Interview horror stories/strange interviews

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Hi:
I was wondering what type of strange interviews you have gone on and what form it took.

Two from last year:

1. I was set to have an interview in a salon settting last fall and here are a few things that I noticed
A. The owner was late in meeting me
B. When I mentioned to her about my Autism she asked me a slew of illegal and clueless questions about my external sources.
Examples- "Where are your parents," "Do you have a social worker," "Who helps out with your groceries," etc.
C. When we first met she had left her two year old daughter in her vehicle and brought her in towards the end.

2. Then I did a group interview in a salon setting as a receptionist in Dec last year and the owner of the salon and company said some inappropriate things.
A. She sassed off at one of the candidates "I just want to make sure you are not going have an attitude or be a "B*&^."
B. Mocked another girl's personality "You have sass girl you are like mmm...mmm...mmmm," while shaking her head.
C.When it was my turn she looked at me and said "Now you're quirky, You're like," she stated making fidgety movements in front of the whole group. She also talked to me in a high phony voice about what I could do. Then she said "Well little miss quirky quirk would you like to do a job shadow?"

I want to hear your stories.

This isn't actually my story, but I feel compelled to post it anyways.

A good friend of mine was your stereotypical sheltered homeschooler and she went for an interview and at one point the interviewer asked her "Have you ever met a black person?".

Another one I had was in 2001 where I said the wrong things anyway but it was one the employers said during the interview.

"We don't have a position for you but you are welcome to come shop in our store!" I thought it was a nasty way to end an interview.

I don't know if this counts, but when I was interviewed by this lady. She noticed that I worked in " deconstructing " computers i.e. taking apart, and bringing the parts to a Recycler. She then asked me if I was good with computer coding, and other things pertaining to computers.

First bad experience:

I drove 45 minutes away to a job interview at a sign shop.
They said they needed a graphic designer to help them out because customers were complaining about the drawn elements not looking like what they should. They wanted me after reviewing my online resume and art that I had on my website because I "could draw things and make them look like what they are supposed to look like" (their words)
So I would be doing artwork for them. I couldn't believe my luck!! ! I could move up there and get an apartment and have a regular full time job! It all sounded great until they started going into the job details.

I was to run the entire business by myself while they all went away for a 8 week vacation. Here's the kicker --- They said they could not pay me!! ! At all! ---- but they might look into getting me college credit for the experience if that was possible. I had already graduated from college! They apparently didn't read my resume very closely. I quickly exited the interview.

Second bad experience:

Interview seemed to be going ok but then I was asked if I live with my parents or alone. I asked why they wanted to know and they said that they can't hire anyone that lives with their parents because they reserve their positions for people who are in greater need of the money to support themselves.

A friend of mine worked at that same place at that same time and I even used him as a reference - he was living with his parents.

I've had some stinkers! But the question that I still reel at (years later, I am retired now) is the moronic: What will you be doing in 5 years' time? (Yes, don't tell me why they think this is a good question to ask, I know that already, and don't agree with it).

I felt like replying, "Well moron, if you will share your crystal ball with me, I will find out and then decide whether I know you well enough to disclose highly personal information which is absolutely none of your business".

Any moron who asks you this - you don't want to work for them, even if they offer you the job. It's a danger signal..

I seem to freeze up at most of the questions that tend to get asked during interviews (which I partially blame on being traumatized during a mock job interview in high school). As a result, I just plain don't interview well and have never gotten a job that I have had to interview for.

One interview that particularly stands out in my mind is for a full time position a couple of years back. The interviewer had come in from out of town to interview several people from my school and so he was conducting the interviews in the lobby of a hotel in kind of an obscure part of town. So, I got lost trying to get to this hotel and wound up being a couple of minutes late and totally flustered by the time I had arrived (though he was still interviewing the previous person so I didn't feel to bad about being late). When the interview did start, he interviewed me and another person at the same time, even though I was interested in a full time position and this other person was interested in a summer internship. Anyways, the first question that I got asked was what got me interested in my major and after I answered I basically got ignored the rest of the interview. On top of that, the interviewer didn't even really interview the other person so much as just talk at him about the company. Overall it was just a very strange experience.

Here are a few more


1. Another friend and I at the time both had interviews at a restaurant setting as we both had filled out applications. We had set up interviews with the general hiring manager at the same time too. So when we went in they lost our applications and the GHM did not show up. They supposedly forgotten all about us as well.


2. In late 2001 I had interviewed at another salon as a receptionist. Like someone else said the interviewer dominated the conversation by talking about the nature and type of position. She did not bother to ask me any questions. She then said they had other interviews and would get in touch with me

3. I had posted an ad on craigslist two years ago and someone call my house line three times in a row. I picked it up and found out they were someone seeking a receptionist. So I agreed to go down there and meet with the lady who called me. By the time I got there she was a black woman who found that that I was white. She gave me a brief interview, dominated the conversation and said
"I have a couple of other interviews today. Call me to see if I had made a final decision at the end of the day." I never called back. She dominated the conversation too and brushed me off.

4. I had gone into interview in a law firm back in the spring this year and I got there only to find out that the person who looked at my resume was not there and then the person doing the interview wanted another copy of my resume. So they had to write everything new about me all over again.

What I have witness of others getting interviewed

1. In 2000 my mom and I went out to eat and there was a guy who had gone in for a scheduled interview. The person doing the interview made him wait by giving having the waitress lie to him by saying "It will be another 5 minutes. He's in a meeting in the back." I knew that was a lie because he kept being pokey by stocking up on pizza toppings in the back.

[quote="ASPartOfMe"]
But planning has become the 2nd most revered activity behind networking in the world of work.

People who ask the 5 years question demonstrate their ability to function according to cliches they have read in how-to books rather than think for themselves. And people like that really are risky to work for if they believe in simplistic ideas of individualism that you are entirely responsible for whatever happens to you in the future. Therefore (they like to think) anything that goes wrong for you is automatically your fault - a dangerous attitude for a boss that you work for to have.

Another cliche they love is "fail to plan and you plan to fail". God spare me from these cliche parrots.... they are telling you "I got here on the basis of copying and parroting others, much easier than thinking".

Obviously at Chief Executive level planning is important - just as a pilot would not fly blindly without using flight plans. But most economic slaves in today's top-down workplaces have no input into the planning nor ethos of the company - your input is not wanted, unless it is absolutely specific to the job you do, or if you work in the very rare kind of company that values bottom-up consultation from the ground floor staff.

Parrots, life doesn't always accord to the cliches. Political policy, bad luck (eg illness, accident, unexpected parenthood, being a victim of crime, a terminally ill child, economic downturns, restructuring and redundancy, death of a spouse... etc etc etc). And good things can chabge our life directions too - winning the lottery, coming into money, going to live in another culture, discovering a profound talent you never realised you had, meeting someone who really makes a difference to the values and goals you have...

I wanted to add to my salon horror story from 2001. I left the salon and did my own thing for the rest of the day. I ended up getting a call the next morning. When I first picked up I thought it was my mom but they said they were someone from the salon. They told me point blank "Don't try to call us. They hired someone else."


Another horror story was for a women's organization back in July this year where they were looking for someone to do loose leaf filing in a law library. They made it sound like I could do it until they had me do an evaluation only to find out that I failed miserably. They said that I was only allowed to have two mistakes max. They assumed that I could not do that line of work because it's not my area. I know that is not true. I did not have any skills. So of course I would fail.

Although I did not say anything I was mad at them.

A friend of mine had an interview at a local movie rental store and when the interviewer said "Lovely to meet you" he replied with "I love you". He didn't get the job.

Oh dear I bet the manager probably thought that your friend was flirting with him. It also sounds like your friend did not pick up on the social cues. It's still a funny interview though.

This isn't an 'interview' in the traditional sense, but in it's core essence it really is.

I went to audition for the upcoming fall plays at University early in the fall semester. I went, did what I do, and left. I didn't get called back for the show I originally tried to get into, but I did get called back for one of the others. I found that it was a two line character, but at least I made it to callbacks and this was my chance to show my skills to this new theatre department. So I go to the callbacks and I notice none of the slides have my character on it. When I inquired about it they later told me that they didn't intend to call me back and said "If you do get the part we'll let you know." which really killed my spirits. Never heard back from them so I guess they just gave it to someone they knew already and left me high and dry. As part of my theatre major I had to attend one of the shows. That was hard to sit through with my past ill feelings towards it.

I understand that I won't get called back or make it into every production I audition for, it is a given in my field of study and I am okay with that. I have not made the cut for my fair share of productions. But don't give me false hope that I have a chance at making the final cut when I never had it to begin with.