Your Worst Job Interview Ever

I read this article today on LAist, written by almost-30 year-old job seeker Simone Snaith, describing, quite hilariously, her "worst job interview ever".

It brought back some not-so-happy memories.

Can't we all conjur up a memory of the most horrible (or at least bizarre) job interview we've been subjected to? Does it make you cringe to think about it, even now?

My worst experience was very similar to Simone's. The interviewer didn't know who I was or what I was interviewing for. He spent a total of 4 1/2 minutes with me and managed in that time to blame me for showing up to a job interview that was way over my head. As if I barged in unannounced, instead of being invited. As if it were my fault that he didn't know what he was doing.

I was all of 23, and he was ancient, at least in his mid-forties.

But all was not lost, because I learned some key things from that interview, and I'm willing to bet that you learned from your "worst job interview ever", too.

What I learned from my worst job interview ever:

• Some people are really bad interviewers. Not my fault.
• Some hiring managers do a really bad job of screening resumes. Again, not my fault.
• Some people believe that trying to intimidate young female professionals is a justifiable response to dealing with their own insecurities. I don't want one of those people as my boss.
• Some places are lousy places to work. Better to find that out before you accept a job offer.
• You never know when you'll need to show grace under pressure. Being able to do so is a sign of maturity at any age.

What was your worst job interview? What did you learn from it?

Posted by Heather Mundell

Comments

[Robin Ogden]

Hi Heather -

When I think about this now it actually makes me laugh. Years ago I was interviewing and it was going very well. I was also very young at the time and being interviewed by an 'ancient' (hate to think that I'll be in those shoes one day...ha!) Anyway, the last question he asked me was: What would you be doing if you won the lottery big time? Well, being a creative, idea-minded person I had fun with the answer - however, it had nothing to do with the field I was interviewing in. Suffice to say - I did not get an offer and to this day I believe that it was because of my answer to that question.

What I learned: Always be on your toes during your interview. Assume that all conversation is being used to determine whether you're a good fit for the job.

BTW - I never won the lottery!

Robin Ogden
http://www.firedupcareers.com

[Tipitina]

After Wall Street Journal Management News Editor Joan Lublin wrote a column last fall about how bad interviewees are behaving on interviews, me and about 119 other job seekers emailed her to let her know that there were at least as many "companies behaving badly." (To read Lublin's response to all of our emails, visit: http://www.careerjournal.com/columnists/manageyourcareer/20061004-managingyourcareer.html.)

Lublin's column prompted me to try to invigorate my own blog about nightmare job experiences (including a particularly horrific experience with Harpo Productions, Inc., producers of the Oprah Winfrey Show). You can check it out at: http://job-search-torture.blogspot.com/.

[simon]

On my first every proper job interview, I had my suit all pressed in my car, the interview was over 100 miles away, I was wearing jeans (with holes in the bum and paint marks all over) and thought I would change in a service station when I got close.

Well how stupid did I feel when I started to get changed and noticed that I forgot the suit trousers! I had to go to the interview anyway, my suit jacket was just long enough to cover my arse!

[Apprentice X]

There are some HR personnel who really are just too stupid to do their job or just do not care. I have been called to a number of interviews already only to find out during the interview that the job was totally something else! Job titles and descriptions are now intended to make the job sound cool and high-paying. They make this too deceiving that even their HR's are deceived to pick the completely wrong resumes.