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The bottom line is a job interview is a BSing contest. You have to feed them the BS they want to hear and play their game. It is stupid and lacking in logic but that is what works. Tell them you are looking for new challenges or one of the other "acceptable" reasons for wanting to switch jobs and ignore their attempts to entrap you into revealing dirt.
The bottom line is a job interview is a BSing contest. You have to feed them the BS they want to hear and play their game. It is stupid and lacking in logic but that is what works. Tell them you are looking for new challenges or one of the other "acceptable" reasons for wanting to switch jobs and ignore their attempts to entrap you into revealing dirt.
You're right about this and I for one can't stand the game. I've excelled in any position I've held my entire life. I don't believe in these games. I just get in, learn the job and I'm off and running. I've made every place I've worked at better. Answering a bunch of, "touchy feel good questions" to get that opportunity drives me mad!
Why do companies still insist on these fake tactics? They need seasoned HR people with a nose for hard working ethical people! Anyone ever heard of, going with your gut anymore? Heck, the Israel airport security forces rely almost soley on going with their gut and not a single aircraft has ever been hijacked out of there.
We have all these HR feel good guidelines to go by these days and scoring systems and BS ontop of BS and the end result is worse then ever for companies picking good help.
Get some experienced HR people in there with some backbone, wisdom and let them set their own criteria!
Why do companies still insist on these fake tactics? They need seasoned HR people with a nose for hard working ethical people! Anyone ever heard of, going with your gut anymore? Heck, the Israel airport security forces rely almost soley on going with their gut and not a single aircraft has ever been hijacked out of there.
We have all these HR feel good guidelines to go by these days and scoring systems and BS ontop of BS and the end result is worse then ever for companies picking good help.
Get some experienced HR people in there with some backbone, wisdom and let them set their own criteria!
No they need to get HR poeple back on their leash and send them back to planning parties and administering benefits. Get those useless ditzes out of hiring.
They, with all of those leading questions, are trying to find out your "character". Character is very important. Are you the type of person that rips your boss/company/product up the back? Do you always look for fault/wrong in everything? Or are you someone that tries to make the best of situations and offer constructive criticism, ideas? Answer diplomatically. Don't say the boss/product/company was a piece of s***. Tell them what was bad AND good and tell how you may have done it better/differently. Highlight YOUR positive attributes.
Wow... okay I could have easily written the exact same story that you told.
I have lived below poverty almost all of my life. I liked my job but it just was not possible for me to make enough money to have a decent quality of life and there was no room for me to improve so I was looking for something higher up the ladder. I have a college education in horse training. Hardly useful in the academic world, or so you might think. Other than that I never attended a regular college. So essentially I have a High School diploma with a specific line of extra training.
In my recent interview I was asked similar questions. What made you decide to apply for this job? What makes a cook decide she wants to work in a lab? Well my answer to them was, "I like what I do but I feel like my skills and talents can be put to better use here. I want to continue to grow as a person and a professional and I want to do something that makes more of a difference. I believe that this job is a perfect fit for me and that I will be an asset here."
Questions about handling stress or conflict at work? told them that I was well practiced in handling those situations because Igained those skill through my then current job.
I never said a thing about money or a negative word about my existing job. I just told them why I was the right person for the job they wanted to fill.
I started the new job last week working in a research lab at a very well known university. While I am not making a huge salary, between the offer I got an the incredible benefits package my life has taken a significant turn for the better.
I wish you luck on your own journey. It is totally possible to get out of that hole and up into a better place if you just stay positive and keep at it.
I know I am off topic with my response, and I only read your first post, but you seem intelligent, grounded, and aware of what's right and wrong. I am surprised you can't seem to climb into higher paying positions.
I'd say just keeping working hard and doing what's right. The right opportunity will come along for you. Best of luck.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Never Quit
I've been looking for a new job and of course, that involves sending out resumes and going on interviewers. I've noticed a strange pattern.
I went a very long time without being able to find a job and deeply appreciate any employment that I've had over the past two years, even if I hated the job and hated the company. I do not dislike my current employer and I don't dislike my current job: the people are generally very nice, they pay on time, and my job has enough variety that no two days are the same and there is no way to predict what the day will bring when I arrive in the morning.
I bring all this up because the only reason I am looking for a new job is because I would like to lift myself out of poverty. I get paid *okay*, and in fact, my employer recently gave me a 20% raise. The only issue is that, even with said raise, I still can't afford a better place to live, a place closer to my job, nor I certainly can't afford to buy my own transportation.
I told my employer that I'm not actively looking for a job, though I do take shots at jobs that pay about 2x what they pay. I certainly would not drop this job for a job that pays $2 more per hour. The risk is too high for that.
With all of my bases covered, I sometime have an interview. This brings up some difficulty for me. The only reason I want to quit my job is because I am determined to reach something that is closer to middle class status. I have no other reason to be sitting in front of an interviewer, so I just tell them that the pay is too low where I work.
But it feels like a half-assed response. I don't want to get into the self-improvement kick, seeking a challenge, the desire to live a "normal" life or any of the other tangential reasons of why I am sitting there. On paper, I am highly uneducated with no practical work experience. It *does* feel good that I am getting calls for jobs that pay over $20/hour. This is only because of the projects that I've worked on. I simply do not know how to crack the code.
This all brings me back to the title of this post. Most interviewers that I've spoken with really want dirt. Or at least, I get that impression from the questions they ask me and how they phrase these questions. They seem wholly dissatisfied with what appears to be evasive answers. I try to keep things positive, and one thing that I simply refuse to do is talk ill about people and my prior employers.
For example, it would be more tame of them to ask something like: "What software do they use?" and then follow up with "How would you, or what did you do, to improve the situation that was caused by said software?" Instead, this question would be followed up with "That is trash, what kind of company uses that?" Then they want to lead me down roads where I would be forced to admit that the company I work for is unprofessional and led by morons. These are all routes I do not care to go down.
Other leading questions include: "That must be a frustrating job" or other snide comments. I don't know what they are trying to accomplish with all of it.
I've never been middle class, so I don't know the attitudes that is prevalent in that world, and I don't know if it is happen-stance that I am getting a strange set of questions or if there is some secret handshake or code I am missing out on.
So, I ask, is this really what I should expect when attempting to reach above $20/hour jobs? What should I do when faced with this kind of interviewer (and dare I say they are *all* like this?), and what sort of things should I say or expect as I try to rise up in this world?
I suspect (and forgive me for reaching here) that these interviewers are poking at the circumstance you outlined on these boards previously: your ? girlfriend ? got you a legitimate job in a "real" company, and you quit because of "personal reasons". IIRC, in that circumstance you walked out into the cold, and had a period of years where you could not recover into even modest alternative employment. They are probing to see if you are a hothead, or otherwise a drama queen who will cause disruption in their work places. The last thing they want is somebody who will create problems and walk off in a huff.
I hope that no one knows who I am from those posts...
I enjoyed the rest of your thoughts though. This is all valuable insight. Thank you.
Wow... okay I could have easily written the exact same story that you told.
I have lived below poverty almost all of my life. I liked my job but it just was not possible for me to make enough money to have a decent quality of life and there was no room for me to improve so I was looking for something higher up the ladder. I have a college education in horse training. Hardly useful in the academic world, or so you might think. Other than that I never attended a regular college. So essentially I have a High School diploma with a specific line of extra training.
In my recent interview I was asked similar questions. What made you decide to apply for this job? What makes a cook decide she wants to work in a lab? Well my answer to them was, "I like what I do but I feel like my skills and talents can be put to better use here. I want to continue to grow as a person and a professional and I want to do something that makes more of a difference. I believe that this job is a perfect fit for me and that I will be an asset here."
Questions about handling stress or conflict at work? told them that I was well practiced in handling those situations because Igained those skill through my then current job.
I never said a thing about money or a negative word about my existing job. I just told them why I was the right person for the job they wanted to fill.
I started the new job last week working in a research lab at a very well known university. While I am not making a huge salary, between the offer I got an the incredible benefits package my life has taken a significant turn for the better.
I wish you luck on your own journey. It is totally possible to get out of that hole and up into a better place if you just stay positive and keep at it.
Congratulations!
Its kind of interesting. I feared that the self-improvement angle would give off the impression of being somewhat batty and incoherent. Sure, there is a balance to it all, but I get the impression I should try to push this angle harder next time. Even if it doesn't pan out, I have extra insight into what may or may not work.
Wow... okay I could have easily written the exact same story that you told.
I have lived below poverty almost all of my life. I liked my job but it just was not possible for me to make enough money to have a decent quality of life and there was no room for me to improve so I was looking for something higher up the ladder. I have a college education in horse training. Hardly useful in the academic world, or so you might think. Other than that I never attended a regular college. So essentially I have a High School diploma with a specific line of extra training.
In my recent interview I was asked similar questions. What made you decide to apply for this job? What makes a cook decide she wants to work in a lab? Well my answer to them was, "I like what I do but I feel like my skills and talents can be put to better use here. I want to continue to grow as a person and a professional and I want to do something that makes more of a difference. I believe that this job is a perfect fit for me and that I will be an asset here."
Questions about handling stress or conflict at work? told them that I was well practiced in handling those situations because Igained those skill through my then current job.
I never said a thing about money or a negative word about my existing job. I just told them why I was the right person for the job they wanted to fill.
I started the new job last week working in a research lab at a very well known university. While I am not making a huge salary, between the offer I got an the incredible benefits package my life has taken a significant turn for the better.
I wish you luck on your own journey. It is totally possible to get out of that hole and up into a better place if you just stay positive and keep at it.
Good for you! That's an awesome story to read. I'm so happy you went for it and got it. Never stop pushing and reaching for more, if you deserve it and are willing to take it on. No one's going to knock on your door with a better job and higher salary! (as much as we may wish )
Its kind of interesting. I feared that the self-improvement angle would give off the impression of being somewhat batty and incoherent. Sure, there is a balance to it all, but I get the impression I should try to push this angle harder next time. Even if it doesn't pan out, I have extra insight into what may or may not work.
The thing is you don't want tp push the rags to riches story angle. In other words no sob story. I have not told them anything about the hardships I have been dealing with. I wanted it very clear that I wanted to be hired on my merit and suitability for the job. But yes they want to hear that you want to move onward and upward and are interested in your own growth. You will only come off batty and incoherent if you word it in such a way.
Quote:
Originally Posted by wideworld
Good for you! That's an awesome story to read. I'm so happy you went for it and got it. Never stop pushing and reaching for more, if you deserve it and are willing to take it on. No one's going to knock on your door with a better job and higher salary! (as much as we may wish )
Huge congrats! Have a great week.
Thanks. It is still a little surreal but I am really enjoying my new work world.
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