“What if you had a chance to change your job? Would you take it?” That’s the question the host of NBC’s new reality show, “America’s Toughest Jobs,” asks the audience at the beginning of the first episode. But these contestants won’t be ditching their office chairs for a cushy corner office or a six-figure paycheck—they’ll be trying their hands at some of the most grueling, back-breaking and dangerous jobs in the United States.

Bull riding, oil drilling and Alaskan crab fishing are just a few of the jobs these competitors will be asked to tackle, gigs that include having ship captains and site managers screaming in their faces and pointing out every mistake. Still, we picture many viewers sitting at home and thinking, “That’s easy, I can do that.” But in the first five minutes, the participants have to bite the head off of a dead fish—and swallow it. Do you think you could do it?

So if you would leave the water cooler talk behind and become a lumberjack or an ice road trucker, maybe you should try out for next season. As for us, we’ll stick by the coffee pot and leave the hard labor to more adventurous folks. But we would like to give kudos to those men and women who brave the elements to perform those tough jobs every day, despite the risk of a bull horn to the rib or falling overboard into below-freezing waters. Yikes.

We want to hear about your toughest job. Leave us a comment below and tell us about the hardest job you’ve ever had–even if you only lasted a day.

ALSO: Read our job advice to help you in your job search.

We want to give a big thanks to everyone who submitted stories of quirky coworkers in our last Share & Win! contest. It was a tough decision, but after reading over all the entries, we have declared a winner: Congratulations to Beverly Carrington, whose story includes an animal-loving coworker who turned her office into a rescue shelter.

Quirky coworkers definitely help make our days at work more interesting — here’s Beverly’s entry of an eccentric employee who takes the “birds of a feather” expression a little too seriously:

“My coworker is an animal lover and sometimes she picks up strays. One particular day I heard something in her cubicle, so I went to investigate. She picked up a baby bird that had fallen from its nest from a tree in her yard that morning before she came to work. She put the bird in a shoe box with a blanket to keep it warm, and during the day she caught crickets, broke their legs and fed the little bird. I couldn’t believe it. She also calls her home phone on a daily basis and talks to her answering machine so that her dogs can hear her voice. For example, I once heard her say, “Scooter, how is my baby, how is my baby doing? Red, are you being a good boy? Snowball, how is my precious baby? Mama will be home soon, Mama loves you.”

And we’re sure those little pooches love their mama right back. Beverly will walk away with a $300 American Express gift card to buy her coworker a luxury birdhouse or some gourmet dog biscuits.

• Don’t forget to check out our latest Share & Win contest: Design your own Afterthoughts ecard.

• ALSO: Start your search for part-time jobs now.

Make sure you’ve submitted your story for quirkiest coworker before it’s too late. It’s that easy to make your nutty coworker famous and pocket some cash for yourself. And remember: The winner gets a $300 American Express gift card, so what have you got to lose? If you need some inspiration, check out this story that recently came across our desk:

 

I work at a clothing store in the mall and one of my coworkers is the definition of “quirky.” Our stock room doubles as our break room and we have a small fridge back for us to store our lunches. Well, one day I was eating my lunch and my coworker, Liz, comes in with a large object covered in a sheet in her hands. She unveils it, puts it on the table where I have my lunch, and I realize it’s an ant farm! She said she brought it because she had to work a double shift that day and she didn’t want them to be lonely. Gross! She hid the farm among some clothes racks so our supervisor wouldn’t see it and begged me not to tell anyone. She has a name for every single ant, and she was so worried about them that I didn’t have the heart to rat her out. I’m just glad I ate BEFORE she brought in the insects.

Now that’s what we call a quirky coworker. Can your story top this one? There’s only one way to find out— submit your story between now and July 31 for your chance to win.

And while you’re at it, start your job search for part-time jobs now.

Each month in Off the Clock, our job seeker community section, we host a Share & Win! contest ripe with fabulous prizes and hilarious (and sometimes very embarrassing) stories. In June, we asked you to share your worst job interview stories. When we received your tales of opportunity flushed down the toilet (sometimes literally), we laughed, we cried, we cringed. We also had to take a cold shower and rent a priest afterward.

Job interviews can unfortunately be tough, grueling and unforgiving. And those are the positive ones. Luckily, they can sometimes be fun, uplifting experiences that you can one day look back on as highlights of your working life. But enough with all the positive positivity…

Our worst job interview accolades go to Melissa D. of Baltimore, MD. We’re pretty sure that the next time she goes dress shopping before a big interview, she’ll be all the wiser:

Last July, I had an interview for a promotion and decided to treat myself to a new dress. I found it at local “designer discount” store. The label was removed but it was a bargain, and it really was adorable: a black short-sleeved chemise with white polka dots. I had no idea what the fabric was, but the price was right and I decided to go for it. The day of my interview, the combination of my frock’s mystery fabric and the humidity of summertime in Baltimore made me sweat. My underarms felt wet, but I didn’t think any of the three people on the interview panel could tell; that is, until I got back to my office and my friend Patty exclaimed, “Oh my Gosh!” and dragged me into the bathroom. In the mirror, I saw in horror what my interviewers must have seen: My perspiration had reacted with something in the fabric and turned the armpits of my dress BRIGHT PURPLE! I wanted to die (or dye!). Patty didn’t even try to convince me that it wasn’t that bad, because it was. I didn’t get the promotion, and to this day, Patty calls me “Pits” when she wants to get a rise out of me. –Melissa D.

Melissa will go home with a $500 American Express gift card to buy a new work wardrobe and a gallon of bleach. “Thank you so much for turning my worst interview catastrophe into something I can now be proud of!” she told SnagAJob.com.

Good luck, Pits!

• Enter our new Share & Win! contest: Think you’ve got the quirkiest co-worker? Tell us about it and win a $300 American Express gift card.
• Also: Find job interview tips and search for retail jobs

Thanks to everyone who submitted their stories of interviews gone wrong for our last Share and Win! contest. From a flat-out rude interviewer who made one applicant cry to a job seeker who lost his lunch on a hiring manager’s lap, we had a great time reading each and every entry. But we do hope your future job interviews will be much less grueling. Now that the deadline has passed, it’s time to introduce a brand spanking new contest, so get your creative juices flowing: We want to hear about your quirkiest co-worker.

Does the guy in the stock room look like a body builder but collects unicorn figurines in his spare time? Does the girl who works the drive-thru build small houses out of condiment packets on her lunch break? Or maybe your retail manager has an imaginary friend named Phil who advises her on selling strategy. Send in your stories of the most peculiar person you’ve ever worked with, and you could win a $300 gift card to take them out to dinner and celebrate their uniqueness, or even buy them a vintage glass unicorn.

Here’s an example of what we’re looking for:

While working for a consumer electronics store, I had a co-worker, Jay, who prided himself on being EXTREME! He lived loud, dressed louder (think tight Hawaiian shirts) and scared away every woman within 30 yards of his awful Burt Reynolds’ mustache. One time he invited me out to lunch – and he wanted to drive. Jay’s ride was a lipstick red IROC-Z with a vanity license plate that read, “AWSOMMM.” But that wasn’t enough; Jay also had a matching mini rubber license plate keychain with the same inscription. After I triple-checked that my seatbelt was secure, Jay revved the engine and blasted some German techno music that would even make David Hasselhoff cringe. I thought once we hit 88 mph, we’d leap into the future, but instead we were just in a Burger King parking lot.

These people may be unusual, but they sure do make the workplace an interesting place to be. You can submit your story between now and 11:59 p.m. on July 31 for your chance to win. And while you’re at it, send funny ecards to those eccentric employees to let them know how much you appreciate everything they do.

The deadline is fast approaching, so make sure to submit bad interview stories before it’s too late. The bell will toll at midnight on June 30, and your chance to win a $500 gift card toward a brand new wardrobe will be over. So enter now, and tell us your tales of interviews gone awry. Below is an example of a story that tickled our fancy, so check it out if you need some motivation.

After spending several years in retail work, I had decided it was time to move on and find a job with more responsibility. My first interview was for a position as an office admin for a well-to-do online corporation. When I got there, the receptionist told me that the hiring manager was ready to see me, so I shook my nerves away and entered a corner office with a sweet view. “Paul?” I heard the woman say, and suddenly I realized that it was my ex from high school. I had ended the relationship senior year because I wanted to be a “free man” and “explore other options” in college. She had obviously done pretty well for herself without me—too bad that didn’t make her any less bitter. “So those ‘other options’ must not have worked out for you,” she said, half jokingly, a big diamond ring gleaming on her left hand. Not only did I not get the job, but I was totally embarrassed by being unmarried and unemployed in front of my ex. I guess my wish to be a free man worked out a little too well! Oh well…

Wow, that’s awkward. Do you think your story can top it? The only way to find out is to send it in and let us decide. But hurry up, you don’t have much time. And make sure to keep your stories G-rated—in other words, leave out anything you wouldn’t tell your grandma.

• After you’ve submitted your gruesome tale, look over our interview tips and job advice so you’ll be prepared for anything the next time an employer is grilling you.

Nothing is funnier than being unhappy in your job and struggling to support a family on a low salary, right? Well, apparently not if you’ve seen the trailer for the upcoming movie “The Promotion,” starring John C. Reilly and Sean William Scott (aka Stiffler from “American Pie”). In this film, two average Joes fight for one coveted position: Manager of a brand spankin’ new supermarket.

Donaldson’s grocery store may not be the most glamorous place to work, but we here at SnagAJob.com commend these characters’ determination to climb that job ladder to the top. However, we don’t suggest spraying mace in a customer’s eyes or handing out awards to employees for “cutting the cheese.” While it’s hilarious on screen, that may get you fired rather than promoted in real life.

So climb on, and maybe one day you’ll be in the position to battle for a similar promotion. And if you’ve already made the leap from wearing a name tag on your shirt to hanging a name plate on your office door, we want to hear about it. Inspire others by clicking the “Add a Comment” button below and share your promotion story.

• Search for summer jobs and part-time jobs now.

Thanks to everyone who sent in their funny on-the-job stories for our first Share and Win! Contest. From coworkers’ collapsing desks to spilling bleu cheese all over an old man’s head, we here at SnagAJob.com had a blast reading them all.

After poring over close to 400 entries, we have picked a winner. Congratulations to Diana Arcia from Georgia, whose story of an insurance call turned midday nap was everything but a snooze. Diana will receive a $300 American Express gift card to use on whatever she wants. Will she invest in a new summer wardrobe? Or maybe a combination foot massager/coffee maker for those days when she needs to relax and energize all at the same time? It’s anybody’s guess. Check out Diana’s winning story below:

“I used to work in the call center of a vehicle insurance company. My first day out of the training class, I received a call from a 78-year-old man who wanted to add his brand new Porsche to his car insurance policy. He was very excited because he always wanted this vehicle and it took him over half a century to get it. I asked him for the vehicle identification number and he replied, “Oh, let me get it, honey. It must be here somewhere. I’ll be right back!” Five minutes passed and all I could hear were birds singing in the background. Suddenly, a woman picks up the phone and asks, “Hello, who is this?” I identified myself and told her I was waiting for the gentleman who went to get his vehicle information. She said, “Oh, my husband went to take his nap, he probably forgot that he was talking to you. Sometimes he dozes off. Lately, he has fallen asleep while driving just waiting for the light to turn green. The woman laughed out loud and said, “Who is this again?” “This is his vehicle insurance company,” I replied. Immediately after, the call got disconnected.”

Don’t forget to send us your worst interview stories and enter our new Share and Win! contest here Also, we’ll be posting some runner-up funny stories later next week. And while you’re at it, search for summer jobs and part-time jobs.

[Note: This is not the actual “Sleeping Beauty” referenced above, but just some other unlucky dude we found on YouTube. Consider it a public service announcement: Driving while sleepy is bad!]

We have been very busy reading the more than 400 funny job stories that you, our trusty readers, sent in, and the competition is stiff. From pranks you’ve played on a coworker to unbearable bosses, our first Share & Win! contest can officially be deemed a success. We’ll announce the winner on Friday, but until then, get your typing fingers ready for the latest and greatest contest: We want to hear about your worst job interview.

Did you sit through an hour’s worth of grilling interview questions only to realize your fly was down the whole time? Or maybe your hiring manager couldn’t tear her eyes away from Perez Hilton long enough to hear your brilliant anecdote about how you got your work ethic from living on a monastery for a year. Whatever your interview blunder, we want to hear about it. Send in your submissions from now until 11:59 p.m. on June 30 for your chance to win!

To get motivated, check out this nightmare interview from a childcare worker who may need a hot shower right about now.

A few years back I had an interview for a nanny position. I drove up to the house, rang the doorbell, and a flustered woman opened the door. She stared at me blankly until I told her I was there for the interview. “Oh! I totally forgot,” she said. “My son is sick so I’ve been trying to take care of him all morning. Come on in.” I sat down on the couch in the living room and we started the interview and the little boy that was sick was standing next to me. All of a sudden he hopped up onto my lap and his mother exclaimed, “Well, he seems to like you already!” Feeling confident, we continued with the interview and before I knew it, the boy bent over and got sick all over me! His mother gave me a towel to clean up with but I had to drive home with no extra clothes. That sure was an interesting introduction into the world of children!

Ouch. That’s rough. But you can probably do even better.

• Send us your nightmare interview stories now! The person who sends in the saddest, most pathetic (and entertaining) entry will win a gift card for $500 toward a new wardrobe. And while you’re at it, be sure to search for summer jobs, and read our tips for job interviews to ensure no more job interviews get away.

For every smiling, happy-go-lucky, super perky waitress out there, there’s someone punching a hole in the wall of a break room while yodeling. Or shot-putting a triple cheeseburger through the drive-thru window at a kid in a car seat. Or setting her “Hello, may I help you?” nametag on fire.

Stress adds up. It makes your blood curdle and blood pressure jump. And it turns your smile into a frown (By the way, did you know it takes more muscles to frown than to smile?)

So what do you do to alleviate stress? Do you practice yoga in your jammies while sipping some Earl Grey tea? Do you plug into your iPod and turn the volume on full blast? Or do you pay a neighborhood kid $5 to sucker punch you in the gut?

We want to hear how you alleviate stress. Click the “Add a comment” link below and send in your stories, suggestions and remedies.

• ALSO: Get on-the-job health and safety tips, search for summer jobs and check out our Off the Clock community section.