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Old 09-25-2012, 11:38 PM
 
331 posts, read 379,716 times
Reputation: 197

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Quote:
Originally Posted by hopefulone View Post
As would an employer who posts an ad with numerous errors.
And sadly, I've seen this far too often. A job listing states that the company is looking for someone with outstanding written/communication skills, yet the ad itself contains a typo. It all smacks of hypocrisy.
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Old 09-26-2012, 10:12 PM
 
Location: USA
1,381 posts, read 1,749,365 times
Reputation: 1532
Quote:
Originally Posted by xray731 View Post
These days it's who you know or how well you can lie to get a job
This is sadly the truth.

When they ask me what my biggest weakness is, I say it's that I'm a perfectionist. Is this the truth? Of course not. The truth is that I tend not to work that well in groups, and I have a very laid-back demeanor.

Would I give this as my answer? Not in a million years. I think it's commonplace for job candidates to throw in little white lies while being interviewed.
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Old 09-26-2012, 10:27 PM
 
18,837 posts, read 37,206,541 times
Reputation: 26458
Ha ha...last job interview I had...I studied for the interview, I knew textbook answers. I impressed the team. Now, I am sure they wonder what happened to that smart gal, and how did they end up with me!?

Looking for work is a numbers game. The more you do it, the better you are.
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Old 09-26-2012, 10:56 PM
FBJ
 
Location: Tall Building down by the river
39,605 posts, read 58,786,865 times
Reputation: 9451
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wordsmith12 View Post
This is sadly the truth.

When they ask me what my biggest weakness is, I say it's that I'm a perfectionist. Is this the truth? Of course not. The truth is that I tend not to work that well in groups, and I have a very laid-back demeanor.

Would I give this as my answer? Not in a million years. I think it's commonplace for job candidates to throw in little white lies while being interviewed.


The correct way to answer that weakness question is to mentioned something that is really not a weakness but pretend it's a weakness which is not really important to the job you are applying for and explain how strengthening that weakness will help you in that position.

Example

When I applied for a job counselor position I answered the question like this

"Well right now I type 50 WPM and I want to increase that to 80 WPM so I can complete even more administrative tasks during the day."


Typing speed is not really important for that position but increasing the speed would allow me to complete more tasks during the day. The interviewer was very impressed with that answer.
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Old 09-26-2012, 11:09 PM
 
10,553 posts, read 9,602,624 times
Reputation: 4784
Quote:
Originally Posted by 313Weather View Post
The only ones that don't now how much the game has changed are those who were hired during the good times (late 1990s and mid 2000s for example) or folks who are retired or near-retirement.

But at the same time it's funny because they're the ones doing all of the criticizing.
OK, name some ways the game has changed.
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Old 09-26-2012, 11:40 PM
 
6,345 posts, read 8,059,466 times
Reputation: 8784
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wordsmith12 View Post
This is sadly the truth.

When they ask me what my biggest weakness is, I say it's that I'm a perfectionist. Is this the truth? Of course not. The truth is that I tend not to work that well in groups, and I have a very laid-back demeanor.

Would I give this as my answer? Not in a million years. I think it's commonplace for job candidates to throw in little white lies while being interviewed.
My mentors advised me to provide a weakness and how I was improving on it. They advised me against saying "I'm a perfectionist", because it showed that I was avoiding the question. I was just giving a routine answer without any thought on the question. I never did come across anybody that was silly enough to ask this question.

Most interviews tried to gauge technical skills and career intentions with the company. Some guy asked me where I want to be in 5 years. I answered it, and then he wanted me to go past 5 years. How about the next 6-10? He stumped me there. haha. Most people don't stay at the same company 6 or more years, especially in this economy. I do not have a set calendar for my career.
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Old 09-27-2012, 12:17 AM
 
7,237 posts, read 12,688,085 times
Reputation: 5657
Quote:
Originally Posted by ellemint View Post
OK, name some ways the game has changed.
I'm not going down that route again.

If you've been unemployed in THIS job market and have also searched for a job in the late 1990s, you'll know the differences.
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Old 09-27-2012, 05:01 AM
 
844 posts, read 2,010,179 times
Reputation: 1076
I work for a Fortune 500 company currently, but I have interviewed people and have been laid off several times in the past 10 years and been on many job searches and have 1 piece of advice: stop thinking anyone owes you a job - they don't. No matter how perfect your resume is, no matter how much you practice, no matter how how well you dress or how much you "ace" it. There no way to "earn" a job. They have to pick you. It's that simple. Sometimes they do and sometimes they don't.

I've come in second several times - sometimes they liked me but wanted someone with more experience, sometimes they liked me but found someone whose skills more perfectly matched what they were looking for. I always take those 2nd place finishes as a GOOD sign. It means there are jobs I'm qualified for, it means I'm interviewing well, it means people like me and want to hire me but chicken out for some reason. It means that the right job has just not come along yet.

So, stop thinking there's a way to force it - there's not. You do have to do everything right, that's a given. But doing everything right doesn't mean you'll get picked. You'll get picked when you get picked. A sense of entitlement is certainly not going to help. Good managers/interviewers can tell and will avoid you.

And in case it's not clear what I mean by sense of entitlement:
- The expectation that the job/company has to play by the same rules as the person looking for the job - they don't. They can have typos in their ads. Is that a turn off for you? Great, they'll talk to the other hundreds of folks who really need a job.
- The idea that you don't need to give examples of things you've done on your previous jobs. Did your friends get hired because they lied? They got hired because you have great examples of the work you've done that you're what, too proud to use because you think they should just hire you based on bare facts? What do you think interviews are for? How do you think they get a sense of the kind of person you are?
- The idea that it's OK to be pissed off at companies for making you jump through hoops. They make you jump through hoops because they want to make sure you're the kind of person who will jump through hoops. Many corporate jobs are about doing bull**** work because your manager or their manager asks you to. THAT'S THE JOB. If you're not willing to do it during an interview, you're not going to be able to swallow it on the job.
- The idea that a company should care about you: your personal life, how hard you've worked, what your kids need, how tough traffic was, what a bad day you're having. You should generally assume that no one gives a **** about you - it's safer. They want someone who will do whatever bull**** they ask with minimum of drama and excuses and feelings. This is the same reason they will lay you off at any moment. Companies DO NOT CARE.
- And finally, the idea that you are somehow "owed" a job - maybe because you worked for many years, that you have a great education, you're doing everything right or you just need one? You're not. This is what it means to work in a capitalist country - no one has to hire you, ever. You have to try to convince them to. And sometimes they still won't. Maybe because they didn't like your handshake or your shoes. It doesn't matter. You move on to the next one.

Sorry for the diatribe - i just see this attitude so much and it's frustrating to see people causing themselves so much angst and holding themselves back because of their attitudes towards the job search. Maybe this could help?
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Old 09-27-2012, 07:16 AM
 
11,540 posts, read 5,594,589 times
Reputation: 13855
" The idea that you don't need to give examples of things you've done on your previous jobs. Did your friends get hired because they lied? They got hired because you have great examples of the work you've done that you're what, too proud to use because you think they should just hire you based on bare facts? What do you think interviews are for? How do you think they get a sense of the kind of person you are? "

I know that this was in reference to my post - and I'm very proud of all my accomplishments - but I don't sit back and analyze every thing I do. And I do think it's wrong to see hard working people with ethics not considered for a job, when there are those that get a job because they know how to BS, who I've seen hired and fired from more places in a year than I've worked in a lifetime. If employers would take into account there is more to a person than how they answer questions at an interview. I know someone, who is great at BS. They get hired, work a few months and then either quit with no notice as " the job wasn't for them" or get let go due to lateness, missing work, poor job performances ect. Mean while, there are those with great references, great performance reviews and longevity at their job, who don't do well with these "questions" and can't get hired.
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Old 09-27-2012, 07:56 AM
 
844 posts, read 2,010,179 times
Reputation: 1076
Quote:
but I don't sit back and analyze every thing I do.
You should if you want to get hired.

Quote:
who don't do well with these "questions" and can't get hired.
You should practice and get better at these questions.

Regardless of whether it's "wrong" it's not going to change so you can wait for the company to come along who doesn't do things this way or you can change your approach to fit with what you CLEARLY KNOW companies are looking for in interviews. It's your call.
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