Career development

14h

As a recent college graduate, I knew I'd have to do more than just send out my résumé. I found my first job from a Facebook post.

Last May, I graduated from Smith College. Now I live in New York and work as a Project Manager at PDS Development, a Brooklyn-based real estate development and consulting firm. My experience with the job application process had nothing to do with LinkedIn, a perfect résumé, or most of the mainstream advice Gen Z has been given about landing a job.

It had everything to do with human... connection.

I've loved all things real estate and design since I was 10 years old. I grew up around it -- spreading garden mulch on Brooklyn investment properties for $15 an hour, shadowing agents at showings, interning at a local architecture firm, and ultimately passing my real estate licensing exam at 18.

Thankfully, I landed my dream job straight out of college in a unique way.

A Facebook post, and seizing the moment

One day, during my junior year, I randomly hopped on Facebook and spotted a post in a community group called "Park Slope Together," formed during COVID to support neighbors and local businesses. A successful real estate developer was looking for administrative assistance, and I was hungry for real-world, working experience -- something not easily accessible as a full-time student in Massachusetts.

Twenty-three people flooded the comments. I messaged him directly on Facebook Messenger, we got on the phone, and within days, he started sending me remote tasks to complete while I finished my studies. The most amusing part? He lived up the street from my childhood home; we were neighbors.

I worked quietly in the background of his operations for two years.

As my last semester of college approached, he said, "You know, if you're ever interested in full-time work, we can talk about what that could look like." It was a no-brainer; I jumped at the opportunity to work with him, someone who was so inspiring to me. His mentorship and generosity felt invaluable. I'm now working full-time at PDS, and I couldn't be happier.

Since starting, I've sourced sites for charter schools and other nonprofit programs, attended RFP site visits, supported loan financing for nonprofits, helped facilitate relationships with financial institutions, and represented the firm at events. The most meaningful part has been the building of relationships with clients, brokers, building owners, and coworkers.

The importance of human connection

In this new era of digital connection, where many people are firing off identical applications, I've found that human connection is what helps people stand out -- nurturing real relationships. I've watched peers navigate the process through digital channels alone, and the contrast is stark.

I've recently started attending real estate events. Though I've struggled with a fear of public speaking, I raised my hand to ask a question during a Q&A. I left feeling proud, and it even opened up conversations after the event.

It's no surprise that much of professional communication happens digitally, and often without a face behind the name. As communication becomes increasingly digitized, it's more important than ever to grow human connections.

Recognizing your existing network

Despite the challenges that come with building a career as a young person, one major advantage is that people want to help you. They think back to when they were just as uncertain in their early 20's.

Accept the help and welcome mentorship.

For those who don't think they already have a strong network: you may not realize it, but you do. You have family, friends, neighbors, teachers, community members, alum. Asking someone to grab a coffee may seem like a small step, but you never know what types of opportunities could come from it.

Don't rush figuring everything out

When I was a kid, I went rock hunting behind my home in Michigan. I found a rock, and something made me grab a marker and write a message on it: "Try new things." I still have the rock, and I often think back to the message.

I've learned to go with the flow and not rush myself to figure out my life. It's easy to feel pressured to follow specific, linear paths, but I've observed that career trajectories (and personal ones for that matter) aren't always as structured as they appear to be.

Three years ago, I would never have expected to be doing the work I'm currently doing, but I was open to the experience of trying something new.

My message to those reading, who may feel lost: Believe in yourself, even when the destination isn't visible. Put yourself out there and meet new people. Try new things. more

3

Kathy Omaits
11h
Where in Michigan did you grow up? I am also from Michigan, the Milford/ Fenton/Holly triangle.

Career development

13h

When I moved from the US to Paris 2 years ago, I hadn't considered all of the privileges I was leaving behind

* I left New York City and moved to Paris about two and a half years ago.

* Living abroad has been great in many ways, but I miss having a physical support system.

* Job hunting feels extra tough since I need a visa sponsorship, which can be expensive for companies.

Nearly two and a half years ago, in January 2024, I crammed my most essential belongings into three suitcases and left behind the... only life I have ever known to start a new one halfway across the world, in Paris.

Jaded by corporate America and wanting a change of environment, I left my hometown of New York City and moved to the City of Light on a student visa in pursuit of a better life.

While I feel I succeeded in building a more mindful life for myself in many ways, living abroad has also come with its fair share of challenges.

When I decided to leave my home country and become an immigrant, I didn't fully consider all of the privileges I may be leaving behind.

In addition to having to prepare a script to book a doctor's appointment in a language I'm not yet fluent in, other seemingly simple tasks have become notably more difficult to circumvent as an American living in France.

Navigating a tough job market is a nightmare when I have to also consider visa sponsorship

Because of visa restrictions, it often feels like I have to work 10 times as hard as French nationals and EU citizens to secure a permanent work contract in my field.

In France, companies hiring a foreign worker for 12 months or more are typically required to pay an annual tax that can equate to 55% of the employee's salary. This is no paltry fee, particularly for small enterprises and startups.

The job market here is so tough for non-EU citizens that many of my fellow expats in Paris have turned to fully remote work, freelancing, gig work, content creation, or entrepreneurship to generate income.

As a foreigner, securing a contrat à durée indéterminée, a permanent work contract, in France is like holding the winning lottery ticket.

In my experience, like in the US, job hunting here is partly a matter of chance, but mostly a long-haul battle that involves numerous rejections until you network with the right person or secure an internship that leads to a long-term role.

However, unlike job hunting back home in the States, I don't have to question whether I was rejected for a role due to my résumé or because the company isn't able or willing to sponsor my work permit.

Not having a built-in support system in Paris can be tough during hard moments

By moving away from home, I created a physical divide between myself and my loved ones and left behind family members and lifelong friends.

Although I'm in constant digital communication with my family and hometown best friends and try to call often, when the going gets tough, I miss having physical access to my community.

When I still lived in New York and I was feeling low, I would always take the subway uptown for a home-cooked meal or meet up with my girlfriends for dinner downtown after a rough workweek.

I even miss the small, fleeting moments of communion growing up in New York City, like engaging in small talk in Spanish, my mother tongue, at the deli or supermarket -- conversations that are not as fluid in my broken French, even though I make an effort. Or walking by another Black American on the street and giving each other an acknowledging smile or nod -- a courtesy that hasn't been adopted by our brothers and sisters across the Atlantic.

Given that the majority of my community is back home in the US, I would be lying if I said I didn't have anxieties over experiencing a crisis situation while living abroad and not having immediate emotional and physical support.

Nevertheless, I know forming deep friendships and relationships takes time, particularly for a guarded introvert like me, and I'm grateful for the small community I do have in Paris. And my hope is that when we are at our most vulnerable, we will be there for one another.

As an immigrant, I feel like I'm always fighting for my right to stay in France

More often than not, the first thing locals ask me when they learn that I'm American is: "So, why did you move to Paris?"

My answer is always the same: Because I fell in love with the city and wanted to create a life for myself in a country I chose, on my own terms.

The question often comes from a place of curiosity, not judgment, but I grapple with it each time. I still don't feel like I fully belong here.

I know it'd be much easier to live in the country where I was born, where I have my support system and don't have to worry about my visa status or justify why I deserve to stay in the place I've chosen to call home.

I'm still regularly apologizing for my slight accent as my mouth, so used to the stress-timed rhythm of the English language, adjusts to the way French cuts and stitches words together so sentences flow like a continuous piece of fabric.

However, it's been my choice to live abroad and take all that comes with it, including giving up the benefits and comforts of existing within a society I'm familiar with.

By taking the leap anyway, I get to prove to myself every day that I'm stronger than I think.

Read the original article on Business Insider more

Career development

15h

The Interview Question That Lets You Shine -- and How to Nail It

Darrell Jewell

Career development

4d

My coworker is always borrowing money from people until payday. The amounts are small, but he does it all the time. Sometimes he even borrows money from one coworker to pay back another. I never kept track of exactly how much I lent him or how much he paid back, but I got sick of it and finally said no when he asked again.
Since then, he's been talking badly about me to other coworkers and... spreading rumors. I don't know how to end this situation. Is there a way to get him to leave me alone and stop bothering me?

more

4

Joshua Milks
15h
What are all of these comments?
1) Escalate to your manager and to HR
1a) tell them the employee has been pressuring other employees and myself... repeatedly for X months and won’t give it up or take no for an answer. It is very distracting and hard to get work done while this is going on.
1B) tell them the employee has also now been spreading rumors about me since I have told the employee that I wasn’t going to loan money again. more
Joshua Milks
15h
What are all of these comments?
1) Escalate to your manager and to HR
1a) tell them the employee has been pressuring other employees and myself... repeatedly for X months and won’t give it up or take no for an answer. It is very distracting and hard to get work done while this is going on.
1B) tell them the employee has also now been spreading rumors about me since I have told the employee that I wasn’t going to loan money again. more

Career development

17h

Get hired: Samuel Ray's tips for jobseekers on writing cold emails - News - The Jakarta Post

Have you ever sent so many job applications through job portals that you've lost track of which position you applied for?

This may be a common experience among jobseekers who are desperately looking for a new position amid the pandemic. As the global recession forces companies to lay off their employees, this could mean more rivals in the job-hunting pool.

Human resources (HR) professional... Samuel Ray says that special measures should be taken if you want to stand out among jobseekers in this trying time, one of which is to send cold emails to employers.

A cold email is an unsolicited email sent to a receiver who has no previous contact with the sender. In theory, you send this email to a person in a high position in a corporation, asking for a job. It may inspire dread in an introvert, but Samuel argues that the method has paved the way for his career.

"It is more effective than if you apply through job portals," he told The Jakarta Post in an interview.

Carving a cold email is an art of its own. Below are tips from Samuel that can help you create one to increase your winning chance in the job-seeking game.

1. Be selective

A cold email is more effective when it is sent to the right person who has the executive authority to hire you right away. You would want to send a cold email to someone at the top of a corporate branch, such as a director or a CEO. According to your expertise, you can also send a cold email to department heads such as the finance manager if you are looking a position in finance or the editor-in-chief if you are a journalist looking for a steady job.

"The key is to choose a person with the decision-making power," Samuel said. Doing adequate research about the person sitting in the executive chair in your dream company can also help you craft a powerful cold email.

Samuel advised against sending a cold email to the HR department. As the division handles a lot of job applications as their main task, your resume and cover letter might be overlooked.

"Instead, an executive has the authority to push HR to hire you if they like you," he said.

2. Be concise

In writing a cold email, you want to be concise but enticing. The email should be a brief but effective introduction of yourself to a potential employer.

"You have to summarize what you have done [in your previous professional work] in two or three sentences," he said.

Samuel suggests that the email consist of three main parts: header, content and closing.

"The header should be an executive summary of yourself, the content explains the purpose of the email and what you want from the person receiving the email, then close it with a thank you," Samuel said.

The email should also contain a call to respond to an invitation to engage further, such as an invitation to meet over coffee to discuss your qualifications. Or in the world of free-floating deadly viruses, you can invite the person to a friendly video call.

Read also: Samuel Ray's guide to job hunting amid pandemic

3. Be assertive

Sometimes you'll be surprised that your email is responded to positively and that a potential employer will say yes to your invitation for a follow-up.

"If they respond with a yes, be proactive by proposing a time to meet, such as 'Saturday at 2 p.m. or Sunday at 3 p.m.?' Don't be abstract and ask them when they will be available. We do that thinking for them," Samuel said.

4. Be confident

Sending an email out of the blue to someone you haven't met can sound pushy, but you would be surprised that people do get hired after a good pitch in a cold email. Don't lose hope if your email isn't received warmly, or even gets no response at all.

"The job-seeking game is very similar to the sales game," Samuel said. "The more you try, the more you approach people, the greater probability that you will be hired."

Always position yourself as someone valuable to the potential employer.

"[The pitch] is all about the value you can bring to your client or your potential employers. And don't be too worried about how you come across to others, otherwise you won't do what you have to do," he said.

Samuel suggests just focusing on your pitch and doing your best, with a "nothing to lose" attitude.

"Don't be too fixated on one company so you won't be too disappointed if you don't get in. You can still earn your living working elsewhere," he said. (wng) more

Career development

17h

Samuel Ray's guide to job hunting amid pandemic - News - The Jakarta Post

s the economy is in crisis, the job security of millions of people in Indonesia is under threat, while millions of others have lost their source of income amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to Manpower Ministry data in April, over 1.2 million workers from 74,439 companies in both the formal and informal sectors have either been told to stay at home or have been laid off. This was only at the... beginning of the pandemic.

HR professional Samuel Ray said the pandemic had caused significant turbulence in people's employment situation. All participants in the workplace, from job seekers and workers to employers, are now exposed to a discomfort that has put them in survival mode.

"In general, this year's theme is survival," Samuel told The Jakarta Post in an interview on Saturday.

"For job seekers, the competition is tougher. Fresh graduates are not only competing to get a new job with their peers but also with their seniors. For those who are not laid off, their working burden might be heavier, as one person might be expected to do the job of three people," he said.

According to Samuel, employers and investors also find themselves in an awkward position. It is only natural that investors would want to hold on to cash and stop giving funding to growing businesses, forcing companies to economize. Many then choose the bitter escape of cutting down payrolls or even laying off their employees.

However, Samuel said there is still hope in desperate times. Below are his tips to getting a new job amid the various obstacles set by the pandemic.

Read also: What recession means for you and the economy

1. Know your prospects

Identifying your opportunities is imperative in your job hunting process.

"You have to know whether the kind of industry you are about to enter is in its sunrise or sunset period. Today, the trend in industry changes at a fast pace. In one or two years, something can turn obsolete," he said.

He gave the example of the banking industry, which in the past absorbed a high number of workers. Now with the creation of digital and branchless banks, the industry does not need as many tellers and customer service staff as in the past. The mining industry is also seen not as enticing anymore as people become more interested in green energy.

On the opposite side, the trend is growing in the technology industry, bringing a great salary growth in the sector, he said.

"About three or four years before the pandemic, talents in technology such as software developers and UI/UX designers had begun to be in high demand in Indonesia," he said.

If the current situation forces you to go back to your hometown, where corporate ladders might not be as promising as in big cities, you can consider a prospect in freelancing and adapting to the digital nomad lifestyle.

"The gig economy is in trend now, and you can work from anywhere," Samuel said. The challenges in freelancing is that you have to do all managerial, administration and marketing duties on your own, which requires great self control and self management. Freelancing in a small town could also mean you have to conquer the daily struggle of getting good internet access. However, if you can overcome the obstacles, succeeding in freelancing can be very rewarding.

You also may take advantage of the recession by going back to school.

"Maybe for so long you've had a dream to get a master's degree. This is a good time to do that," Samuel said. "You can go back to school for one or two years while waiting for the pandemic to recede. Then, when you've earned your degree, you're ready to bounce back to the workplace without a gap in your resume."

2. Know yourself

Mid-level and senior professionals who now suddenly find themselves jobless during the recession may also use this opportunity to identify their personal strengths and weaknesses, and even reevaluate their careers and consider jumping into different sectors.

"For those who are laid off in a mid-level career, you might want to observe your career path and consider taking other roles. If you want to shift occupation, for instance you used to be a journalist and now you want to move into a digital industry, you have to identify which skills you have that can be translated to this new field so we can leverage on day one," he said.

Senior professionals may use this opportunity to consider a career in consulting.

"I imagine a senior professional would be someone who has knowledge and the know-how. Also, they might have made a good name for themselves and are respected [figures] in the industry," Samuel said.

"Seniors can use their acquired skills to advise other people in the industry."

To start a consulting career, they can utilize their professional network and take advantage of social media.

3. Know your strategy

The right strategy is key to winning a new job. Samuel suggests a controversial but perfectly legal backdoor way of using referral networks.

"In fact, many companies offer incentives for their employees who can recruit new employees from their network," he said.

Through referrals, usually a job application process can be done quicker and more smoothly than applying through job portals.

You also have to be conscientious from the start of the process.

"When you write your CV, all job descriptions have to be written along with achievements that can be proven by numbers or certificates," Samuel said.

"In interviews, you have to make it a competency-based interview in which you answer questions with sample cases of your achievements, and make your narrative have an interesting story arc."

It is also okay if you do not nail your first interview, as the more you do interviews the more you learn from your mistakes. Losing an interview will only make you more prepared for the next ones.

"In the end, we will meet an employer that appreciates us for who we really are," he said.

4. Know your worth

The final stage of a job application process is when you are offered the position with a package of compensation and benefits. Many times, we know how to work but do not know how much we are worth.

To know how much pay you deserve, you can discuss your salary prospects with other people in the industry. Some sectors, however, are more discreet than others when it comes to salary discussion. If those in your field generally consider salary as a sensitive topic, you can consult salary surveys prior to pay negotiation with your employer.

According to Samuel, if you wish to get a new job with an increase in salary, you can expect a 15 to 20 percent raise compared to your latest pay.

In negotiation, you can also mention your personal needs that you wish can be covered with the increase.

"For example, you just have a newborn baby or the location of your new office makes your commute longer than usual," he said.

Samuel also suggests to negotiate the salary through email to avoid ambiguous nuances, as well as to record the deal.

5. Don't lose hope

Losing your job, routines and safety net can be stressful, but Samuel encourages people who have just been laid off to stay positive in this trying time.

"I was laid off from a job once, just after I got a promotion to be a manager," he said. "What I learned from that time was I became more of an overthinker and stressed if I let myself be idle and [wallow in] self pity."

Samuel suggests keeping yourself busy while job hunting, for example by learning a new language or taking an online course to keep your mind occupied.

He said looking for a job is like a trying to sell a product.

"We have to have a salesman mentality. If a door closes for us, try another. Eventually, we will get the one that will hire us," he said.

He also sent a word of encouragement.

"I saw many good deeds done amid the pandemic. Some people buy more food via delivery service and give an extra portion to drivers. Many people on Twitter retweet posts about people trying to get a job," he said.

"The only thing we can do is to move forward. We can still survive by believing that there are still good things in the world in this trying time," he concludes. (wng) more

Career development

19h

Early Independence: Ernest Rutherford Fellowships 2026

Career development

20h

Women Who Rock: Michael Kors' Jung Yoon Believes in Giving Back

Jung Yoon, senior vice president of global sourcing at Michael Kors, likes to give back.

Yoon is particularly keen on transferring her knowledge to the next generation of women entering the fashion industry. "If there are college students wanting to tour the office and wanting to hear some advice, I would always like to host," she said. "If this is going to be the industry that attracts a lot of... young women, [then] perhaps I can use any opportunity, small or big, that I have in my daily interaction with them."

Her academic background was in marketing and statistics, and she hadn't planned on getting into fashion. Most of the jobs she's had came through personal recommendations as opposed to the usual submission of a resumé. "I tell everybody that you [are] your resumé. How you show up to work, to your friends and to people around you -- that is your resumé every day," she said, adding that it's not necessarily what school one went to or one's GPA. "It's really about who you are."

Yoon's statistics know-how prepared her well for the complex world of sourcing. "Statistics has always taught me to look at the numbers and the trend of the numbers. If you follow the numbers and the data, then the trend of what's happening is pretty clear," she said.

She said that background helped her notice issues such as equipment shortage, even before the COVID pandemic. Then came empty containers and the imbalance in shipping, which led to concern about the raw materials the company had ordered, and eventually the domino impact on finished goods. "You always want to have a Plan B, C and D," she advised about handling challenges.

As a mom of two, she also must contend with traveling for her job. She spoke of a "trick" someone told her about how to make it easier for her kids when she's traveling, which is to leave a special note in each outfit for every day away. Yoon changed the note to a gift, little items from the Dollar Store, to shift the focus to a more positive experience. And when a colleague at Kors with young kids was traveling for the first time earlier this year, Yoon didn't hesitate to pass along the tip.

"She didn't know what to do. And I told her this, and she said it worked really well," Yoon noted.

A version of this article appeared in the June 1 print issue of FN, as part of the "Women Who Rock" special section. On June 3, FN and Two Ten Footwear Foundation will honor these women at the annual live event in New York City. more

Career development

20h

Hiring Nightmares: 29 Deeply Uncomfortable Job Interview Experiences

I went for an interview in a bank (I was 19) and was wearing ballet pump type shoes, somehow really thumped my little toe/foot off the door frame on the way in. I was sat in agony, trying to ignore it. Stood up to leave, blood had soaked through my shoe into the carpet and the top of my foot had changed colour. The Area Manager who was sat in on the interview drove me to hospital, then sat with... me. I'd broken my toe and metatarsal! She then drove me home, picked up my Mam and took her to the bank to retrieve my car. I got the job! Lovely woman.

NKFell , YuriArcursPeopleimages Report

Interviewing for a position that would involve working with children, the interview was held in a childrens support center, they had cahms services there as well as physio and OT etc. I was ushered into a waiting room that had lots of baby/toddler aimed toys, like bouncy chairs, duplo blocks, light up plastic toys and a lot of jack in the boxes. The woman who showed me where to go said that someone would be there to interview me shortly, she then left. About ten minutes later a boy who looked about 13 walked in and sat on one of the other sofas. I said Hi and asked if he was alright, he nodded, said 'yeah fine' got his phone out and angled himself away from me. We sat there for another 10 minutes and the original woman came back and said I could leave as they didn't think I was the right fit for the company. Apparently the boy (her son) had been part of the interview, a test to see how I engaged with children- they had been waiting for me to use the toys to interact with him. Weirdest set up, but I was definitely not going to be the right fit if they wanted someone who would approach a random teenager in a waiting room with a jack in the box.

Leafblow , cottonbro studio Report

I was just a kid, ridiculously nervous, flat out fainted, came round to my prospective boss straddling me, fanning my face furiously with a cosmopolitan shouting "ring her mother" They sent me away in a taxi, I went back 2 days later, got the job and stayed for 16 years, only leaving when the boss retired.

countvoncount , DC_Studio Report

As candidate (1985). 'What does your boyfriend do, does he mind you working late, are you planning kids?' Me: 'ha ha ha, you know you can't ask those questions?' Didn't get job, didn't want it.

jayhoo , stokkete Report

I've interviewed a lot and had some very odd candidates. I've also had some cracking interviews as a candidate. One I was called back for second interview with the HR director and the person who would be my line manager. I arrived 10 minutes early and the receptionist sat me in a waiting area just out of sight of the reception desk. While I was waiting someone appeared at reception and asked the receptionist for a report she had been working on. She went to print it and the printer jammed, the person looking for the report called her for everything, shouting, swearing and being a complete [butt]. A couple of minutes later I was ushered into the interview with said [butt]. I sat down, thanked them for inviting me and explained I didn't think their ethos would suit me and left. The HR director called me to ask why I had left, she [darn] knew what had happened, the whole office must have heard it.

Jellycatspyjamas , LightFieldStudios Report

Bored Panda reached out to Marisa Eckberg PHR, SHRM-CP, founder and CEO of Grey Owl HR, to talk all things job interviews and the role of human resources in this whole process of getting and doing a job.

"The job of HR... HR is responsible for the humans that work for a company from the moment we attract the candidate to a job to the time they leave the company," explains Eckberg about what it really means to be an HR. "We are responsible for the policies, how the Company sets their strategy and how people in the company are managed. We touch everything from recruiting, onboarding, training, making sure everyone is paid fairly and on time, coach leaders on how to manage their teams properly, make sure that working for the Company is attractive with medical/dental/vision, 401K, paid time off, etc."

"HR is a lot of kind of 'behind the scenes' work, and not every HR department in every company looks or functions the same. Some have one person doing everything, some have outsourced to an HRO or PEO, some have whole teams doing only one part of HR, like the talent acquisition team or the payroll team, and still some don't have a dedicated HR department at all."

I was just walking up to the door of the company for my interview, too late to turn back as the guy had already seen me approaching through the glass doors, so I smiled and then I felt the splat as I opened the door, a bird had just pooped on my shoulder and it was running down my front. He did see and got me some tissue and at the end of the interview told me apparently it's meant to be good luck (who knew) and that it had been for me as I was offered the job, it's never been mentioned since.

BrilliantUsername , Felix Haumann Report

One of the first jobs I went for when I was a teenager was for a waitress at a local hotel. When I got there the guy interviewing me took me into a bedroom and closed the door. Then asked if I wanted to sit on the chair or the bed. I chose the chair. (He sat in the bed) I can't remember a single question or how I answered I just remember feeling quite scared. I didn't get the job.

Fizbosshoes , Pixabay Report

I applied for a job in an art gallery owned by a couple. In the interview the man sat opposite me and the woman sat beside me and I could sense her staring at my profile. Very odd but took a decided turn when he asked me about my partner and "how would I cope financially if we split up"? 🤨 Then the woman said, "do you always wear your hair like that?" 🤔😒 They kept chasing me for a second interview, but no thanks! As an interviewer, I once interviewed someone who answered their phone halfway through. Good grief.

User , GeorgeRudy Report

I have had a few! The one that made me really angry though was an interview my DS attended with a well known charitable organisation. Part of the interview was held outdoors on a very hot, very sunny day. The two short listed candidates, my DS and another person were sat round as the interviewer asked them various questions. My DS didn't get the position, fair enough though he thought the interview went well. When he asked for feedback he was told he didn't get the job because the interviewer couldn't see his eyes during questioning. My DS's prescription specs had reacted in the sunlight to darken into sunglasses. He is blind as a bat without his specs and has to wear them. Turned out subsequently that the other candidate was the sister of the interviewer and strangely she was offered the position!

User , Nitin Dhumal Report

An interviewer once asked me "if your friends were to describe you as a vegetable, which vegetable would it be and why?" I just looked at him a bit flabbergasted and he said "ok, let's move on". Didn't get the job funnily enough.

LadyFlumpalot , Alexander Grey Report

Needless to say, HR's job is anything but easy. Just imagine having to be responsible for everything from finding, drawing in, managing and keeping talent engaged at work to also keeping up overall morale, organizing perks and events for employees, liaisoning between them and management, and the like. Sure, these are different profiles of the job, but it's all in the scope of HR. So, you might want to excuse some awkwardness during job interviews.

"The biggest challenge, I think, is attracting and retaining employees," elaborated Eckberg. "There is a lot that goes into retaining employees -- getting them hired is only half the battle. Every person at the company is an individual with their own needs and wants, likes and dislikes, backgrounds and career goals. Making the workplace somewhere that employees WANT to be and WANT to spend their precious time away from the things that are important to them is critical for HR these days. First you have to get employees to trust you enough to share what they need and want in a workplace and then you've got to convince management to invest in those things. It is a constant balancing act."

I've had interviews when I was dead nervous but relaxed when I realised that the interviewer was more nervous than me and I sort of helped them out by talking about myself and my CV and answering questions they might want to know. First one when I was about 22 for a temp job. Got the job. I suddenly felt like a proper grown up after that.

Catspyjamas17 , fauxels Report

Once I interviewed someone for a senior PR role who showed up to the interview with her husband as she didn't want to get the train on her own. We didn't have a reception so he sat in our office while people were working while she did her interview. He was very awkward and shy and the whole thing was just weird. I couldn't fathom why, even if he got the train down with her that he came to the office too, why not go sit in a cafe and wait?

Standbyguest , Edmond Dantès Report

I once had a full day interview with group activities and challenges including being shut alone in a windowless room to complete a written task (they called the room the 'cell'). This was for what was basically an entry-level admin job, not head of CIA! I didn't get the position. They did write to apologise and they said there would not be a repeat of this interview style.

User , picjumbo.com Report

They handed me a muffin and told me to stand up and sell it to them for 30 seconds. It wasn't a sales job.

SunshineAndFizz , Lain De Macias Report

My first job, working for a well-known catalogue place - ie. Argos. Told to bring something that encapsulated us as a person. Obviously people (normal people) half-assed it, brought in key rings like oh so I enjoy going on holiday... etc. I brought in a huge encyclopaedia of film from 1918 to 2006 and breathlessly told everyone about how much I loved Fritz Lang's films. You have to imagine this awkward shy 16 year old rabbiting on about the making of Metropolis, in a room of barely-concealed smirks. I got a job (desperate for staff) and proceeded to be pushed around, bullied by management and other employees, and cornered and sexually harassed multiple times in the stockroom. They must have looked at this earnest kid and thought "yeah how can we break that"

BellatrixLestrangesHeatedCurlers , Gin Report

If you've been on the internet long enough, you'll be aware of places like r/AntiWork, where people share all things work-free life. There, as well as in several other places, you'll often hear the idea that the task of an HR is not to help employees, but rather to protect the company. So, we asked Eckberg to comment on the reality of the statement:

"Look, whoever said that whole 'HR is not your friend' -- I always think to myself, who told you we were your friend? HR is a department or function just like any other within the company -- finance, IT, Marketing. Again, we walk a very thin line between ensuring both the employees and the company are protected."

"And just like any job -- there are HR pros out there that are great at what they do, and there are others that maybe should reconsider their career choices. Anyone who has worked in a company with the latter will definitely feel like HR is 'only there to protect the company and don't care'. But we're not all like that."

"My suggestion is to keep the mindset that HR is just like any other department at a company, and they are employees of the same company as you. Sometimes the same complaints you have are the same as ours."

Oh and someone once asked me what my parents did for a living. Like that's relevant to MY ability to do the job.

SunshineAndFizz , GeorgeRudy Report

I was 18 and applied for a trainee position at the London branch of an International bank, it was advertised in one of those free magazines which were given out at tube stations, 9 to 5 I think... anyhow I turned up for the interview which had 2 people on the panel, the CEO and supervisor of department... I was asked why I would like to work for a bank (I had no idea it was a bank and had done no research as Internet was very limited in late 90's)... I replied with "oh I didn't know it was a bank!"... their company name even had Bank in their title which should haven been a slight clue for me Confused Anyhow interviewers smirked at each other and they still offered me the job! They later said they appreciated my naivety and I ended up staying there for quite a few years and wised up in the process!

CityCommuter , Sora Shimazaki Report

I got locked out my house about an hour before an interview so had to borrow my friends too small trousers. As I sat down in the silent room they very loudly unzipped. Everyone looked down at me now flying low. I was too embarrassed to zip up so just carried on. I got the job and they all took the [urinate] in the pub! Two years later, pretty much the same panel I went for an interview. We all knew each other well by then. I am quite annoyingly chatty. But on the first question justfrozen and sat in silence opening and shutting my mouth like a goldfish. Until one if them said "quietest you've ever been" which we all laughed at and I remembered how to speak. Got that job too 😁

Andrelaxzz , Vladdeep Report

I took a sip of water in an interview once and it went down the wrong way and I spent at least 5 minutes coughing and spluttering all over the table. Never been so embarrassed, they kept asking if i was OK and I couldn't answer!

GG1986 , cottonbro studio Report

Graduate assessment day. We had to play a risk board game. It was massive board on the table, we had pieces/ dice etc - we worked in pairs - making decisions on investments and things. About 12 people in total playing. 3 invigilators. No discussion over why we were playing the game. I didn't know how we were being assessed, I thought it was like a collaboration thing. I was very excited and animated during the game and I knocked over an entire jug of water across the whole board game. I got the job. Later told that risk taking was my development area (nothing to do with collaboration) but they were so taken by coolness under pressure, and the fact that other than getting some tissues to clean up, and break to apologise to everyone - I kept on playing. I just really enjoyed the game! Haha.

Shouldweno2 , sputnik Report

"Not all of us are 'evil HR ladies' just waiting to get you in trouble or screw up your benefits deductions or just make your life difficult in general. Most of us want to make sure people that work at a company are treated fairly and that the work environment is one everyone wants to be in... including us," added Eckberg.

At the end of the day, everyone in the company is responsible for the work environment they create -- there isn't a specific role like manager or HR who are supposed to be doing all the work. According to the Swedish Work Environment Authority, while the employer is responsible for the bulk of shaping the work environment, employees and employers still have to work together to make it happen in general. It's an "everyone gets to play" sort of mentality that was proven to work in the long run, so employees are encouraged to stay realistic with their expectations of the work environment.

I went for an interview the day I moved out of a flatshare. I did a quick wipe round of the kitchen before I went. A bit later the interviewer stared in astonishment as orange spots appeared on my navy trousers where I'd splashed them with bleach.

IbizaToTheNorfolkBroads , Alabama Extension Report

About 20 years ago, I went for a job interview in events organising. I thought it went pretty well. Towards the end I was asked "Are you a girly girl?" The question kinda flustered me, I'm not a girly girl, but the meaning of girly girl is, I guess, subjective, some might even find it offensive, I didn't know, so I stammered out something non-commital. "Oh I only ask because there are a lot of girly girls here and you might find them difficult to fit in with." Anyway I was offered the job and turned it down on the basis of that comment! Got something slightly higher paying a week later. Still don't really understand what they meant or what, if anything, they were trying to tell me!

potniatheron , Edmond Dantès Report

Not me but a friend of mine. Interview for a promotion in a uniformed organisation which his wife also worked for. Took a beautifully ironed shirt out of the wardrobe and hung it on the hook in his car intending to change into it when he got to the venue as he didn't want to risk any creases. On arrival he found out he'd brought his wife's shirt and not his own! Had to go through the interview in a much too tight shirt although it was certainly an ice breaker and he got the promotion!

VirginiaQ , Craig Adderley Report

I once interviewed a chap on zoom and as soon as came on, we could see he was outside and there was a loud whooshing noise behind him. We asked him where he was and he explained he was working a summer job at a beach bar in an overseas resort (the whooshing sound was the Sea). We decided to persist with the interview and about 5 minutes in, he pauses while a man in the background starts shouting at him. He tells us it's his boss and he'd bunked off from work to do the interview and his boss had just discovered him round the back of the building. The boss kept shouting so he had to end the call. Not surprisingly we didn't offer him the job. 😂

watchesrubber , Taryn Elliott Report

Went for a job interview in a big city hospital. The interviewer was a male. I've walked in and sat down a bit nervous but excited. He's looking at me like the cats who's got the cream. all big smiles, wide eyed and overtly enthusiastic for me too take the job with an immediate start of that afternoon. no reference check, police check or WWCC check. i tell him I would love to take the job. I can start right away. I walk outside, all excited about how I had pulled off the impossible, I feel a breeze blow on my tummy. I look down and my shirt only has one button buttoned up, the rest are still undone. Leaving my [private parts] fully exposed. I'm a size E. So lots of [private parts] exposed. I was so nervous before the interview I had forgotten to do my shirt up. I still blush and cringe whenever I see a man in a white shirt sleeves rolled up. It was almost 30 years ago now. Feels like yesterday I never did take the job in the end.

TheAustralian , Pavel Danilyuk Report

Lastly, we asked Eckberg if she had any advice for those currently on the job hunt, and she had this to say:

"Actually, I welcome a little awkward, funny or weird -- be yourself in interviews. You are gonna be spending 40+ hours there a week -- life is too short to conform to what someone else has dictated as 'professional'. I encourage hiring managers to relax during interviews too -- send the interview questions to the candidate before the interview, for example -- it calms the nerves a bit and allows everyone to relax and have a conversation (might avoid some of the awkwardness too)."

Be sure to check out more from Marisa Eckberg on her website, Grey Owl HR, or on her socials: LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.

My weirdest interview never even got going. Went for a job as admin for a debt collection agency. Was taken to a separate floor with a huge open plan office that looked like it wasn't in use and was left there, sitting on a chair in the middle of the room with no one else there. Interviewer came in after about 10 mins, sat down and asked me what my current salary was. I told her, she said they weren't offering as much as that and we might as well not continue. And that was that!

JoanThursday , Tima Miroshnichenko Report

Many years ago, when "disabled" meant purely in a wheelchair or mobility impaired I applied for a job. I mistakenly ticked "yes" in the "are you disabled?" Box. Later in the form the applicant was asked to list hobbies and I said, quite correctly, that I taught dance. This whole thing makes me go "[why?]" today of course. Anyway I was told later (having got the job) that the main reason I was called for interview was that they wanted to know how I could teach dance and be mobility impaired (though being the 70s they used the "c" word - the one with 8 letters, not 4!)

Nocaloriesinchocolate , Sora Shimazaki Report

I got asked by the final interviewer (the CEO) if I was stuck on a desert island, which of the previous rounds of interviewers would be most useful to be stuck with, and who would be the least useful (previous rounds being an HR person, the head of HR, and the general counsel....). If he was asking all candidates I guess he was also doing a nice little play assessing his current staff too.... I had been warned by the recruiter that the interview style was unusual so at least I wasn't completely thrown by this and I got the job.

User , Pok Rie Report

Interviewing a candidate for a Child Development Officer in a nursery (Scotland). She had a degree in English literature and a second degree in Childhood Practice. I asked, "What is your understanding of a Curriculum for Excellence?" She answered, "Well it's the various curricular areas like maths, literacy, science and all that." I then asked, "Yes, but what is your understanding of its ethos?" She replied, "Well it's the various curricular areas like I said. I mean - I have been writing about it in uni for the past 4 years!" She then looked proper put out at my perceived impertinence. No - she did NOT get the job (despite looking like a fantastic applicant on paper).

InLoveWithPandora , pondsaksit Report

You might also like: If You Ever Want To Be Passive-Aggressive At Work, Here Are 44 Notes To Inspire You (New Pics) more

Career development

23h

We're teaching skills but not purpose: The missing metric in youth development | Youth Today

A 17-year-old client I worked with as a ghostwriter and narrative strategist had every marker of what success looked like: a 4.0 GPA, three varsity letters and a college acceptance letter already in hand. In person, she sat across from me and said: "I don't know why I'm doing any of this."

She wasn't lazy or unmotivated. She was skilled -- exceptionally so -- but she had no sense of purpose. She... could perform the tasks of achievement, but she couldn't tell me why any of it mattered to her.

This is the quiet crisis in youth development today. We have become very good at teaching young people how to do things -- how to code, how to write essays, how to build a résumé, how to pass standardized tests. We measure proficiency with rubrics, GPAs and test scores. What we rarely measure, and even more rarely teach, is why any of it matters.

We're producing highly capable consumers of education and opportunity but far too few creators of meaning.

The result is a generation that is skilled but aimless. Around 65% to 68% of teens now cite stress and burnout as major mental health concerns, second only to anxiety, and over 63% report feeling overwhelmed at least once a week.

Anxiety and depression diagnoses continue to climb -- over 40% of high school students report ongoing feelings of sadness or hopelessness.

Many young people excel at performing competence while quietly wondering what their competence is actually for. This is not a failure of effort. It is a failure of focus.

Traditional youth development programs emphasize measurable skills because skills are easy to track and fund. We can count how many youth complete a coding bootcamp or earn a certification. We can't easily count how many have discovered a sense of purpose that will sustain them when the external rewards disappear. So we optimize for what we can measure and leave the deeper work -- the meaning-making -- to chance.

But purpose is not a luxury. It is the invisible architecture that gives skills direction and resilience. Research by William Damon at the Stanford Center on Adolescence found that only about one in five young people are thriving with a clear sense of purpose, while roughly one in four remain rudderless -- at serious risk of never fulfilling their potential.

A young person who knows why they want to code will keep learning long after the class ends. A young person who only knows how will burn out the moment the external validation fades.

Youth Today has explored this terrain directly. The January 2026 piece "On learning and meaning making" explores Kim Sabo Flores and Diego Catalán Molina's compelling case that meaning-making -- the process of reflecting on and making sense of experiences -- actually strengthens brain connectivity during adolescence and predicts future success. Their research with 350,000 youth demonstrates that when programs prioritize authentic relationships, young people are better equipped to explore their identities and understand their place in the world. The missing link between that finding and common practice is purpose: relationships give young people the safety to discover it, but the discovery itself requires intentional space.

This same gap appears in Karen Pittman's call to re-center youth work. In her May 2025 piece "Re-centering youth work across systems," she argues that youth workers have drifted from youth-focused practice toward systems-focused language -- adopting the vocabulary of institutions in order to get funding while diluting what makes youth work distinctive. Purpose development is precisely what that distinctiveness looks like in practice. It's what youth workers can offer that no school rubric or coding bootcamp can replicate.

[Related: Keeping it real]

I see this every day in my work as a ghostwriter and narrative strategist. Clients come to me with impressive credentials but no clear story of their own. They have the skills to perform success, but they lack the internal compass that turns performance into purpose. The same pattern appears in youth work:

We teach young people how to navigate systems, but we rarely help them author their own narrative within those systems.

This creates fragile identities. When self-worth is tied only to external metrics -- grades, likes, follower counts, college acceptances -- any dip in performance feels like a threat to the self. Without a deeper sense of purpose, young people become brittle. They chase validation instead of direction. They perform instead of create.

Courtesy of Emerole Clinton

Emerole Clinton

Youth workers are uniquely positioned to change this. Instead of being narrators who tell young people who they should become, we can become ghostwriters who help them discover and articulate the story they're already living. This means shifting from "What skills do you need?" to "What matters enough to you that you're willing to struggle for it?" It means creating space for young people to explore their values, their lived experience and their vision for the future -- not as add-ons to programming, but as core competencies.

Practical steps are possible:

* Replace some "skill-building" workshops with purpose-discovery circles where young people are asked to articulate why a particular goal matters to them personally.

* Measure success not only by completion rates but by the depth of reflection young people can demonstrate about their own motivations.

* Train staff to listen for the heartbeat beneath the résumé -- the quiet passions, the unspoken values, the moments of genuine aliveness.

* Create rites of passage that celebrate the discovery of purpose, not just the acquisition of credentials.

None of this replaces skill development. Skills are essential tools. But a tool without a guiding hand is just an object. Purpose is the hand that decides where the tool is pointed and why it is being used.

We owe young people more than proficiency. We owe them the chance to become the authors of their own lives.

Skills without purpose produce performers. Purpose with skills produces creators.

The young people walking through our programs today are not empty vessels waiting to be filled with knowledge. They're already full of stories, questions and untapped direction. Our job is not to write those stories for them. Our job is to help them find the courage and the language to write their own. Because when we teach young people both how to do the work and why the work matters, we don't just prepare them for the future.

We help them shape it.

***

Grant writer for YouthUp Global, Emerole Clinton is a writer and narrative strategist based in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. They work with young people as a ghostwriter, helping clients articulate their stories and clarify their direction. Their writing explores purpose, identity and the systems young people navigate.

Related Tags:career pathway, Feature Story, meaning making, positive youth development, purpose, sense of purpose, skill development, skill-building, Youth Development, youth purpose more

Catherine Dyaunka

Career development

1d

I'm about to interview for a Data Digitization role with a bank in a few hours. What are some likely questions to expect and what should I avoid? This is urgent, could anyone working in HR and recruiting please advise. Thank you

2

Eliot Feldman
1
23h
Catherine,
Congratulations on your interview. The question you ask is one I review with my clients and is always difficult trying to anticipate what... you will be asked. One question the is always asked is tell me about yourself? This is not a question about your personal life, it's important to keep the focus on your experience and successes. more
pilisi simiyu
6
1d
Just go for it, avoid a pre-set mind
4