With it being Halloween it seemed to make sense to do this week’s blog on a relevant and often terrifying subject. That’s why I’ve asked the BlueSky team for their worst, scariest or weirdest interview or employment experiences:
Tracey –
“When I was in recruitment some of our interview rooms had sofas. One of my candidates was early so he was shown into the interview room to wait for me. When the allotted appointment time arrived I entered to find him fast asleep. I thought he had passed out but it turned out he just had the mother of all hangovers. He was actually a good candidate and later secured a role, but he wasn’t exactly firing on all cylinders that morning”.
Vickie –
“I once went to an interview where the interviewer discovered he hadn’t booked a meeting room and they were all full. As a result, we ended up having the meeting in the only room available – a storage cupboard! After 20 minutes perched on a box of paper in a very small windowless room, I felt highly embarrassed leaving the cupboard to many amused looks from the rest of the staff. I can only imagine what they thought!”
Kerry –
“Not long after I left university, I applied for a job online as a ‘copywriter’ at what was described as a new local publication in my home town. I was invited to interview, and attended on three separate occasions because the first two times I showed up the boss had forgotten he was meeting me. When I finally sat down with him in a dingy room of a rundown office block, he spent the first 15 minutes talking about himself and his wonderful hugely successful career. He then went on to tell me I’d actually be cold-calling for ad sales for a publication that was little more than a glorified monthly newsletter. I’d be paid per ad placement, but wouldn’t be paid for the first month whilst I learned how to use the phone… I made my excuses and left.”
Steph M –
“While my friend and I were job hunting at the same time when we graduated, I seemed to escape the horror stories many new graduates are plagued by, but she wasn’t so lucky – from interviewers that opened her Twitter page and scrolled through it during the interview, to dingy offices she’d never work in and couldn’t wait to get out of. Though they say good things come to those who wait, and she’s now in a job she loves.”
Ian –
“I Put French as one of my languages on a CV for a job in France – the interviewer called me up on it and asked me to tell her what I’d done that day so far in French.
I just about managed something about getting out of bed and having breakfast and then completely fell to pieces – she put me out of my misery after a couple of really embarrassing minutes. I actually went on to get the job – incredibly!”
Bruce –
When I was just out of university I applied for a sales role that I didn’t particularly want, but went along for the interview anyway. After spending the morning cold calling angry businessmen and sourcing leads for this company for free, we were called in to interview. The first thing the interviewer said to me was “didn’t you consider shaving first?” This coming from a man who looked like David Baddiel after a particularly rough night out. Safe to say I realised it wasn’t the company for me relatively quickly after that and was fortunate enough to not get the job!”
