When bad job interviews are good fun
Bad job interview stories are fun to share over S’mores and campfires. Of course, you need a six-month grace period to get over the embarrassment, change your name and get a new haircut.
Even SnagABlogger - yes, that’s me - remembers being an earnest, bright-eyed 17-year-old and applying for a job at a hardware store. Under the watchful eye of a manager, I was asked to complete a series of timed, written exercises. Before the first question, directions in bold stated, “PLEASE READ ALL QUESTIONS BEFORE ANSWERING.”
Of course, I thought these directions were just for amateurs. I confidently smiled at the interviewer, and began scribbling madly, not sure how I would finish 20 questions in a mere five minutes. Finally, when I got to Question # 20, I dropped my pencil. The question stated:
“We hope you followed the directions and read all the questions before writing anything down. Now, only answer question No. 14 and leave all others blank.”
I flipped the pencil over, but there was no eraser. Doh.
As the interviewer smirked and said something about how following instructions was so important in his line of work, I slunk in my seat and left the room unemployed and embarrassed.
There’s actually a popular list of embarrassing shenanigans floating through the Internet thanks to some HR professionals.
Here a few of the highlights:
• “Applicant challenged interviewer to arm wrestle.”
• “Interrupted to phone his therapist for advice on answering specific interview questions.”
• “While I was on a long-distance phone call, the applicant took out a copy of Penthouse, and looked through the photos only, stopping longest at the centerfold.”
• “An applicant came in wearing only one shoe. She explained that the other shoe was stolen off her foot in the bus.”
• “… she threw-up on my desk, and immediately started asking questions about the job, like nothing had happened.”
As long as you learn from your mistakes, don’t sweat the gaffes that can occur in these high pressure situations. But if you forget to wear pants to more than two interviews, you might want to consider requesting a phone interview.
Check out SnagAJob.com job interview tips.
