(More) dumb statements made in job interviews
July 31, 2009 by Jim GiulianoPosted in: Behavior, Hiring, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views
Yes, we realize this is the HR equivalent of watching a car wreck, but we can’t help ourselves when it comes to lists of dumb things people say in interviews.
These come courtesy of CNN, which polled HR managers:
Q: Why are you leaving your current job?
- “Because I [wet] my pants every time I enter the building.”
- “Cigarettes are getting more expensive so I need another job.”
- “I got fired because they were forcing me to attend anger-management classes.”
- “My old boss didn’t like me, so one day, I just left and never came back. And here I am!”
- “I stole some equipment from my old job, and I had to pay for its replacement.”
Random, unsolicited comments
- “May I have a cup of coffee? I think I may still be a little drunk from last night.”
- (During a phone interview) “Can we meet next month? I am currently incarcerated.”
- “Wow — I’m not used to wearing dress shoes! My feet are killing me. Can I show you these bloody blisters?”
- “If I get an offer, how long do I have before I have to take the drug test?”
- (During an interview for a job with the Chamber of Commerce) “Exactly what does a Chamber of Commerce do?”
Tags: chamber of commerce, HR, interviews
August 3rd, 2009 at 10:49 am
This is so funny…and I thought I’ve heard them all!
August 3rd, 2009 at 11:10 am
When interviewing for a Branch Manager position, the applicant was asked, “Please tell us about your experience and duties as a Branch Manager.”
The applicant responded: “I am sorry, I did not read my resume before the interview.”
August 3rd, 2009 at 3:05 pm
An applicant in his mid 50’s applied for a job with the town’s DPW Dept. stated “This job would be perfect for me because I am getting older and really don’t want to work.” He was mad when he didn’t get the job.
August 3rd, 2009 at 3:09 pm
During an interview an applicant’s cell phone started ringing – which annoyed me in itself. He then had the nerve to look at who was calling, hold up his hand to stop me while I was talking about the position we were hiring for and said ‘Hey, can I stop you for a quick second?’ After answering his phone, he continues to talk to the person on the other end of the line about their football game tickets for the coming weekend – and talked for close to 5 minutes. As soon as he hung up the phone I told him that’s all I had for him, thanked him for coming in, and walked out of the room.
August 5th, 2009 at 1:56 pm
I had one of these. The woman’s cell phone rang, she apologized, dug around in her purse for a while, found it, and pressed what I thought was the off button. But no – it rang again. She did the same thing. Was it over? No sir – it rang a third time. She did not get the job.
August 11th, 2009 at 1:54 pm
Our application has the following question – “Have you ever been convicted of a felony? If so, please explain.”
One fellow answered like this – “Yes, shot my wife – - – but she shot me first!”
October 22nd, 2009 at 11:30 pm
When we called to schedule an interview, the candidate asked if we did a background check. We do. He said he probably would not pass it.