Intuition told me that I wasn’t going to get this job. Actually, I really didn’t have to rely on intuition for this one. I’ll own it: I screwed up. Bam.

Here’s my way of dealing with my rejection: sharing my mistake.

“What kind of job do you not want?”

Where did this question even come from? Mid-way through our phone interview, my interviewer managed to slip in this question between her frequent yawning. (Yes, she yawned several times, and yes, I let it get to me. Advice #1: Don’t let little things like this get to you. Pretend like it never happened.) I had NOT prepared to tackle this.

“I don’t want to do anything that is routine.”

Dear Jaimie, WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!
That’s your answer to an interview for a researcher position at a head hunting firm?
You should be fired from CSO.

So, how did I know I made a huge boo boo?

“Wait. Excuse me? You don’t like anything routine?”

O balls. When she interrupted my response with that…I knew it was over. So many things were rushing through my head. I think I was actually silent for about a good minute before I offered:

“Yes. For example, I know that your firm will allow me to take advantage of my creativity by letting me work independently and…[ok I have no clue what I said afterward, but bottom-line: she didn’t buy it.]”

So there it is friends. My boo boo. For some reason I guess I thought I was applying for an amazing, non-routine job. Reality check: the researcher position I was applying for was probably the most routine job ever!

So how do you answer this question?
Well, my trusty Google failed me this round. Apparently this is not the most popular interview question around. (What was this interviewer’s deal?!) Therefore, I turned to our awesome CSO counselors for help.

Andddd…advice:
1. What is the interviewer really asking? What’s the real question?
Here are two possible ways of looking at this. One is that the interviewer is indirectly asking you about your weakness because, let’s face it, who wants a job that they won’t be good at? You may even highlight your strengths at this point, telling the interviewer what jobs don’t work for you because of what you are good at and then following up with what kind of jobs you want (hint hint: refer to the responsibilities of the job you are applying for). The other: flexibility. How are you answering this question? Are you adamant about what you don’t like, or are you open to new things despite the fact that you might not like certain tasks? You should probably consider the latter.

2. How well do you know the job position you are applying for?
Obviously, I was clueless seeing as how I answered this questions. Basically, easiest tip of the day, don’t describe the job they are offering when answering this question! Take a moment to reflect.

3. It’s all about the surprise.
Anyone can go on Google for job interview advice…even the interviewers themselves! (Duh.) So of course my interviewer knew that I probably was not ready for this curve-ball. They want to see how you react when you’re not prepared. They want to see you squirm and see how you handle uncomfortable situations. Don’t sweat it! If you need some time to reflect, say the magic words, “That’s a great question,” or “I’m glad you asked that…”

So…hopefully you can sidestep this landmine when you’re doing your interview.
More questions? Drop-ins are weekdays 2pm-5pm. See you at the Adirondack House.