A Healthy Serving of Rejection
My interview nightmare at Thanksgiving.
Happy Sunday! Today’s Fish + Fig count: 600 words… 2 minutes and 15 seconds.
My job search during Thanksgiving week started extremely pleasant but turned into one of the most unprofessional interviews in all of my professional life.
Why it matters: Companies are losing highly competent employees and candidates but leaders don't seem to take accountability for their part in this tumultuous labor market.
Leading our future technologists and designers means I would have an opportunity to share and show them better ways to marry human experiences with technology while being more compassionate and empathetic to one another. Excited about the possibility of coaching young children again, I applied for a position as a Code Coach at a code school for kids with visions of adding my experience as a User Experience professional to their training.
The daydream quickly turned into a nightmare. As instructed by the extremely pleasant administrative assistant I spoke with in person the day after Thanksgiving, I submitted my resume via email to the school’s owner. Within hours, he replied to my email with a few blocks of time to choose from to have a virtual interview - as early as the next day. I opted for a time slot later in the afternoon two days later. He sent a confirmation email along with the Zoom call details.
The best plans sometimes fail. The day arrived and I was prepared with my printed resume and at least 3 questions I wanted to ask during the interview.
I joined the virtual interview 7 minutes early, but the interviewer I was scheduled to meet with did not show up on time. A male voice entered the call without introducing himself and said the founder would join shortly. He proceeded to coach someone else without muting himself.
Over 5 minutes after the set time, the founder's face finally appeared but without sound. After what seemed like an extended awkward glare of surprise at seeing my face - which may have also been an attempt to resolve technical difficulties - he finally spoke to me, rushing through brief canned comments without engagement.
His distracted posture and disinterested manner were off-putting. He rested his torso on his desk with his head propped up on his hand, like a bored child in a classroom. His interview style was hasty and perfunctory. The only “interview question”, which was a statement, was “Tell me a bit about yourself.” Feeling rushed, I briefly answered by providing a summary of my most recent years as a full-time mentor and coach to aspiring UX professionals and shared quickly that I’d previously coached children in a web academy. I was then asked if I had any questions. I asked my questions, even though he seemed disengaged. Each question was hastily answered with 3-5 word sentences.
“Well, we have quite a few candidates in the pipeline but someone on our team will be in touch.” This was the end of the interview? The entire 12-minute ordeal was quite unsettling.
3 Key Lessons:
Even when others are unprofessional, I shall remain professional and preserve my dignity. After the call, I immediately followed up with a "Thank You" email to the interviewer.
While it is easy to take situations like this personally and internalize them, I realize the characteristics and qualifications the interviewer displayed are not my own.
This experience provided a sneak peek into their company culture and values. This doesn't seem like an environment I would want to work in or a "leader" I would want to work with/for.
Unprofessional interview behavior is likely a red flag about the broader organization. Interview with caution.