Finally, A Job Interview!

But I do have a last minute tip:

[Based on a humiliating experience two weeks ago that almost made me cry when I got home:] I would suggest, no matter how hard it is for you, do NOT, under any circumstances, mention the fact that you "type with one hand" even if you DO really type with one hand.

I would just *not* recommend it.

Gotcha, Vic. Guess I better not mention that I can type with my toes, too...;>

As this would make sense, I've been searching for any info about the company; no luck, thus far. Still, I go on...and refresh my knowledge on Access.

My own advice: when they ask what sort of challenges you'd expect if they hired you, DON'T say "gettin up for 9 in the morning". Even confidently. The try-to-say-what-they-wanna-hear answer is the way to go there.

As a way of making up, some more advice.

One question that you can ask may be to inquire about promotion w/in the company, i.e. "Are there career advancement opportunities in this company?" One, that shows them that you have ambition and confidence. Two, and I may be way off base here, I think some companies are promoting their own workers to management positions rather than hiring outside managers.

In that moment you will make the first impression and the trick will shift your kinaesthetics enough to subconsciously effect the interviewer's perception of you.

Don't take my word for it, do this trick with everyone you have to make verbal contact with for the next 48 hours. Pay attention and see if people respond to you differently. I bet they will.

i didn't get the job.

maybe be wary of how piercing you can be. don't pierce their ego.
this is obvious to all except me 4 months ago.

The trick I've found best for doing well at job interviews is to consume a large amount of caffeine beforehand, so that you seem enthusiastic and energetic during the interview.

(After you've got the job, I slip back to being a joyless slacker.)

So, good luck, Nichole!

My technique when going into an interview would be to ask myself difficult questions and answer them verbally a few times to get a good spiel going. Having an answer prepared really makes the difference. Questions like "tell me about a successful team project you were involved in" or "how would you prioritize three different tasks" or "have you ever had to deal with a difficult co-worker." Google searches will pull up a litany of questions like these.

Finally, about half the time you do an interview you'll be able to create some sort of personal connection and actually have a conversation instead of a question:answer session with the questioner in complete control. That should be your goal, to get some sort of control in the conversation. But don't try to force it, many managers don't have very good interviewing skills and if you can't guide them to a conversation just do your best to professionally answer their questions.

Good luck!

Heavens, Dan! Everyone picks their nose. I mean, this is obviously what you meant, right? ;-)

i had a second interview over a week ago for a job i really want. at the end of the interview they said they'd let me know by that friday.

but then they rang me after work the next day and left a message at short notice saying they were "in the area" and would i like to meet them for a drink that very evening and to discuss the role a bit more. by the time i got to sort myself out and ring them back, they said they had to dash off to a client meeting, so we couldn't meet up. the interviewer said he'd let me know what was happening this week.

i wrote an email thanking them and saying it's a shame we didn't get to meet up.

that was last Thursday and it's Thursday now and i haven't heard a thing. should i call them back? part of me thinks it would show i'm keen, the other thinks it might appear i'm hassling them, and then the other part is thinking if they're going to ring me and ask me to rush over to them at short notice and then wait a whole week without any response at all, is this how they're going to treat me if i work for them?

they're not going to not tell you if you've got the job, but at the same time for your own peace of mind you probably should get some more info one way or another.

you're right to be circumspect too, really, i'd say this kind of thing is a bad omen. a few years back i was down to a second interview for a job i really wanted, and the interviews were v informal, eg a few pints with the first guy and then coffee for a second interview, had a good long chat and they said it was me v one other guy and they'd let me know.

never heard a thing, emailed about 2 weeks later and they were like "oh yeah sorry we went for the other guy". crazily rude, but it happens.

i'll phone them at lunch. it's likely they've been busy or someone's been called away, but i'm still a bit perturbed by this whole carrot-dangling "come and meet us now now now, oh no sorry" and then nothing.

girl problems thread

they like you, but not as someone to give a job to

Although a month ago I would've been 'meh' about the prospect of working at the Apple Store (and even more than 'meh' in the broader context of, y'know, having a college degree), I'm really excited now (after a solid month of complete silence from every job I've applied to) just knowing that I'm going to be receiving a phone call of indeterminate nature from the Apple Store soon. How our expectations have fallen when "At least it isn't swabbing diarrhea off bathroom walls!" becomes a thrilling prospect.

^^

i have received my fair share of "thanks but no thanks" emails from completely horrible, potentially degrading jobs that are more or less way beneath my skill level in the last four weeks. i'd like to think it's because i'm overqualified. then i weep and eat a pint of ice cream with gin mixed directly into the pint.

I've been turned down for being "overqualified" too, as if being hired is a charitable act.

What is the idea behind "overqualified", if it's something you could use to your benefit and you don't mind doing it?

generally i think they think/worry you're gonna quit as soon as something better comes along.

because, you know, operating a cash register is a viable career path in 2012, rather than a temporary solution to hemorrhaging money, and you should commit yourself to the company indefinitely, what are you ABOVE this kinda work or something, etc.

btw i have nothing but respect for the retail employees of the world and the endless shit slung at them daily.

i would also swab bathroom walls for a paycheck at this point.

done both fwiw, retail ftw

you slung shit at the bathroom wall which you then cleaned up?

maybe the zoo is hiring come to think of it.

it's a dirty job but someone's gotta do it

The thing about retail is, in my experience, they aren't picky about "overqualifications". Also some register jobs you can work your way up. I mean, there have been times when I needed the extra money.

Restaurants turned me down cold, what hurt most were temp office jobs. It just seemed like, "we don't want you working here, you might give us lip. Someone with less qualifications might put up with our b.s.."

So I rang them, no one was in so I left a message. Got an email saying I hadn't got through.

what a load of big hairy rotten cobblers.

The only straight-up rejections I've received (as opposed to the Wall of Perpetual Silence) were for Macy's seasonal jobs, which I figured they would've likely been trolling the streets for warm bodies to fill. So that felt pretty solid.

I'm pretty sure assurances that a place will be hiring again in January basically work as cash vouchers with most landlords and businesses, right? Just wanna make sure I don't continue my regimen of daily panic attacks without good reason to do so.