The strangest interview behaviors your peers have actually witnessed
Every HR pro knows an applicant interview can head south in a heartbeat. And now, through the kindness of CareerBuilder, we have a checklist of the weirdest things candidates have done to make things go wrong.
According to CareerBuilder’s most recent study — conducted by Harris Poll — 49% of employers know within the first five minutes of an interview if a candidate is a good fit for a position. By minute 15, that number reaches 90%.
‘Just call me Tigger’
So here’s the most recent lineup of bizarre interview behaviors:
- the candidate brought about 50 ink pens to the interview and proceeded to spread them out on the table
- the candidate kept fidgeting and repositioning his duffel bag, which turned out to have a dog inside
- after introducing himself by name, the candidate said, “But you can call me Tigger! That is the nickname I gave myself”
- in an answer to a question about diversity, the candidate used the term “off the boat”
- the candidate asked if he could offer religious advice to the employees
- the candidate asked if his wife, who worked at the company for which he was interviewing, was cheating on him
- the candidate asked how much money everyone else makes
- the candidate gave the reason for leaving the previous position as “kicking someone’s butt that really needed it”
- the candidate sat in a yoga pose during the interview, and
- the candidate tried to Google the answer to a question.
As to body language …
Applicants’ physical presence has a big impact on how an interview goes, so CareerBuilder asked HR pros for some examples of behavioral quirks that turned them off. Here’s the Top Ten:
- failing to make eye contact: 65%
- failing to smile: 36%
- playing with something on the table: 33%
- having bad posture: 30%
- fidgeting too much in their seat: 29%
- crossing their arms over their chest: 26%
- playing with their hair or touching their face: 25%
- having a weak handshake: 22%
- using too many hand gestures: 11%, and
- having a handshake that is too strong: 7%.
The survey was conducted online in November to December 2014 and involved more than 2,100 hiring and human resource managers.
Got any crazy interview stories you’d like to share? Send ‘em along in the Comments section below.
