Most of us have had a few jobs in our lives, and we've learned to be on our best behavior during the job interview.
But sometimes even when we're doing our best, we might make a mistake, like blanking on the answer to a question or spilling coffee on our pants.
There are other people out there, however, with far stranger stories.
Curious, Redditor Muchachi asked:
"People who have interviewed potential new hires, what are some of the weirdest or worst things you've encountered during the interview?"
Unending Surprises
"A woman handed in her resume in person (this is an important detail for later). She seemed normal enough, looking for a part-time job. She was new to the area and was checking out opportunities. This is a grocery store she was applying to."
"She called me the day before, panicking and asking for directions to our location. It didn't seem like she knew she was talking to us as she was asking for directions to the store. (Now she was here yesterday, dropping off her resume.)"
"She called to say she was going to be late, because she forgot about an appointment."
"She called to reschedule the interview for the same time and day as the interview. She seemed to think it was a different day."
"She called asking which bus to take to the interview."
"She called to reschedule again."
"She showed up four hours early, wearing two different shoes."
"Each time she called she sounded more and more drunk. It was sad. She clearly needed help."
- Optimal_Sleep_2789
About Those Random Drug Tests...
"I used to be the hiring manager for a store in a mall. Our back room was pretty tiny, so we did interviews in the food court. Usually, it was pretty empty when it wasn't around lunch or dinner time so it wasn't hard to find a table that was far enough away from everyone else."
"I was midway through interviewing someone when I saw a girl I didn't recognize walking towards us."
"She came over, sat down with us, put a little white pill on the table, and said, 'Take this pill' to the guy I was interviewing."
"Then she asked if I wanted one without actually saying what it was."
"When I said no, she started asking how I knew her friend. I told her I worked at a store and was interviewing him for a job, and she just said, 'Oh cool,' and just continued to sit there."
"It took a few minutes for the guy to get it through to her that we weren't friends who met during an interview but that this was the interview that she had crashed. Once she finally got it, she picked up the pill, got up, and wandered away."
- AmyHeartsYou
One-Way Ticket to Amazon
"Interviewing for student workers at a College Bookstore. So we got a pretty wild variety of characters, but none like Lorenzo."
"This dude comes walking into the interview in some tattered cargo shorts, a dirty White Tee, some flappy broken sandals, long mangy hair, and a scraggly beard. But the best part was the gourd. He had a good-sized gourd hanging from a hemp necklace around his neck that he was using for a water bottle."
"Now the Assistant Director and I both have a pretty solid sense of humor, and we know this interview is going to be special."
"We began asking him all the usual questions. Why do you want to work here? What were your favorite past jobs? All of which he answered really well, far beyond our expectations."
"At the end, we always had a fun question in there as well. We asked Lorenzo if he could go anywhere right now, where would he go."
"He passionately said, 'AMAZON! I would go to the AMAZON!' and got up and started dancing around the office. 'I'd go do a rain dance in the rain forest! Man, I wanna go so bad!' And then he pounded the gourd."
"Best interview ever."
"Sadly, our Executive Director flat out NO'd Lorenzo. The AD and I were tragically disappointed. We really wanted to give him the job, just to see what happened. He became a bit of a campus legend, and we really did regret not being part of his journey."
"Rumor has it that after graduation, he boarded a plane to South America and was never heard from again. Dance on, buddy! Dance on!"
- Centumviri
Emotional Intelligence
"Crying. She explained that she just cries sometimes for no real reason and I accepted her explanation."
"She was a good hire. I would swing by her office and sometimes she would be in there crying and working away."
"She was a graphic designer, this was at a design firm, and she was referred by someone I trust...12 years on, she has three kids and is doing good."
- seemooreglass
No Wrong Answers... Apparently
"I wasn't on this panel, but an older man being interviewed responded to two of his questions with 'That's a stupid question' and 'You tell me, you work here.' Needless to say, he didn't get the job."
"Another man bought lunch at the time of his interview and then complained he was being disturbed when someone went to call him through."
"Entitled weirdos."
- anybloodythingwilldo
Company Relations
"I have so many."
"One of my favorites was an early morning interview at a large job fair the company I had just been hired to was hosting at our local convention center. This candidate has been there the night before and completed her application and some assessments and was asked to come back in the morning to interview."
"She was DRUNK y’all. Not hungover. Hiccuping, slurring, stinking drunk. She tried to hug me rather than shake my hand."
"It was another woman and I doing the interview. She asked the candidate why she had left her last job and she said, 'Well, it’s like this, ya see. . . Me and my old man, we was getting a divorce (hiccup)... So then I started sleeping with a whole bunch of guys at the office. Then me and my old man? We got back together, and now I’m not allowed to work there no more.'"
"Oops."
- dontmesswithtess
Date For Hire
"I worked in HR (Human Resources) for a long time. I was usually the first person new hires went through for admin jobs."
"I interviewed one guy who was creepy beyond words, winking at me, biting his lip."
"At the end, he said, 'Well, I’m pretty sure I blew this interview, but would you hire me for a date?' I told him he has 30 seconds to leave before security was called."
- -allnighter-
Waiting Room Drama
"While waiting for her interview, I had a lady get into an argument on the phone with her roommate about leaving her sex toys in the dishwasher."
- AlexatRF21
History Repeating Itself
"I was interviewing someone who casually mentioned that one of their dogs had died after being left in the car during her work day. She then went on to ask if we have a place where she could keep her dogs at work."
"We do not, to which she replied that that’s ok, they could stay in the car."
"We were hiring for a dog trainer position."
- squarebeardoesntmind
Helicopter Parents
"I had a 24-year-old, college graduate, come into the interview with her father. I had multiple interviewees, so when I called her name and they both stood up, I told him it wasn't a group interview and he'd be in when his name was called."
"He looked at me and said, 'I'm her father. I'll be sitting in on her interview.'"
"I looked at both of them and said that wasn't happening, and he was not welcome to join us in the interview room unless he was an applicant on my list."
"He literally took her by the hand and walked her out. That was eight years ago or so, and I still think about that poor woman. I was 25 at the time and couldn't imagine that being my life."
- evanjw90
Brief Employment
"The one that stands out the most to me was hiring for a new computer tech. Was a nice guy, and seemed to know the basics but was clearly new to the field. When I asked if he had any questions for me his first one was, 'What is the process for transferring to a new position? I'm only applying here because there aren't any openings in accounting.'"
"Umm, yeah, dude... Tell me right away you don't really want that job and don't intend to stay at it. I just looked at him blankly for about 15 or 20 seconds and I think it dawned on him what he just did."
"The interview basically ended there and I thanked him for his time and said I wouldn't be calling. I hope he learned from that."
- cyferhax
Not a Team Player
"I was interviewing a graduating senior for an entry-level designer position, a position that would have required her to work closely with a writing partner and less directly with an entire team."
"I asked her how she approached working in teams and she said, 'Oh, I hate working in teams. Every time I do, everyone ends up ganging up on me, so I want to work alone here.'"
"Might as well have just ended the interview then and there because that's not and never will be how advertising works."
"I pointed out her portfolio and asked her how she'd created those pieces. Hadn't she worked with a writer on the headlines or the body copy?"
"She said no, her professor let her do everything herself because she'd told him she 'refused to work with anyone.'"
" I can't remember what school she went to, but they did her a massive disservice by letting her think that was normal."
- ostentia
At Least They're Honest
"Not an interview, but yesterday I received a resume that said, 'I really think it's time for businesses and companies to change the way they hire everyone. I have been out of work for over four years already and it's getting ridiculous. I may have not grown up in [redacted] but I am more than qualified for all the jobs I applied for.'"
- Sspalding91
Gotta Keep Up the Gym Habit
"Not majorly weird but always stood out to me:"
"I was on the interview panel with the owner and project manager as I was in charge of training new hires."
"A guy came in wearing skinny jeans and skater trainers. Already, I know the owner is annoyed because he's a stickler for the dress code (shirt, trousers, shoes) in the office."
"His CV said he's already experienced in what we do so we asked him some basic questions about the work he's done and he gave some vague answers that didn't really explain anything or indicate any real experience."
"Partway through the interview, the owner said that I'd be training him should he be successful, and he very obviously sneered and rolled his eyes."
"At the end of the interview when asked if he had any questions, he said he likes going to the gym so he'd like two lunch breaks because of the amount of food he needs to eat and also to actually get to the gym. The owner says we can discuss that if he's successful."
"The project manager and I didn't want him but the owner said we should invite him back for the second stage competency test and asked if I could contact him because he noticed the eye-rolling."
"The owner also made a comment about him being scruffy and told me to make sure he comes dressed for work."
"I invited him back and told him exactly the sort of thing he was expected to wear."
"He turned up a week later wearing the exact same stuff from his interview. It was clear during the (quite simple) competency test that he'd barely done this type of work before, if at all."
"He also turned up with two large tubs of pasta for the competency test and stopped partway through to eat one of them despite only being there for two hours (which was supposed to be an upper limit)."
"I asked him at the end if he had any questions and he asked what other responsibilities I had because I obviously wouldn't need to spend much time training him. I sidestepped that and he repeated the question about two lunch breaks."
"The owner phoned him the next day to tell him he wasn't successful and he offered his services on a freelance basis for both work and training, even sending a follow-up email offering the same thing a few days later."
- TheTrueBobsonDugnutt
The Beginnings of a Parasocial Relationship
"I interviewed this lady who seemed okay, but we didn't hire her. Then she kept emailing me, asking questions about the job (after she knew we hired someone else), and then she emailed me asking to meet up and 'hang out.'"
- bigtex2003
While we may have made some mistakes in our interviews, these deeply cringe-worthy accounts are bound to make us feel better about the slip-ups we may have experienced.
One of my least favorite parts of job hunting is the interview. It’s nerve wracking to try and guess what the best way to present yourself would be, and I find out doubly nerve wracking because I’m so shy. However, it is an integral part of process, and not just for the employers.
While the point of an interview is for the employers to get to know potential hires and make sure they know what they’re talking about and would be a good addition to the company, potential hires can use the interview to their benefit as well.
You get to find out more about the company, the people you will be working for, and the work environment. You’ll know if the company is going to give you what you want, and if the workplace is pleasant or toxic.
Redditors know this all too well, and are sharing their stories about what red flags during interviews clued them into the fact that the workplace is toxic.
Curious to know more, a Redditor asked:
“What are some red flags in an interview that reveals the job is toxic?"
The Tax Break Ain't Worth It
"In one interview I was enthusiastically assured that overtime wasn't an issue, but if you pick up an extra shift they pay in gift cards so that it saves you on taxes."
"I know they're trying to save themselves employment taxes and time and a half, they're not doing me any favors. I declined their offer."
– Cook_n_sh*t
"The IRS wants a word with you."
– frederick_ungman
Time For A Vacay
"I always ask everyone in the room when their last vacation was."
– GenericHam
"This is a great tip."
– Eastern_Category7875
"Or some variety of how often they take vacation, especially for places with "unlimited" vacation. I interviewed at such a company once, and my interviewer said he never took off and was talking about a coworker who takes off frequently in an annoyed tone."
– acid-runner
Started From The Bottom...And Stayed There
"“We’ll start you at minimum and re-evaluate in a month”"
– Hot_Salad9000
"...which turns into a year."
– frederick_ungman
Reviews Matter
"When I mentioned a company's dismal Glassdoor evaluations, they became so enraged that they ended the interview. Well. I suppose I escaped that danger"
– Alhbf
"I brought up a company's poor Glassdoor reviews during an interview before too (they were all complaining about the owner of a small company). The folks interviewing me looked at each other and said that the owner could be difficult but he's in Mexico most of the time so I'd never have to see him. I accepted the job because I was desperate but sadly that was around the time the owner decided to stay around and get his hands in everything. I was only there for 8 months and I think five people left before I did because of him."
– churrofromspace
Not The Boss You Want
"Had an owner of a restaurant tell me "If you have a problem don't come to me cause you won't like how I fix it" Yeah, keep your job."
– DeftTrack81
"One of the key functions of being a boss is helping the people under you solve a problem. What a douchebag."
– GrifterDingo
High And Mighty
"The interviewer keeps telling you how fortunate you are to be there like they are doing you a favor by giving you the job."
– SuvenPan
"I’m a teacher. My last principal reminded us in every meeting—usually more than once a month—how lucky we are to be working there. My new principal starts every meeting—two per semester—by telling us that we are talented enough to work anywhere and he’s honored that we choose to work with (not for) him. It’s a drastic and beautiful change. My new school mostly was hiring because the district was growing and they simply needed more teachers. My last school was hiring because they had a 50% turnover rate."
– Flaky_Finding_3902
Know The Numbers
"Trying to get you to agree to start before they tell you what you’ll be paid."
– operative87
"I applied to a position out of state and was offered the position during the phone interview. When asked when I could start I replied two weeks, but stated I couldn't accept without knowing how much it paid and having that in an official offer letter/email."
"This dude lost his sh*t and said all huffy puffy "Well, I mean, I don't have the numbers right in front of me, but I guess if you have to know I can get that for you." I said yes, I have to know. He said he'd call back. He never did."
– Krushed_Groove
The Answers Are Obvious
"Once I had an interview where they silently gave me a questionnaire to fill out for 50 questions and just went to another room. The questions were very detailed and stupid, mostly about money. ‘Is your goal to make money in our company?’ (If the answer is ‘yes’, then you didn’t pass). I left before I even finished answering this list. And then I found out that they register employees for an incredibly low official salary, promising to pay most of it at the end of the month, but they delayed money for six months and don’t give it out if the person quit."
"I’m glad I left."
– Lina_Grapes
Cringiest Interview
"I interviewed for one once where the manager spent the whole time asking me the usual questions in between rounds of berating some poor tech support employee on the phone about their payroll software."
"Also any time a hiring manager talks up the company's bonuses and raises to justify their low salary, you'd better believe you're not actually getting either."
– ThreeStacksRadio
Not All Heroes Wear Capes
"I drove about 4 hours to an interview in another city. I told the person interviewing me that I was happy at my current job and wouldn't consider leaving just for the higher pay."
"He stood up and looked over the cubicle walls to make sure no one was around and whispered, "You don't want to work here.""
"I passed on that job but while in the new city I applied for another job where I have been happy for the last 25+ years."
– carefreeguru
What A Real Interview Is All About
"When they don’t realize that you’re interviewing each other."
– love_is_an_action
"After realizing this, I was never nervous again."
– NoodlesDoNot
Not So Occasional
""We expect our employees to be flexible regarding work schedules:"
"Would you be available to work evenings, weekends, and occasionally on holidays with short notice according to our needs?""
– Back2Bach
Be Kind
"When they have nothing good to say about the person whose position they are trying to fill. They aren’t necessarily talking bad about the person- just little digs, almost passive aggressive."
– Laceybabe9669
Be Careful What Group You Invade
"Once you realize that all upper management is family."
– fshnow
"This, or they're all from the same church or community. Nothing like being passed for a promotion by the new guy because he's with the higher ups every Sunday despite being totally incompetent at the actual job. Classic nepotism."
– honinscrave
"Or they are all best friends."
"So when you have to make a complaint against one of them, they don't take it seariously and they dismiss it because they think you are the problem when in fact, they are the ones who are toxic."
"(Yeah, I was in that situation)"
– Frankydoodelidoo
Know Your Worth
"An interviewer tried to convince me to lowball myself after I said what I’d accept as a minimum salary which was in their offer range from the posting. “If we pay you more you wouldn’t get a bonus at the end of the year, and you’d be really upset when everyone else got one.”"
"What he was “able” to offer salary wise was $10k below their posted range."
– -Apocalypse-Cow-
"I'd rather get a salary than a bonus anyway. A salary is guaranteed; a bonus is not."
– LeoMarius
There are more red flags here than most sporting events!
Do you have any to add? Let us know in the comments below.
Job interviewing doesn't have to be difficult.
Let's not get crazy.
People are looking to work, don't make it arduous.
Some interview questions are just a power play and you know it.
Read the resume.
RedditorNickIsAlreadyTakenwanted to discuss all the things we no longer need to hear when trying to land work. They asked:
"What is the worst interview question?"
On an interview I once was asked... "Why do you deserve this job?" Honey... because you're offering it. Next question.
Beasts
"What animal represents you?"
Brush_bandicoot
"A chameleon, because I'm adaptable."
throwawaytrash5991
IT
"I work in IT - was once asked 'What are the advantages of deploying an application into a n-tiered environment?' Had no clue what that meant so I answered:"
"The advantage is that you will not face the difficulties of deploying into an otherwise-tiered environment."
"I got the job."
masu94
Equipment
"Some good examples here but honestly anything that's like 'What utensil in a kitchen are you?' or 'What office equipment would you be?' questions are so annoying. Because they obviously want to see how you can turn 'fork' or 'stapler' into a description of your work ethic but just ask that instead of making me be an anthropomorphic cuisinart."
ItsTtreasonThen
Promotions
"Why do you think the turnover rate on our team is so high?"
"I was interviewing for a promotion within my team. The obvious, employee-self-reported number one answer is BECAUSE THE PAY IS F**KING GARBAGE. But how can you say that in a god damn interview? So I made up some other bullcrap."
Quefjack
Or flower?
"I didn't think these kind of people existed until I was legitimately asked, 'If you were a tree, what kind of tree would you be?'"
AKeeneyedguy
You know what you can do with your tree?
I don't know...
"'Why should we hire you over the other applicants?' I didn't even knew the other applicants."
SuvenPan
Bull Crappers
"Why should we NOT hire you?"
nooutdeed
"It's the same question as what are your weaknesses. Are you going to tell the truth or spin them some bull crap like 'oh I'm such a workaholic, I work so much I often forget to neglect things in my personal life'. All you're telling the employer is that they cant trust you to give an honest answer when sh*T hits the fan. Be upfront with your short comings. We've all got them. They're just trying to figure out who the bull crappers are."
RgbScart
World Peace
"Q: What are you hoping to get out of this job?'"
"Honest A: A paycheck and healthcare.'"
Red_Christmas_Lights
"I remember getting this question asked to me during an interview and I froze; I was completely unprepared for this question and so I didn't have a great response prepared. I made up something, but was convinced I had screwed up and so I was bummed. I was 16 and the job interview was for a part-time job at Blockbuster. Blockbuster. What a stupid f**king question."
orange_cuse
60 Seconds
"Was once presented with a sequence of numbers on paper and told I had 60 seconds to tell them the next number in sequence. After puzzling over it for a minute I finally told them: 'You just wrote a random bunch of numbers on paper to see if I'd come up with a bullcrap answer didn't you?' Apparently, that is exactly what they did. It was both annoying and genius at the same time."
zerbey
Seriously?
"Apart from our generous salary, why do you wish to work here and for how long do you see yourself here?'" Legit had that asked verbatim for a part time retail gig."
Ironically__Swiss
BK Days
"When I was like 18 I had a job interview at Burger King. The lady asked 'Where do you see yourself in 5 years?' and then had the motherf**king balls to continue in saying 'Because we don't want people using this company as a stepping stone to other things, we are looking for loyalty.' (probably paraphrasing slightly). Still baffled that they really expected an 18 year old to not use Burger King as a stepping stone. They payed $8 an hour at the time. Lmao."
RedditingAtWork5
My Disdain
"I had someone ask my once what I disliked about my former managers. What a weird, loaded question. I had no intention of disparaging my former employers, which I think is what they were looking for. I didn't get the job and wasn't very disappointed about it."
SuchLovelyLilacs
Faces
"It’s actually a real story about 20 years ago. The interviewer said 'I actually don’t like your face. Could you please just smile now? Why are you making a serious face? lmao'."
WhitePhatA**
"Did you get the job?"
patheticdumbledore
"No they just laughed at me all time I was there and of course got rejected. But as they’re too terrible, I could felt like I was lucky not to end up working with terrible coworkers."
WhitePhatAss
What?
"Why should we hire you?"
Careful_Frosting530
"You need spreadsheets, I need a paycheck. Let’s not over complicate things."
maclaglen
Ingredients
"Tell me how you would make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich."
much2doboutnada
"Start with fresh vegetables and some bite sized slices of pork. Place vegetables in a hot pan with sesame oil. Stir until they are partially cooked, then add the meat. Keep stirring until everything is cooked thoroughly. Then add soy sauce. The cap falls off and you put an entire bottle in. Throw the Stir fry away and eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich like the failure you are."
Pharaon4
2 Hours Later
"So this came at the end of a two hour interview. I had already accepted another position, but had this interview in the works for a few weeks so figured I'd hear them out anyways, but if it didn't work out, whatever. The whole interview went decent, I actually liked the company and there was a ton of room for growth. The company also fit into my personal interests, so not a bad place to be."
"At the very end of the interview, and I don't remember the exact phrasing, but the interviewer basically said; 'I'm really just looking for someone to do all my busy work, to just put their head down and push out a ton of general things. Can you do that?'"
"It just left such a sour taste in my mouth, I'm on the analytical side of things, busy work is definitely a portion of what I do, but I like to do more of the nuanced cause based evaluations, it was something I would have done 5-10 years ago in my career as opposed to now. So that question is my answer."
tynorex
Gone
"'Where do you see yourself in 5 years?'"
"When you are applying for a minimum wage job while you are in high school or college. Like every time I was asked that question I wanted to say 'not f@#$ing here, that's where!'"
TodayI-Forgot
“sell me this pen”
"Not a question but one time an interviewer for a spa reception job did the 'sell me this pen' thing from Wolf of Wallstreet and I did not know how to answer because I didn’t know if I should quote the answer given in wolf of Wall street or if there was another correct answer."
existingokay
Interviewers... It's 2022, time for better job interview questions. Be smarter.
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Never miss another big, odd, funny or heartbreaking moment again.
As desperate as people are for a job these days, sometimes you realize real quick, this place ain't worth it.
Yes, we need to make money to survive, but some work opportunities will only ever lead to toxic drama.
Listen to your instincts.
Just politely say... "I'm sorry. I just had a death in my family. I must go."
Then run. I promise there are other jobs.
Redditorsheepofwallstreet86wanted to hear about the reasons why they knew a job was not going to work right from the start. They asked:
"What happened during an interview that immediately made you realize you wouldn’t take the job no matter how much they offered you?"
I once thought I might sell steak knives. The orientation was five hours. For steak knives. I wanted to stab myself with my product.
Negative Much?
"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."
IAmDotorg
I still felt terrible...
"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 script, 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."
CapnFang
The Resume
"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 sh*t my resume is."
godzillastailor
Pants on Fire
"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."
Lostarchitorture
Pass
"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."
kyle71473
Seriously. How many interviews do you really need? Nothing is changing from meeting to meeting.
Smarter than the Average Turnip...
"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 a dumba**, but I didn't fall off the turnip-truck yesterday."
asstyrant
Excuse me, what?
"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, plus a bonus of $500 for office supplies, but I could only buy out of their selected catalogue. I almost laughed in her face."
FreeSpeechMatter1776
Always trust your gut...
"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."
bassgirl23
20%
"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."
JimboSliceCAVA
Sorry 3rd Lady...
"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."
SSOJ16
3x times a charm...
"I remember making it to the third interview round for this organisation only for them to tell me that I don't have the particular background in the sector that they're looking for. This is after a general recruitment test, a case study assignment and two interviews. Needless to say, it was super frustrating."
PM_ME_YOUR___ISSUES
"taster session"
"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 fucked and he would loudly sigh every time I needed something explaining. Because how dare someone need something explained to them on their first job."
TheNameless00
"no excuses"
"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."
fxcassell
Game Time
"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 than 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 freaking out. It's a clear sign of a toxic workplace - I've yet to see an exception to this rule."
fargmania
2 of us...
"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."
Future_Classic_
Someone better...
"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.'"
Redittoranian
It was a full time job...
"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."
thecylonstrikesback
1997
"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."
stevedonie
It's a Cult
"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.'"
poe_todd
Damn You John!
"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."
Arcinbiblo12
Again... just get up and run.
There will be other opportunities.
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Interviewers Share The Absolute Worst Questions Candidates Have Ever Asked In A Job Interview
Job interviews can be nerve-wracking. You might go into one wondering what to say, what to ask. You might be acutely aware of your heart pounding in your chest.
But then you manage to ace the interview and get the job.
But what about the people who seem to have no conception of what a job interview entails?
These are the people who ask the wildest questions, as we were so kindly reminded by Redditor Butchbunny, who asked the online community,
"Interviewers: what's the worst question someone has asked at the end of a job interview?"
"I politely but quickly excuse myself..."
"I interviewed a gentleman older than I once who continuously asked who the boss was. I said I was the manager and left it at that. He wasn't satisfied and went on and on about what jerk the owner was."
"I own the company, started it from scratch. He said the owner screwed him out of a job once (never applied before). So I was just finishing the interview out of courtesy and my own pettiness."
"As I asked when and where he met the owner I see my frantic husband walk in the front door and a few employees go with him. So I'm half listening to this guy ramble on about meeting in Vegas, and so much other crap, as an employee burst into the office and says that I'm needed up front."
"I politely but quickly excuse myself to go out front to see my kid busted his nose bleeding everywhere."
"I go back in and explain I would cut the interview short and said I needed to run my child to the ER. This POS thought saying 'that's why women make crappy management' was a smart choice. It wasn't."
"First off I own this company from the idea to every last brick, I've never been to Vegas and you have never applied here. He stood dumbfounded and walked out."
"The next week he called asking for the status of his application."
mortmama
He had some nerve!
Must have been funny hearing this guy mouth off while sitting with the literal owner of the company.
"I was hiring a nanny..."
"I was hiring a nanny for my 2-year-old. I've hired people for a business before so I followed pretty standard interviewing procedure."
"At the end of the interview, I of course asked if she had any questions. She asked how often I spank my daughter, do I use a wooden spoon or hairbrush, how often do I expect her to implement spanking as a disciplinary technique."
"Blew my mind. I was seriously speechless."
Bullydaddy
Spanking doesn't help kids.
The American Psychological Association (APA) has noted that many studies "have shown that physical punishment— including spanking, hitting and other means of causing pain—can lead to increased aggression, antisocial behavior, physical injury and mental health problems for children."
"A bit after the end of the interview..."
"A bit after the end of an interview and happened to a co-worker, but it deserves an honorable mention."
"A guy stole the HR manager's wallet from the orientation and bought beer with his credit card. Manager went to the store, got to see the tape, then went across the street to where the new hire was drinking the beer and demanded his wallet back."
"After denying it at first, the new hire eventually gives the wallet back. He then asks the HR manager if he can keep his job."
"He did not keep his job."
aesirmazer
Of course he didn't!
Oh, the drama. It's delicious.
"Do any women work here?"
"'Do any women work here? They're attracted to me like bees to honey. I find it better to not work around them than to be hit on constantly.'"
"He did not make it to the next round of interviews!"
GunSaleAtTheChurch
People Share Their Unexpected Happiest Moments | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
While many of life's big events like weddings and births bring us joy, even the smallest of gestures or gifts can leave a lasting impression. Especially if y...This man clearly believes he's the master of the universe.
"I was baffled..."
"I work at a chicken plant. The guy asked, 'Do yall kill the chickens or do yall pick up dead ones and bring them here because I don't really condone killing.'"
"I was baffled because he LITERALLY worked at a place as a bombshell loader in the state over before moving here."
"I told him we do kill them, but not to worry we pray over all the birds. He seemed content with that."
jonbon1992
Well, that's one way to win over a prospective employee.
"She was currently applying..."
"'Do I need to quit my other job?'"
"She was currently applying for a full-time job while working a full-time job. She went on to try to convince us that she's so bored at her current job she could totally get away with doing this job at the other place."
theotherside0728
Um, yes, you do need to leave your other job.
What is up with people?
"Asked about..."
"Asked about a company car and company credit card — it was a call center job."
TheUpperHand
A company car and credit card would be the one thing–well, two things–that would make call center work tolerable.
"I was called in..."
"Seriously I heard this one (second hand but immediately after), 'Are those real?' eying the interviewer's breasts."
"The answer was a pause, giggle, gulp, 'I think we're done here.' I was called in to escort the guy out."
Smokey_Katt
The "I think we're done here" bit had me cackling.
"That's a big no."
"Work in finance. Had a guy fresh out of school ask if we could fudge the numbers if the boss asks us to."
"That's a big no."
dymba
Note: Don't ask if you can commit crimes.
Well, well, well... next time you're on an interview, you might want to refer back to these stories.
There's being nervous and then just being clueless.
Have some opinions of your own? Feel free to tell us more in the comments below!
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