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Job interviews that didn't go well

Deleted user
over 2 years ago

I thought others might be interested in sharing their experience of job interviews.

I am in the lucky position now of not having to work but I found it very hard in the past to get a job because I found the interviews so wholly traumatic.

In fact, the last years of my working life I worked for agencies because then I didn't need an interview.

Possibly the  worst:  I was being interviewed as a secretary for a Church of England Cathedral.  I was asked 'what part do you believe that the Church of England plays in the lives of ordinary people today?'.  My reply was that I feel it is irrelevant to the majority of people, who only really find it relevant at Easter, Christmas, Weddings and Funerals.

I knew immediately that although I spoke as I felt it was completely wrong and I should have lied.  Their faces dropped and I think they would have liked me to leave the room immediately.

Now I understand why I spoke as I felt in the light of my autism diagnosis.  I find saying what people expect/want me to say very difficult, despite many decades of 'masking'.

Job interviews (and jobs) are a huge test of a person's social skills and their ability to dissimulate, I think.

Does anyone else have a story to share?

Parents
  • over 1 year ago

    The worst one I had was just over six years ago. My employment support worker had arranged an interview for me as a Credit Controller. I can do the job really well but as always with autism I have to build myself up to phone calls.
    Anyway, the support made it clear to them I was autistic and they would have to provide a list of question for me so there were no surprises.
    I was there over an hour and everything was going well... until they put a phone in my hand and and told me to use my credit control skills to get the person at the other end to pay. Completely out of the blue and the opposite of what they had been told and had been agreed. I did my best but obviously wasn't prepared in any way.
    Thankfully I didn't get the job. I would have hated that environment.

Reply
  • over 1 year ago

    The worst one I had was just over six years ago. My employment support worker had arranged an interview for me as a Credit Controller. I can do the job really well but as always with autism I have to build myself up to phone calls.
    Anyway, the support made it clear to them I was autistic and they would have to provide a list of question for me so there were no surprises.
    I was there over an hour and everything was going well... until they put a phone in my hand and and told me to use my credit control skills to get the person at the other end to pay. Completely out of the blue and the opposite of what they had been told and had been agreed. I did my best but obviously wasn't prepared in any way.
    Thankfully I didn't get the job. I would have hated that environment.

Children
  • over 1 year ago in reply to Mr Spock

    That's a horrid experience.

    I'm sorry you had to go through that.

    I went for an evening job once and without an interview a person sat down with me and spent 15 minutes explaining how to sell newspaper space for advertisers.

    I had no opportunity to write any notes.

    Then he took his coat, gave me a key, and told me he was going home and left me to the job.

    I was in a haunted house in Old Portsmouth, it was really creepy and dark and I had no clue how to do the job so I just got my coat and went home too!