Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Ten Dumb Things Said During Job Interviews

My best interviews are when I am totally relaxed and talking to the interviewer like they are a personal friend while still maintaing some degree of formality.

Thw worst interview I have ever had was held at a sushi restaurant in Denver! I kid you not! Who goes to Denver for sushi!First of all, I fly in from Seattle, meet with two people and the third person decides to take me out to lunch at a sushi restaurant. I did not want to smell fishy for the fourth and last interview so I decided to order something other than sushi which tuned out to be garlicky! It was just miserable! Needless to say, the rest of the day went downhill from there. I didn't get the job offer but had absolutely no desire to move to Denver any way. Now whenever I think of Denver I think about sushi and what not to do in an interview!

Career Advice Mar 12 2012

Ten Dumb Things Said During Job Interviews

By kelly eggers
We've all experienced it. That sinking feeling that occurs when the job interview that was going so well suddenly goes off track. Maybe it's the expression on the hiring manager's face, or the awkward pause that ensues, but there is little doubt when it happens

Common interview mistakes, of course, include bad mouthing your former employer, failing to adequately research the company or the position and just plain talking too much. Careerbuilder.com, a job posting site, publishes an annual list of 10 interview blunders, including asking the hiring manager for a ride home or flushing the toilet during a phone interview.

Thanks to the rise of social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter, dumb interview moves are taking on a new character. The urge to share everything about one's life with friends and strangers via cyberspace is invading the very private atmosphere of the recruiter's office. Moreover, the need to stand out in the information cacophony of the Web has increased the pressure to seem unique and special.
"We've been socialized to assume that we have to stand out in some way, and we're encouraged to be bold," says Roy Cohen, author of "The Wall Street Professional's Survival Guide" and a New York City-based career coach. "But that is not necessarily what people are looking for in candidates to bring on board. They want people who fit in."

Oversharing has now become an occupational hazard of the job hunt. Here are 10 examples of when too much information was, well, really too much information:

"My apologies for being late, my husband and I were fighting. It happens all the time."
"One individual arrived 20 minutes late for her interview," says Lisa Chenofsky Singer, an executive and career management coach based in New Jersey. While the pair walked to grab the candidate a cup of water, Chenofsky Singer asked how the commute had been. "She in turn told me that her commute was horrid, and she and her husband had fought on who was responsible for dropping their child off at day care," she explains. "I followed up with 'Is this a typical morning?' She replied that this is why she lost her last job, and continued on to tell me that the company had no respect for families."

Not only has the candidate revealed that she's having persistent marital problems, but before she's even sat down for her initial interview, she's indicated that those issues impact her ability to arrive on time to the office, and she expects the employer to be tolerant of it. "You get so much out of a candidate in that short walk to the coffee station. People talk much more informally then," Chenofsky Singer says. "She had such a great resume," but knowing that her client was already frantic, "I knew I couldn't bring more chaos into his life, I had to make it simpler."

Source -- read more: http://www.fins.com/Finance/Articles/SBB0001424052970204781804577272044012778530/Ten-Dumb-Things-People-Have-Said-During-Job-Interviews?link=FINS_mostpop_CS_careerpage&Type=3

1 comment: