying to backtrack. It was obviously their idea of "salary negotiation". They called several times afterward asking me to come back in, but I wasn't having it.
Surprise, the company was sold not long afterward and I hear they cleaned house.
The interview was uneventful, except for at the very end, when he asked: "Is there anything I need to know about you now, before you start, that would be a problem if it came out later?"
Me, entirely confused: "...Like what?"
"Oh, I don't know, if you have a criminal record for example, or if you're gay"
The only time I've heard of someone's private life being a justifiable interview question was for a top-secret clearance job. Even then, a candidate (who did get the clearance) told me, "They don't care if you're gay, as long as you're not hiding it." That level of intrusiveness was to prevent secrets being extorted out of someone keeping secrets of their own. To be fair, the secret service also checked candidates' finances - to ensure they weren't tempted to sell secrets to pay off debts.
Asked me if I would be willing to take a three month deferment while under a "Probationary" period. If after 3 months, they didn't like me, they'd let me go and give me a check for $0.10 on the dollar for every dollar/hr worked. If they kept me, I'd get a check for all my hours, plust a bonus of $500 for office supplies, but I could only buy out of their selected catalogue. I almost laughed in her face.
If this was done in the U.S., I’m pretty sure they’re breaking labor laws and should be reported to the Department of Labor!
The first 30 minutes of the interview was the woman who would have been my boss listing off her accomplishments. She was the director of a tiny museum in a small town where we had just moved to for my wife's job. It was uncomfortable, and the two board members present looked even more uncomfortable than I was.
I don't know if she was intimidated by me (I was more qualified to work there than she was), or if she just liked singing her own praise, but I immediately thought, "you couldn't pay me enough to work for you."
After her 30 minutes of self-congratulations, there was approximately half a minute of silence. Then I looked at the two board members and said, "Right. Were there any questions for me."
I was called that night and offered the position. I turned it down. One of the board members who was present called and asked if there was anything they could do to get me to come on, pay was negotiable within reason for a tiny museum in a tiny town. I was candid and said I would never be able to work for that director. Board member said, "believe me, I completely understand."
This was a grad school interview, so slightly different, but still fully convinced me to divert my focus to other programs and interviews completely. I was asked to prepare a five minute presentation that I would give via zoom at the start of the interview. About a minute into the presentation, the interviewer got up and walked away from her laptop before returning about a minute later. She missed 20% of my presentation.
I kept giving my presentation because there was also a student representative on the call, but the faculty interviewer neither apologized nor acknowledged leaving during my presentation. If I am not worth five minutes of your attention as a prospective student, then your program is not worth my tens of thousands of dollars. Lucky for me, I was accepted into my first choice program that same day.
They called me back for a… 5th interview… after that I had enough and told them it was getting a bit much and I’ll take a pass.
I had the interview -- then interviewer said I had to come back another day to take a polygraph, which would take 3 - 5 hours. I told them my freelance rate was $125 an hour. Lady was shocked. I said she was booking my time, that prevented me from working freelance or taking another job. My time was valuable, too. She said they never paid anyone to take the test. I didn't want the job at this point but I liked to see her uneasy. I was easily qualified but the peripherals were just stupid . . . acceptable business attire (I was not going to meet the public), a list of do’s and don’t’s. Evidently I was the only one who met a lot of these standards, but it didn’t mean I wanted to work there. She finally declined. Felt great to walk away before it became corporate oppression.
Three of four people who interviewed me spent the entire time talking about how bad the company was and why I really don't want the job. The fourth was the CEO. His story was different.
I didn't take the job.
"Let's start with a prayer"
F*****g nope.
Had a guy who after 2 weeks decided he wanted to leave no notice, okay cool. But before he left he wanted to talk to me about “Jesus”… I was the guy person who hired him, and told him buddy you’re barking up the wrong tree.
"Let's start with a prayer" OK, do you know which direction Mecca is from here ?
"Prayer? Well, okay...." I stand up and start unbuttoning my blouse. "What are you doing???!?" In panicked voice. "You said you wanted to pray. We pray skyclad." "Excuse me? What is skyclad?" "Naked. I'm Wiccan."
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thing is the Satanists are actually better people then the rest of the religions lol. guess cause they know it is all fake and don't have preconceptions that they are better then everyone else.
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It was their all too obvious way of doing religious discrimination in hiring. No prayer, no job.
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.
There are days where the last line of that is "the wisdom to hide the bodies."
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Next time do this: "Great idea! I'll start...Our pasta, who art in a colander, draining be your noodles..."
Miranda Gorail get over the fact that not everyone believes in your "god". And you sure aren't gonna be able to convert anyone if that's what you think you're doing
I knew someone who saw me praying (silently) before eating, but I just say a quick one because I don't really have a way with words. But they go "what'd you say, 'rub a dub dub, thanks for the grub?'"
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Me: Yes, let's! Oh I'm so happy to find a workplace I can pray. May I begin? Oh worldly Quob with your noodly appendages; fill my every orifice with thy noodliness and goodliness and may our parmesan always be fresh. Also, hail Satan as a sub class. Forever and ever, amen!
Oh my religion dictates that I get naked and fart at the direction of the north pole before prayers. Bear with me while I undress.
And with the mention of Jesus this thread to a hard left turn. Smh. Stay on topic please.
"All right, where is there a closet so I can pray in private as Jesus instructed?"
If my religion plays a role in whether or not I get the job, then later. And we'll see how you feel with a discrimination lawsuit.
I find it perfect. Just wake me up once you're done.
You have to be a sick degenerate atheist to even include this on the list you people are filth
I don't want to work with anybody that has a problem with prayers... I thought the left is supposed to be tolerant
Would depend if it's a prayer to Jesus or prayer to Satan like all the leftists
Thank you for this day O'Lord and thank you for this wonderful bounty that has been placed before us.
Oh boy, you invited the snarkies out, lol! I would have rolled with it to see what "prayer" meant then respectfully explained later that it made me uncomfortable...if it did.
Personally, I feel this is an honest statement of where that particular company is holding. I'd respect that you didn't have the same values, but I don't see why YOU are taking a hostile attitude to a position that differs with your own. It's a lot better than it came out during the interview process than at some later time after you were hired.
I was told the person I would be supporting as an Executive Assistant was on his third wife, he has 6 kids and that I should include the wife in certain decisions so that she doesn't feel insecure (being the 3rd wife and all). Ain't nobody got time for 3rd wife insecurity drama
Well I guess we all know who isn't getting invited to the 4th wedding.
I tried getting a job as a telemarketer once. The interviewer had me go into another room and call her, and she would pretend to be a person I'm trying to get money from. I started into the scrip, and she said, "Oh, but I'm just a poor college student with no money!"
Even though I knew she was just pretending, I still felt terrible. I knew that I could never do that work in real life. I told her that my coming there was a bad idea and I had to leave.
I can't sell water to a thirsty person in the Sahara. I would be like "how much do I have to pay you to take this water?"
This was during a phone screen rather than an interview. Time frame was 1997, during the height of the .com boom. I'm a programmer. The screener told me that they were a 'fast-paced company' and I asked for some clarification on what exactly that meant. After some evasive answers, I asked more directly what kind of hours people worked and found out that many people were working 60+ hours a week. I politely declined. The company did have an IPO in early 1999 that could have been lucrative for me, but I had an 18 month old daughter and another on the way - I was changing jobs to be able to spend more time with them, not less. I feel very good about that decision.
They took issue with me saying I wanted to watch my daughter grow up when they asked how much overtime I was willing to work.
Yes, it was sarcastic and I said it in a way I knew would torpedo the interview. I was insulted by the question. I'm not a slave.
Family first, family always. No amount of money will ever compensate you for missing your child take her 1st steps, or hear her 1st words.
My brother once had an interview for a cooking position at a local restaurant. He walked in and immediately ran into a female employee who was crying and yelling "F**k you John!"
John was the guy who interviewed him.
I was once in the lobby of a company waiting to be interviewed and I heard a man yelling (I assumed it was into a phone as I couldn't hear the other person), and he was calling someone stupid and ignorant and a bad choice and "maybe you just need to quit and sit at home and collect welfare." It was painful to listen to. After that call ended, a woman called my name and told me that the interviewer was ready for me and pointed me towards the office where the yelling had been. I said, "that's OK" and walked right out of there.
I interviewed for a job that was ostensibly a tech role: updating and maintaining the company’s website. Midway through this hourlong interview, they asked me if I’m comfortable with sales, because they said half the role would be cold-calling customers and there’d be minimum monthly sales targets to meet.
I am one of the most introverted people to ever introvert, so no, I would not be comfortable with that. I wouldn’t have even applied for the job if they’d been at all explicit in the listing about it having a significant sales/customer contact component.
They didn’t call me back, and I was relieved.
Why didn’t you just excuse yourself from the interview when you found out they hadn’t been forthcoming in their job posting?
One of the interview questions was would I be willing to immediately fire a single mother who depended on the company Heath insurance for her register being off 50 cents.
The doctor interviewing me asked what I feel I can improve upon. I said that I hoped to have better boundaries with my patients and my job. She immediately said, "Oh, I have NO boundaries. You can't have that when you own your own practice."
That was my red flag moment 🚩
I won't ever work for someone that cannot recognize the worth of having appropriate boundaries. It is a recipe for burnout.
Also sounds like the type of place where you need to be available 24/7, OR ELSE.
I went to interview for an entry level marketing position in the film industry. Two hours in the boss slipped in that I wouldn't be paid for the first few months while they trained me. It was a full time job. He also wanted me to start immediately that day using my personal laptop. I made up an excuse and left shortly after.
Don’t make excuses, tell them that what they’re doing is unacceptable and then gather your things and go!
After 2 panel interviews, was invited for a lunch with the team - I pretty much knew I had the job, the offer was just a formality by that point. Went to a random buffet restaurant at a forgettable hotel miles from the job site (which was really odd). Carpooled with the team and it was a very weird vibe during the ride and getting to the table - everyone was walking on eggshells around the manager, laughing too loudly at her jokes etc.
As soon as we sat down, the manager went up to get her food, and the rest of the team stayed at the table - when her phone started ringing (she'd left it on the table), they were panicking to be the first one to get it before the 2nd ring. They were so deferential (almost comically so), and so worried about what might happen if the manager got upset, I just couldn't see myself working there. I turned down the offer when it did come in the next day. Saw the job advertised again a few months later, wasn't surprised. Always trust your gut.
Wasn't the interview per se, but I caught a glimpse of a whiteboard in HR that had a bullet point list that seemed to be things to talk about to convince people to join the company, and one of the items was, "Not a cult."
1) He was looking for a “personal assistant” and I don’t even think he asked me my name, much less anything about qualifications. But he did sit next to me on the couch in his office ( the only seating other than his desk chair) and told me I looked perfect and to come back tomorrow morning to start right away. I felt lucky to get out of there without be assaulted, obviously never went back.
2) I was interviewing at a Dr’s office. The office manager was running late and another tech was showing me around. She was casually telling me “who sat here and who sat there” and how long they had worked there. I quickly realized, in a staff of about 16-20, EVERYONE, including the office manager I was about to meet, had been there less than 6 months. Nope! There’s something causing a lot of turnover and I don’t need to know what. I asked the tech to apologize for me and said I couldn’t wait, I had to pick my stepson up from soccer
I always ask about turnover rate in an interview. I'd the interview is put off by that question or avoids it, then I know I don't want to work there.
Asked if I had a family first interview. They don't want someone who has to leave on time to take care of kids or is interested in their own life
I talked to a company who offered 125k a year. On the next phone call I was told he had no right to offer that and dropped it a significant amount. So I hung up in the middle of my talking to them in a very calm voice.
It’s an old trick, they never believe you’ll hang up while you’re talking calmly.
Doubt it has any more or less impact than hanging up while emotional.
They interviewed me for the job they thought I should have, not the job I applied for.
This happened to me at my last two jobs (the second one starts Monday). In both cases they were interviewing me for a better position than I applied for because they thought that I had the experience and skills to do the, "next job up." It was a good thing for me both times, but I can imagine if they looked at your resume and interviewed you for the, "next job down" instead. That would not be good.
The amount of lies discovered during the interview itself. They tell you one thing online and in emails, only to see something different when you show up and go through the interview.
If there was already that much lying and falsehoods seen during the interview, no telling how much worse it actually can be. Could understand why the person left.
I hate this, this is a good sign of a bad job with illegal s**t happening.
Back when I was unemployed long term, I was applying for roles anywhere I could find really.
Got an interview for a retail position, not great but better than nothing.
First interview is a group one, I get through that fine.
Second interview is with the manager of the store.
He spends like 10 minutes telling me how s**t my resume is.
Retail interviews are weird. I've gone on a few for various types of stores and most of the time the managers seemed to be playing games, asking trick questions, or asking what you would do in a situation you've never experienced, implying they don't want to train. I have no clue what they want.
I'm a senior level programmer and the company was only offering two weeks vacation, non-negotiable. Lol....hell no.
That's more than most jobs in the US offer....IF they even offer a PTO package at all.
The CEO of the company asked us (yes, it was a group interview) to make a vow.
He said that every time we made a mistake, his accountants would calculate how much money our mistake cost the company. He asked for us to promise that any time this happened, we would voluntarily choose to pay the company for what they determined their lost revenue was.
Back in 2008, I saw a posting on Craigslist for a writing job. During the interview, it became clear to me that the actual job was to create and maintain hundreds of fake email accounts and post fake reviews for products I never used. I hadn’t heard of this concept before (hey it was 2008), so I just chuckled at one point and blurted out, “Isn’t that illegal though?” Thankfully I never heard back from them.
A no-harm-no-foul approach to child protection. I was interviewing for a teaching job, arrived at the school, said why I was there and before I even gave my name they waved me through, past the locked doors and into a waiting room. Nobody asked for my name, DBS or ID, and within 10 minutes I was on my own with 2 children being given a tour of the school which included parts of the grounds that were pretty far out of sight of the building. The interview date was posted on the job listing online so literally anyone with Internet access could have found out the school was hosting interviews that day. They hadn't taken a single step to check I wasn't a convicted child molester, kidnapper or murderer. When I expressed my concerns upon meeting actual members of leadership, they *then* asked my name and to see my DBS, then said 'Well, they should have checked, but it's all fine, isn't it?'
I left.
I made a joke about being multilingual but that Japanese wouldn’t be useful for this job. (There we’re near no Japanese speakers where the job was) the interviewer insisted I speak Japanese to this Chinese woman who was in the building to prove I could speak it. Then when I refused because the lady was CHINESE he laughed and said he knew I was lying. I walked out.
After the job interview they said they will call me in one week. A month has passed and I still didn't get a call so I decided to call them myself. They said "oh yea.. we remember you.. yea.. Um sorry about that we completely forgot to call you back. We already found someone (better)". Turns out That that someone then turned the job down and so they contacted me again to see if I was still interested after two months. I said "No thanks. I already got a job."
I was interviewing at a nationally known survey company back in the early '90s. I was a database administrator and they were planning on migrating their data from flat files to a database.
The last guy I interviewed with would have been my direct supervisor. One of the things he said in the interview was that he didn't think they really needed a database.
Database administrators were in short supply back then and you could essentially write your own ticket. There was no way I was going to waste time trying to work with someone who would fight the very concept of my job description.
I've know people like that. Back in the days of the PC revolution when the paper I worked at was increasing the computerization of their facilities, I had a supervisor who didn't want to have anything to do with computers. So much so, she left rather than try to learn anything.
I got through the interview and a day of training for a sales associate job in the hand bag department of a big department store and was shadowing an employee before I got in the schedule. It was going pretty well, I like everyone I met and the person I was shadowing (who would be my co-worker in the department) was very sweet and helpful……but then I met the only other worker in that department.
She was an older woman who, before I could even introduce myself, immediately starting criticizing what I was wearing, how I was standing, and how I was smiling. Apparently my eyes were blank, my smile was dull, and I looked “simple”. Then just walked away. I was a little too shocked by her abruptness to respond right away and just stood there.
The sweet coworker apologized up and down for the other one’s attitude, but the damage was done. I had a moment of pristine clarity and knew if I didn’t leave now I’d be stuck with that awful woman in a terrible job for years.
I called the HR office the following day to explain the situation and all they said was “if you quit over the phone you’ll be blacklisted and can never work at another DEPARTMENT STORE NAME again”. I told them I was perfectly comfortable with that and hung up.
It was a blessing in disguise really. About 2 months later I had a very nice, well paying office job and heard that department store was laying off half its work force.
I had a scheduled interview and was sent to wait upstairs at the “executive level”. The woman who was to interview me had been called and told I was coming. I took a seat in front of her office window. I sat there for 45 minutes past my interview time. I almost left again and again because the whole setup seemed odd. She made me sit there, but never even stuck her head out the door to say “I’m running a little behind” or something to that effect.
We did finally have the interview. I took the job because it was a really great job in a small poor county.
It was the worst job I’ve ever had, ever.
Turns out she was a complete nut. The entire staff was scared to death of her from the yard guys that didn’t even work in the building to every person that worked directly under her. No one would work upstairs on the “executive level” because of her! They all crammed themselves in offices on the first floor and left that level empty to get away from her. People would confide in me because I had to work closely with her. They’d tell me, when I get out of a conversation with her I feel like a crazy person! The woman who had my job before me had apparently quit after having sort of a mental breakdown.
She treated employees like dirt and was the single most paranoid person I’ve ever run across. She thought people were breaking into her house to steal jewelry (with no sign but the missing jewelry) and also thought her daughter was lying to her about what books she needed to take a teachers degree in college. She thought people were recording her phone calls as well. She refused to give employees training or instructions so no one could ever say that she told them to do something that later turned out to be wrong. I was sat in my own office on the “executive level” and told to search a word document for how to do the job. By the time I left I’d be sick on Sundays thinking a out going to work on Monday, and that’s no way to live. I don’t care how good the job is.
Lesson is, if your gut tells you something is off in the interview, run.
had me wait for 2 and a half hours while the guy that was supposed to interview me was in his office with a buddy and they were laughing (and probably drinking)
edit: i forgot to mention that the “interview” was a 2 minute conversation and it went like this:
-Have you worked in a similar position before?
me- no its my first job ive never worked anywhere
-Well we need people with experience so we cant hire you.
I disclosed my autism and the interviewer asked me if I was going to "run around screaming with my hands in the air" if I was having a bad day.
I would have been tempted to throw my hands in the air and run screaming from the interview, but that's just me.
It wasn't an interview but a "taster session" where I had to work there for 3 hours then make my decision.
A lot of the hardware didn't work, the guy training me was away and had to train me over a video call so whenever anything went wrong I was f****d and he would loudly sigh every time I needed something explaining. Because how dare someone need something explained to them on their first job
I'm disappointed in you. How dare you not know everything and not have 10yrs previous experience before even applying for the job. I mean really?
I went for a job interview and aced it, knew I would get it as soon as I left. A few days later I got called by the recruitment agency that advertised the job online and told me to go to their office to sign a contract. I head up there, and got this 10 page contract telling me that they will hold my pay and only pay me after they take a percentage every month. They may or may not also hold my pay for some other reason should they deem fit ie: if you were to take sick leave during probabtion etc etc. They said that the company Im working for will hand my cheque to them and then they will pay me.
I read it, said I need to go downstairs for a drink and never came back. They called me for months and I just ignored them. To think, that there were people out there who signed these dumb things.
The very first question was if I was comfortable with working long hours and often on the weekends.
Edit because this seemed to resonate; separate your rate from your worth, always. Work to live, don't live to work!
I work many weekends (fri & sat). And I’m off almost every Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday. I get a night and weekend differential. But, no I don’t work extra.
I was once told, "it is very important here to not let your morals get mixed up with doing good business". I took the job due to desperation and man was it a shady company. they started asking me to straight up lie to customers about their investments about 6 months in and I was fired when they realized I was telling my clients the truth. The company ended up going bankrupt and getting several lawsuits against them. I gladly helped the DA with the most recent one and am happy to say the company lost. f**k that company and their supposedly " good Christian" owners.
edit: just to give a further idea of how s**t this company was, they were partially an app development company and taking people's pretty large investments to do the apps while not actually having a team of people that made the apps. they were telling me to tell people it would be done soon when it hadn't even been started on yet. they were also an idea development company that took money from people with even the most hare-brained crazy ideas (one woman had a vibrating vest for instance. another had a cane with Christmas lights on it) and promised they could get them into a ton of big box stores while not actually having any contacts in those stores (and simultaneously claiming they were amazing ideas). the company's founder was in various reputable magazines as a "brilliant young up and coming CEO" and got the business featured on various "fastest growing and most promising start up" lists. when it got to the breaking point with the apps they claimed hackers erased their main database with all the finished apps on it and did some interviews on the "very real dangers of corporate hackers". they didn't even have a centralized database, nor the finished apps to store on one if they did.
Production Facility - interviewing with plant manager for Quality Control position.
Plant manager had another plant’s quality manager sit in for the interview.
Plant manager was super critical of everything I said. Bashed some of my training courses and credentials. They’re super common trainings in my field, but the plant manager wanted more “official” trainings since he was a retired Navy officer who got all of his training through the government and not my globally recognized “third party” credentials.
The interview just kept getting more uncomfortable and I kept wondering if this guy was just trying to make me leave.
The other manager was super nice and asked questions related to my field and seemed really happy with my answers and credentials. It felt like good cop bad cop.
The quality manager ended up taking me on a tour of the facility. We talked candidly quite a bit. He was pretty sure I’d be offered something. I asked his opinion of the plant and the manager. He just replied with “well…you’d have to work with *him* every day.” And gave me a knowing look.
They offered me the position, I declined. The plant manager called me himself to let me know I wasted his time.
This would have been a 40% increase in my pay. Most would call it life-changing. But my line of work is stressful enough without a j**k plant manager breathing down my neck. I ended up finding a similar paying job that is virtually stress-free compared to my last job and I couldn’t be happier.
I have since received many, many calls and emails about that position and I have let the company know I have zero interest in working there. It’s been over a year and the position is still open. Wonder why?
I once had an interview where I spent the majority of the day there. They took me around and introduced me to everyone (about 30-ish people), had a group lunch, etc. While everyone was very nice and the work seemed interesting, I noticed everyone looked very tired. At one point during the day, I was making small talk with a manager and the topic of travel came up. He then mentioned it had been years since he last took a vacation. After some questioning I soon gathered that not taking vacations was pretty common there.
I happened to run in to the same manager about a year later and he was happy to report that while he hadn't taken a vacation yet, he actually had one booked. He still looked exhausted.
I had an interview at a small law firm once, with the owner. At the 10min mark of sitting in a meeting room alone, I got up and started heading down the hallway to leave. Was met by the owner, never said sorry, just said that it was a busy day.
Sat, talked, she explained that she wanted to up-end LegalZoom by creating the same service and expand it slightly to encompass a couple of other items. Mind you, they have no tech people and this was a small firm, very boutique. I stood up, shook her hand, told her good luck, hope she does well, and left the office promptly.
Hilariously, I got an email 2 days later that **they** were moving forward with other candidates. Laughed.
He asked me if I was a crier because I “looked like a crier.” I was fresh out of law school and just told him I didn’t think it would be a good fit when he offered me the job. If someone asked me that now, I would walk out of the interview.
You should have replier "Are you a moron? Because you talk like a moron."
It was a low paying retail job, but I’ve been interviewed at the same time as someone else. The issue I had with this is that it pits two people against each other and it becomes incredibly awkward. I was interviewing against a woman who had lost her job and was talking about supporting her kids. I felt like I had to make a stronger case saying that I didn’t know how I’d afford college without the job.
If an interviewer doesn’t have time for 2 separate interviews then just walk out because things will only get worse.
I had an interview with a bank, they had an open interview with 3 workers from the bank, and SIX of us interviewing
After I got my bachelor's degree in engineering I interviewed for a position in a reliability lab. As part of the interview one of the people I met with was a woman with a masters degree in the same field who I would be working alongside. In addition to talking with her I got to see what she was doing and between what I saw and what she told me it was clear that the job they had her doing was way below her capability.
For context, I had worked as a technician in the field while I was in college and my tech job was both more challenging and had provided me a much greater amount of responsibility than what this woman who was clearly very capable and had a masters degree was doing.
I certainly hadn't gotten my degree to take a downgrade in responsibility.
The field I'm in is pretty small and I later ended up working with some other people who had been at that company and they all told me I made the right call.
I was hanging out with friends in a diner in Los Angeles one night way back in the early ‘90s when I was approached by a producer for MTV’s “The Real World.” She said they were casting for the second season and invited me to audition. It sounded like it might be fun so I said sure why not, and proceeded to make it far into the process, through like four rounds of interviews, meeting the executives, etc.
At first, all the questions were about my interests, my aspirations, my background, that sort of thing, but as it went along, ALL they wanted to know about was what sort of people I hated, who I could see myself in conflict with, what personality traits were most likely to make me angry. Suddenly it didn’t sound like a lark anymore; it sounded like a psychology experiment, and not in a fun way. So I said thanks but no thanks and noped out of there.
It sounds naive in hindsight—it’s reality TV, wtf did I expect?!—but this was early days. If the same thing happened today, first I’d be flattered, and them immediately I’d be like hahahano.
Sounds like the scrip to most reality TV shows now adays. Who's fighting who and drama, drama and more drama.
Not the interview but orientation. I sat down with the young woman and she just sighed and shrugged and said, "Look. I'm quitting by the end of the week. My boyfriend now makes enough money for me to be a stay at home mom. I don't care. Do you care? I don't really care. We're just going to watch the video and we'll just kind of hang out. Sound good? Great. I'll be back." She then waddled over to press play on the company video and left me there for almost an hour. I declined the job and left.
When I was job hunting last, at one of the places I got an interview, the recruiter straight up lied to me about what the position was, and the posting on their site was vague enough that I was suspicious, but didn't catch it before the interview.
It turned out that I wasn't qualified after all, so they didn't offer me the job and of course it was very embarrassing. They wanted a database admin, and my experience was essentially in desktop and below, so Qt apps, embedded, and occasional kernel hacking.
Even if they had though, the recruiter lying to you isn't a good sign. Their office was super gloomy too, although that was mostly the weather.
I had an interview with an agency that was looking for a developer for a client. When I had interview with client they said "but we were looking for a jboss administrator"... and that was all
I came from a gig as a junior developer, I interviewed for a developer role. I got in and their API was slow, their website basically a joke, and most of their reporting stuff was barely functional. I thought "Wow, I can really of purpose here. Why does it feel like I'm over qualified for this role though? It's just basic programming stuff and no advanced math." They seemed super excited and I said "So what's the compensation range for this role?" and their response was "This band can go up to $36,000 for the right candidate." ... and that made it all make sense. They never have had a developer because that's below entry level rates.
In our country, 36k USD is a great salary. It's upper income. That will get you a 1.8 million ZAR house with a garden, three bedroms, plus a car.
Showed up and it’s a mass interview of 25 people mlm Ponzi scheme b******t.
Edit: I have a bachelors of science in psychology and sociology from FSU, which isn’t very lucrative. For a while, I went through a plethora of s***ty call center and marketing jobs. You find yourself at these awful interviews.
A few years ago, I had a meeting with a startup. When I entered the office, I was greeted by all the founders and a couple other employees, and they were just so weird and cold towards me. Even before I sat down in the conference room, I knew the whole thing was a joke and that I wouldn’t work with them for any amount of money.
Not me, but this kid in my scout troop applied for a custodian job or smth once. He said that the guy interviewing him was trying to subtly turn "custodian" into "personal assistant." Some of the added tasks were to pick up Starbucks for his boss, drop off his dry cleaning, and work unpaid overtime to polish his desk.
The kid wasn't even 18 yet.
Edit: I should clarify that the kid was a senior in high school at the time, so it could've been a mistake by the employer. Either way, though, that's not a good business practice.
Hiring manager asked me if I could start before day x, because they have a monthly hiring plan.
The company wasn't expanding
I really had a strange interview yesterday, but it didn’t put me off for the job.
Before attending it, a coworker on another team told me she interviewed with the same dude for an entirely different position before accepting the position here.
For context, dude is South Korean, about 10 years older than me, definitely ESL, and we are in the South. I moved here from Miami almost 4 years ago.
He said that he’s very competitive. I interpret that as his parents, uh, parented him hard on the path to success.
He asks me where my name is from. It’s Polish. Great Grandmother came over during WWII. He casually mentions Ukraine and their impending invasion. This grows into a cultural conversation and if I feel any attachment to that and if I’ve ever traveled to Poland (haven’t). I push back on to him and he says he’s South Korean, and he goes back.
This wasn’t confrontational. It felt share-y, genial.
He then asks me if I’ve traveled. Internationally. Yes, Canada, Iceland, Germany, Czech Republic, Austria, Colombia, Hungary, etc. We talk about that for a bit. He segues this into international work I’ve done and where I’ve worked. He works in that the company is owned by a parent company in the UK and we will work heavily with our European contingent for materials and supplies stateside.
He asks me if I’m okay with traveling for the position. Yes. I tell him I don’t have any children, but I am married.
He gave me what would you do hypothetical situations, which he called imagination questions (an ESL thing, but I knew what he meant). He asked me at what point I would notify him, to which I replied, when you needed to know, or when I resolved it. I think I convinced him I knew what I was doing because he seemed satisfied with my answers.
He basically ended the interview by saying he sees me as a good fit for the position but we need to interview again. He tells me I’m not like most Americans he’s met. He follows that up by saying I’m definitely not like anyone here (the South), “I’m sure you know what I mean.”
When I compared notes with my coworker this morning, she told me she didn’t get the job. One of the reasons being he told her that he didn’t like that she didn’t travel internationally (by choice).
Ooookkkkk...so what is the bottom line here? Interviewer came across to me as sexist and discriminatory...
The company had a system where if your application wasnt totally dog s**t you could send in an interview time out of a time window. I schedule my interview for something like 3 o'clock so I arrive probably around 2:55 and i tell the host that im there for an interview. she runs to the back and comes back handing me a paper application and tells me i need to do that. all good not a big deal even though I did one online. I hand it back to her and she says "uh the managers are busy rn can you wait a minute or two for your interview" again all good, ive got nothing else going on i can wait.
I end up waiting for 45 minutes (i should have left then but listen it my second ever job i didnt really know better) until a guy comes out to talk to me AND HES NOT EVEN THE F*****G MANAGER THERES FOUR MANAGERS AND THEY COULDNT GET ONE TO COME TALK TO ME FOR LIKE 2 MINUTES. anyway theres more to this, so i talk to this guy and hes the head server, super chill dude he tells me if it were him he'd be happy to hire me and if i can come in the next day at 2 to talk to the manager. I regretablly agree
Come back the next day and the place is packed, 20 minute wait for a table and then whole lobby is full so im not really expecting much. the manager comes out and she brings me to a table that had yet to even be bussed, like I know your busy but id rather be standing up than sitting at a table with a half eaten burger in front of me. the interview lasts about 3 minutes and she tells me to come back the next day for paperwork.
I come back and theres another girl there also waiting to start her onboarding. we waited for 30 minutes until the manager came out to do our paperwork.
And I still work here to do this day... honestly really weird place super weird but i get like 15/hr plus tips for a hs job so ill take it
Interviewed for a database Dev role once, had 30 mins with the manager, went well, chatted to 2 Devs, going great guns, then some guy walks in and it goes quiet and everyone looks uncomfortable. He tells me his name but not his role, he's asking me very surreal and inappropriate questions, at one point he says "are you enjoying this interview?", I don't want to say no so I squeak an "um yes?", His response "well tell ya fooking face then!", we're all squirming and uncomfortable and he thinks he's hysterically funny. I literally ran out of there, complained to the recruiter, couldn't remember his name though. The recruiter phoned me back furious, he just complained to the CEO about the CEO and the CEO was not happy that I'd called him obnoxious, inappropriate and a bully.
I have always insisted on being interviewed by the person I would be reporting to directly. I don't want to interview with some floozie from "HR" who feels entitled to tell you about a job he/she has no clue about. I want to get a feel for the person I am working for. Would NEVER apply for a job through an agency, where the $6/hour receptionist decides if you are good enough to even fill out an application form! You would be surprised I got some of the best jobs I ever had. Always moved on and up, with best wishes from my ex boss, with lasting friendships.
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Was interviewed for a full time entry level position. They had a few part times also being interviewed who had been there for several months. The questions were not entry level and some very site specific, you had to have worked there for a while to know the answers. I finally just asked them to check my name against the one of the person they had already picked and it would save us all a bunch of time.
Almost every interview for a teaching job in higher education is a multi day exercise. You are basically auditioning for the role of professor, and they have you for a full 48 hours. It is completely exhausting, and you can never relax. Even during meals, there is constantly someone with you talking about the field, or trying to see if you will fit in with the rest of the department, etc. This is all after you have made it through two previous rounds of elimination out of about 200 or more other candidates. And the job only pays 60k. And you work about 60 hours a week.
My first college degree was an associate degree in electronic engineering. After 2 years of college and part-time jobs, I really needed a good paying job so I could continue my college education. So I applied for this job as a repair technician at a local repair shop. Again it was one of those jobs where they didn't post the salary, but I was hopeful it would be better than any part-time I had. During the interview he commented about needing me in the shop for hours than I had expected, but I figured I could work through that. Then I asked what the starting pay was. I assumed it wouldn't be much more than minimum wage because I had no experience yet, but I was shocked when he said pay? I'm not going to pay you a salary. This job is a learning opportunity for you. I just got up and walked out. A couple weeks later I started a different job paying me double what minimum wage was. Why some people think young adults don't have bills is beyond me.
Interviewed for a position for medical billing. Supposed to have a start date in 2 weeks. The second week was actually for my honeymoon which we were going to Hawaii, all booked and paid. Interviewer then demanded that I be there the second week as she really needed me. Nope, not doing that to my husband.
I got this interview for a job as kitchen custodian basically at a university- so of course it's a massive cooking area and they need a dedicated cleaner or several. I was psyched since getting it would also give me a tuition waiver. Got to the interview, which was just in a fancier section of the cafeteria, and waited a few minutes. The interviewer was late which sucked but things happen. Except he also seemed really uncomfortable interviewing me. He also kept asking questions over again. Like "You said on your application that you can lift eighty pounds easily" And I said yes. "but what can you actually lift?" I was trying not to frown but answered "At my last job I used to lift about 120 pounds frequently but that much caused my shoulder to act up. I'm still confident in 80 pounds though." "no really, how much?" It took until just before the end of the interview when I asked when I would hear back and he kind of softly muttered that I "wasn't what he was expecting"
That's when I finally pieced it together. He had chosen the resume of Alex Foster and thought I seemed like a good guy for the job. And then he saw that I am AFAB, and am quite curvy. And didn't want a *girl* working there.
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Was working a call center for a catalogue company and put in for promotion in September. Needed to be interviewed by three separate people: HR, my floor manager, and dept. manager (to this day I still don't know the difference between floor and dept. managers...). Got the HR and floor manager interviews done within the month and went great, but it went through the new year with no word on the final interview, so I started looking for something else. I eventually found something better paying in February, and I had to tell the person I was waiting to interview with that I was giving my two weeks. This person had the gall to ask "what about the promotion?" I kept it professional and told her I was being hired as a supervisor in my new job (which I was) and left it at that. A few months later and the call center I was working in closed down and everyone either had to move to the other location they had or be unemployed. Dodged a bullet.
I went for an interview many years ago that was a pip. The guy's fly was open - he says, "if that gets out you'll be in trouble". So I said, "no, if that gets out, YOU'LL be in trouble!" Needless to say, I didn't get the job. 😄
Once I have interview with a startup company. I realize that most of the employee look afraid of speaking too loud near the big boss. Spent 2 phase interview and the last of is of him mocking my skill on IT, while he is clearly not understand technically. Says like his friend could hack my site in an hour or two.. That is very ballsy for a man that know small amount it. 4 years later, never see his startup to take off..
My favorite interview story was the one where the guy said I was a great fit I'd just need to get certified to do the job. But it's ok as they offer the classes and normally it costs $1000 but I could get a discount of $200 and after I completed the course I'd be hired. Needless to say didn't accept that job.
I work alone. No boss, just myself. I f+cking can't stand other people, ...
Years back I was desperately trying to find a job, and came across one that was for a salesman (which turned out to be door to door salesman). Got to the interview location - super sketchy location that was out of the city, the building looked abandoned from the outside, and was sparcely decorated with old furniture from the 90s. The interviewers were both male, and in their 20s maaaybe early 30s, and they started with an introductory for me and a few other people (all male, and 20s/30s) to their "business" which they claimed was a fortune 500, and then the products we would be selling. After the intro, they said they'd interview us one at a time, and started with me. I don't even remember what was said, my fight or flight kicked in and I disassociated during the entire interview, but I DO remember telling them I would think about it. High-tailed it out of there, locking the doors of my car as soon as I got in. Here's the kicker; the guy who was supposed to be interviewed right after me+
+exited the building and left minutes after I had. My interview lasted over half an hour.. BONUS: their "sales" room for telemarketing had Rock music BLASTING while two girls were supposedly on the phone with customers. During the entire time I was there, the volume was never lowered lol. Called 911 and reported the place because I may not have been their target, but someone else would have.
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I build large multimillion dollar homes for well off people, usually business owners, doctors married to doctors or professional athletes. Normally it’s a referral and there is no interview but occasionally someone wants to “interview” me which is the first red flag. I’ve been in the business for 40 years and my company has been features in many magazines, newspapers and local tv so my houses and reputation is well known in the local area. Anyway I meet with the couple and they think they are interviewing me but I am really interviewing them. If the couple are rude to each other I’m out. If they can’t be nice to the person they are supposed to the love the most in world they will eventually be nasty to me too. If they are arrogant or think they are better than me because they have a fancy title and are wealthier than me than I’m out and I just tell them I’m too busy to take on new clients at this time. These type of people aren’t used to being told no and do they ever get pissed.
I landed a temp-to-perm job with a great salary. The hitch was that the manager I would be assisting was on vacation for three weeks. I found it odd that my temp position started on the first day of her vacation. Within hours, people were pulling me aside in hallways, the kitchen, the parking lot when I went to lunch, the lobby when I returned from lunch, etc., to warn me about what a heinous b***h she was, and that the reason I was scheduled to work 3 weeks before meeting her was to make sure I got a big paycheck before meeting her, because it was the only thing they could think of that would entice a person to stay at that job. After two weeks of having my coworkers look at me like I was a lamb about to be led to the slaughter, I told my agency I wanted out. Yes, I was VERY curious to see what this person was like, but my sense of self-preservation prevailed. My rep apologized and told me I lasted longer than anyone else so far, probably because the manager was on vacation.
Maybe it's because I got nothing much to lose. When I interviewed for jobs decades ago, I don't really want to impress anyone. I treat it as a survey of the place if I want to work there. I take mental notes of what is good and bad about a place. A lot of times, we're just talking about stuff in those interviews. I never bothered with bigger companies though.
Yes, even from the first call, they offer a job that even not related what I am looking for and not related what I write in my resume. I don't like getting loud, but if I have to be loud and so animal, I will
Interviewed for a Technical Writer role. The hiring manager asked me a series of logic riddles and got annoyed when l couldn't answer them. Then he asked me what books l was currently reading....not once did he asked me anything job related ! Sorry but what does solving a f***ing logic puzzel have to do with writing a user guide? That paired with his rude and arrogant behaviour caused me to call the recruiter the next day and told him.l was no longer interested in the job.
I was part of a “cattle call” group interview with a local utility company wherein they would “hire” multiple candidates for the few openings, and use “team building” tactics for the first two weeks to “thin the herd”. The “games” we played were thinly veiled to identify those candidates who would fall into lockstep line. I had no plan to stay on past that “rah rah” week so I decided to mess with management (who were watching via closed circuit TV in another part of the building) by giving “interesting” answers to various questions they asked everyone (just to better acquaint us with one another 🤨). When asked what was the last book I had read I answered The Count of Monte Christo, and when questioned about my favorite movie of all time, I responded Norma Rae 😆. Shortly after the break period began I was invited into the “viewing room” where the bosses had been clandestinely watching all this “team building” and informed that I wasn’t going to be a “good fit” for their company. 😂😂😂
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While asking me to take on a student, the student had decided that the normal class cancelation policy isn't fair. Usually if a student cancels within a certain time frame (3hrs, 12hrs, etc) then they still have to pay for the class time. If a teacher cancels in the same time frame, they just don't get paid. The student's solution that this company agreed to was if the teacher cancels then the teacher has to do a FREE make up class. I told them that is straight up illegal and turned it down. I also ignore that company now. Personally, I'm very lenient on cancelations. If I haven't left the house yet, no charge. With online classes, if class hasn't started yet and I haven't hired a babysitter, no charge. But the 'match making' companies make bank and want to charge students as much as possible, usually taking 50% of the class fee so they aren't lenient in the least.
I once go to job for a major movie studio whose name will Not be disclosed. I was skilled enough for the job and they told me what the job duties were, they hired me and I was so relieved but on day one when I started the Italian woman who ran the department pulled me into her office and said to me “this is what you’re really going to be doing”. I was not comfortable with that at all Months later, the recession started and half of the floor was laid off. Chances are I would’ve been laid off also. But if that Italian woman was completely honest with me, I would not have taken the job
The best story I have was when I was almost poached from Tesla by Theranos. I called my brother who is a chemist for a respected biotech and asked what he thought about Theranos. I stayed at Tesla. Dodged a pretty big bullet there.
What did your brother tell you? I assume the Theranos case wasn't blown up by then. Just curious.
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Interviewed for a database Dev role once, had 30 mins with the manager, went well, chatted to 2 Devs, going great guns, then some guy walks in and it goes quiet and everyone looks uncomfortable. He tells me his name but not his role, he's asking me very surreal and inappropriate questions, at one point he says "are you enjoying this interview?", I don't want to say no so I squeak an "um yes?", His response "well tell ya fooking face then!", we're all squirming and uncomfortable and he thinks he's hysterically funny. I literally ran out of there, complained to the recruiter, couldn't remember his name though. The recruiter phoned me back furious, he just complained to the CEO about the CEO and the CEO was not happy that I'd called him obnoxious, inappropriate and a bully.
I have always insisted on being interviewed by the person I would be reporting to directly. I don't want to interview with some floozie from "HR" who feels entitled to tell you about a job he/she has no clue about. I want to get a feel for the person I am working for. Would NEVER apply for a job through an agency, where the $6/hour receptionist decides if you are good enough to even fill out an application form! You would be surprised I got some of the best jobs I ever had. Always moved on and up, with best wishes from my ex boss, with lasting friendships.
Load More Replies... Was interviewed for a full time entry level position. They had a few part times also being interviewed who had been there for several months. The questions were not entry level and some very site specific, you had to have worked there for a while to know the answers. I finally just asked them to check my name against the one of the person they had already picked and it would save us all a bunch of time.
Almost every interview for a teaching job in higher education is a multi day exercise. You are basically auditioning for the role of professor, and they have you for a full 48 hours. It is completely exhausting, and you can never relax. Even during meals, there is constantly someone with you talking about the field, or trying to see if you will fit in with the rest of the department, etc. This is all after you have made it through two previous rounds of elimination out of about 200 or more other candidates. And the job only pays 60k. And you work about 60 hours a week.
My first college degree was an associate degree in electronic engineering. After 2 years of college and part-time jobs, I really needed a good paying job so I could continue my college education. So I applied for this job as a repair technician at a local repair shop. Again it was one of those jobs where they didn't post the salary, but I was hopeful it would be better than any part-time I had. During the interview he commented about needing me in the shop for hours than I had expected, but I figured I could work through that. Then I asked what the starting pay was. I assumed it wouldn't be much more than minimum wage because I had no experience yet, but I was shocked when he said pay? I'm not going to pay you a salary. This job is a learning opportunity for you. I just got up and walked out. A couple weeks later I started a different job paying me double what minimum wage was. Why some people think young adults don't have bills is beyond me.
Interviewed for a position for medical billing. Supposed to have a start date in 2 weeks. The second week was actually for my honeymoon which we were going to Hawaii, all booked and paid. Interviewer then demanded that I be there the second week as she really needed me. Nope, not doing that to my husband.
I got this interview for a job as kitchen custodian basically at a university- so of course it's a massive cooking area and they need a dedicated cleaner or several. I was psyched since getting it would also give me a tuition waiver. Got to the interview, which was just in a fancier section of the cafeteria, and waited a few minutes. The interviewer was late which sucked but things happen. Except he also seemed really uncomfortable interviewing me. He also kept asking questions over again. Like "You said on your application that you can lift eighty pounds easily" And I said yes. "but what can you actually lift?" I was trying not to frown but answered "At my last job I used to lift about 120 pounds frequently but that much caused my shoulder to act up. I'm still confident in 80 pounds though." "no really, how much?" It took until just before the end of the interview when I asked when I would hear back and he kind of softly muttered that I "wasn't what he was expecting"
That's when I finally pieced it together. He had chosen the resume of Alex Foster and thought I seemed like a good guy for the job. And then he saw that I am AFAB, and am quite curvy. And didn't want a *girl* working there.
Load More Replies... Was working a call center for a catalogue company and put in for promotion in September. Needed to be interviewed by three separate people: HR, my floor manager, and dept. manager (to this day I still don't know the difference between floor and dept. managers...). Got the HR and floor manager interviews done within the month and went great, but it went through the new year with no word on the final interview, so I started looking for something else. I eventually found something better paying in February, and I had to tell the person I was waiting to interview with that I was giving my two weeks. This person had the gall to ask "what about the promotion?" I kept it professional and told her I was being hired as a supervisor in my new job (which I was) and left it at that. A few months later and the call center I was working in closed down and everyone either had to move to the other location they had or be unemployed. Dodged a bullet.
I went for an interview many years ago that was a pip. The guy's fly was open - he says, "if that gets out you'll be in trouble". So I said, "no, if that gets out, YOU'LL be in trouble!" Needless to say, I didn't get the job. 😄
Once I have interview with a startup company. I realize that most of the employee look afraid of speaking too loud near the big boss. Spent 2 phase interview and the last of is of him mocking my skill on IT, while he is clearly not understand technically. Says like his friend could hack my site in an hour or two.. That is very ballsy for a man that know small amount it. 4 years later, never see his startup to take off..
My favorite interview story was the one where the guy said I was a great fit I'd just need to get certified to do the job. But it's ok as they offer the classes and normally it costs $1000 but I could get a discount of $200 and after I completed the course I'd be hired. Needless to say didn't accept that job.
I work alone. No boss, just myself. I f+cking can't stand other people, ...
Years back I was desperately trying to find a job, and came across one that was for a salesman (which turned out to be door to door salesman). Got to the interview location - super sketchy location that was out of the city, the building looked abandoned from the outside, and was sparcely decorated with old furniture from the 90s. The interviewers were both male, and in their 20s maaaybe early 30s, and they started with an introductory for me and a few other people (all male, and 20s/30s) to their "business" which they claimed was a fortune 500, and then the products we would be selling. After the intro, they said they'd interview us one at a time, and started with me. I don't even remember what was said, my fight or flight kicked in and I disassociated during the entire interview, but I DO remember telling them I would think about it. High-tailed it out of there, locking the doors of my car as soon as I got in. Here's the kicker; the guy who was supposed to be interviewed right after me+
+exited the building and left minutes after I had. My interview lasted over half an hour.. BONUS: their "sales" room for telemarketing had Rock music BLASTING while two girls were supposedly on the phone with customers. During the entire time I was there, the volume was never lowered lol. Called 911 and reported the place because I may not have been their target, but someone else would have.
Load More Replies... I build large multimillion dollar homes for well off people, usually business owners, doctors married to doctors or professional athletes. Normally it’s a referral and there is no interview but occasionally someone wants to “interview” me which is the first red flag. I’ve been in the business for 40 years and my company has been features in many magazines, newspapers and local tv so my houses and reputation is well known in the local area. Anyway I meet with the couple and they think they are interviewing me but I am really interviewing them. If the couple are rude to each other I’m out. If they can’t be nice to the person they are supposed to the love the most in world they will eventually be nasty to me too. If they are arrogant or think they are better than me because they have a fancy title and are wealthier than me than I’m out and I just tell them I’m too busy to take on new clients at this time. These type of people aren’t used to being told no and do they ever get pissed.
I landed a temp-to-perm job with a great salary. The hitch was that the manager I would be assisting was on vacation for three weeks. I found it odd that my temp position started on the first day of her vacation. Within hours, people were pulling me aside in hallways, the kitchen, the parking lot when I went to lunch, the lobby when I returned from lunch, etc., to warn me about what a heinous b***h she was, and that the reason I was scheduled to work 3 weeks before meeting her was to make sure I got a big paycheck before meeting her, because it was the only thing they could think of that would entice a person to stay at that job. After two weeks of having my coworkers look at me like I was a lamb about to be led to the slaughter, I told my agency I wanted out. Yes, I was VERY curious to see what this person was like, but my sense of self-preservation prevailed. My rep apologized and told me I lasted longer than anyone else so far, probably because the manager was on vacation.
Maybe it's because I got nothing much to lose. When I interviewed for jobs decades ago, I don't really want to impress anyone. I treat it as a survey of the place if I want to work there. I take mental notes of what is good and bad about a place. A lot of times, we're just talking about stuff in those interviews. I never bothered with bigger companies though.
Yes, even from the first call, they offer a job that even not related what I am looking for and not related what I write in my resume. I don't like getting loud, but if I have to be loud and so animal, I will
Interviewed for a Technical Writer role. The hiring manager asked me a series of logic riddles and got annoyed when l couldn't answer them. Then he asked me what books l was currently reading....not once did he asked me anything job related ! Sorry but what does solving a f***ing logic puzzel have to do with writing a user guide? That paired with his rude and arrogant behaviour caused me to call the recruiter the next day and told him.l was no longer interested in the job.
I was part of a “cattle call” group interview with a local utility company wherein they would “hire” multiple candidates for the few openings, and use “team building” tactics for the first two weeks to “thin the herd”. The “games” we played were thinly veiled to identify those candidates who would fall into lockstep line. I had no plan to stay on past that “rah rah” week so I decided to mess with management (who were watching via closed circuit TV in another part of the building) by giving “interesting” answers to various questions they asked everyone (just to better acquaint us with one another 🤨). When asked what was the last book I had read I answered The Count of Monte Christo, and when questioned about my favorite movie of all time, I responded Norma Rae 😆. Shortly after the break period began I was invited into the “viewing room” where the bosses had been clandestinely watching all this “team building” and informed that I wasn’t going to be a “good fit” for their company. 😂😂😂
Load More Replies... While asking me to take on a student, the student had decided that the normal class cancelation policy isn't fair. Usually if a student cancels within a certain time frame (3hrs, 12hrs, etc) then they still have to pay for the class time. If a teacher cancels in the same time frame, they just don't get paid. The student's solution that this company agreed to was if the teacher cancels then the teacher has to do a FREE make up class. I told them that is straight up illegal and turned it down. I also ignore that company now. Personally, I'm very lenient on cancelations. If I haven't left the house yet, no charge. With online classes, if class hasn't started yet and I haven't hired a babysitter, no charge. But the 'match making' companies make bank and want to charge students as much as possible, usually taking 50% of the class fee so they aren't lenient in the least.
I once go to job for a major movie studio whose name will Not be disclosed. I was skilled enough for the job and they told me what the job duties were, they hired me and I was so relieved but on day one when I started the Italian woman who ran the department pulled me into her office and said to me “this is what you’re really going to be doing”. I was not comfortable with that at all Months later, the recession started and half of the floor was laid off. Chances are I would’ve been laid off also. But if that Italian woman was completely honest with me, I would not have taken the job
The best story I have was when I was almost poached from Tesla by Theranos. I called my brother who is a chemist for a respected biotech and asked what he thought about Theranos. I stayed at Tesla. Dodged a pretty big bullet there.
What did your brother tell you? I assume the Theranos case wasn't blown up by then. Just curious.
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