Paul\u2019s post<\/a>, you\u2019ll note that he experienced a few really awkward moments when candidates expressed raw desperation about finding a job. In a recession, you\u2019ll find that some candidates are getting more and more desperate as their unemployment compensation runs out and they start wondering whether they can make their mortgage payments.<\/p>\nSo let\u2019s say that a candidate has just expressed a level of desperation that left an awkward silence in its wake. What do you do?<\/p>\n
First, you need to realize that desperation happens. It does. It doesn\u2019t necessarily mean that the candidate isn\u2019t a good fit. Your job is to figure out whether – desperation or not – the candidate is a good fit for your role.<\/p>\n
Second, it\u2019s probably best if you have a few responses in mind for this situation. My favorite is the sympathetic approach, where I say, \u201cI completely understand. Let\u2019s figure out whether we\u2019re a good fit for each other, shall we?\u201d Whatever your response, you\u2019re trying to get the candidate mentally past the awkward moment of desperation so that he or she can focus on the task at hand, which is figuring out whether you\u2019re a match for each other<\/p>\n
Handling Social Awkwardness<\/h2>\n
I\u2019ve caused my share of socially awkward moments in my time, I have to admit. Thankfully, most of mine have not been during job interviews. Not everyone is so lucky, unfortunately, so socially awkward moments happen.<\/p>\n
My favorite way of handling social awkwardness, frankly, is to ignore it. Sometimes candidates don\u2019t know that they\u2019ve been awkward, so calling attention to what just happene simply magnifies the moment and makes it that much more awkward.<\/p>\n
Sometimes, however, candidates point out their own awkwardness. At that point, ignoring it is off the table, sadly. When dealing with a candidate\u2019s social awkwardness becomes unavoidable, I\u2019ve usually chosen to brush it off with a joke, saying, \u201cOh, no problem. Everyone puts their foot in their mouth sometimes. I think my foot might permanently live there!\u201d<\/p>\n
If a candidate insists on pushing you to the seventh level of social awkwardness hell by belaboring the point, you may have to get more direct. I have been to this level of awkwardness hell, and I have dealt with it by saying, \u201cHey – really. It\u2019s okay. Let\u2019s get back to the business of figuring out whether we\u2019re a good fit and just pretend it never happened.\u201d<\/p>\n
Handling Rudeness<\/h2>\n
Candidates who answer their phones while you’re sitting in front of them. Candidates who tell you your husband must be a very strong man to deal with you (yes – that did happen to me!). Candidates who condescend to you or insult your profession to your face. All of these fall squarely into the category of overt rudeness.<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re dealing with an overtly rude candidate, let\u2019s be honest: you\u2019re not going to hire them.<\/p>\n
If you know you\u2019re not going to hire the candidate, you have two options: end the interview quickly and be honest to their face, or end the interview quickly and be honest later about why you rejected them.<\/p>\n
Note that I did say that you have to be honest either way. You help candidates the most by letting them know that their rudeness cost them the job. Maybe they didn\u2019t even understand that they were unacceptably rude, and you\u2019re going to be their ticket to polite society. It sounds crazy, but it could happen.<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re going to cut the interview short and be honest to their face, simply do that. The rudeness happens and you say, \u201cI\u2019m just going to end this interview now. I appreciate your time, but answering your phone during this interview wasn\u2019t acceptable to me. In fact, it\u2019s often considered rude, so you may want to consider turning off your phone in future interviews.\u201d This approach is pretty gutsy, but after enough crazy interviews it\u2019ll get easier :).<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re going to cut the interview short and be honest later, you\u2019ll have to be more subtle. When I used this approach, I\u2019d ask another question or two, thank them for their time, and walk them to the elevator. Later, I\u2019d call the candidate (or, when I was REALLY chicken, the candidate\u2019s recruiter) and explain that answering the phone (or insulting my husband to my face) wasn\u2019t the kind of considerate behavior I needed from a future employee.<\/p>\n
Honestly, the candidate probably knows that he or she was rude. When I\u2019ve called people out, I\u2019ve mostly been met with silence, although I\u2019ve had the occasional curt apology. On very rare occasions, I\u2019ve had a candidate respond well to the coaching, and I’ve wished them well in their future endeavors.<\/p>\n
Handling True Disasters<\/h2>\n
Unlike Paul<\/a>, I have thankfully never had a candidate vomit on me during an interview (EWWW!). I have, however had a candidate faint, a fire alarm go off, and a network crash during various interviews.<\/p>\nWhen a disaster happens, there\u2019s one key thing to remember: a disaster has happened. This is no longer an interview, it\u2019s a crisis that needs to be handled. Your job is to stop thinking like an interviewer and handle the crisis.<\/p>\n
Usually, the interview will have to be rescheduled. You should probably reschedule no matter what, because a crisis will create an environment that\u2019s not conducive to seeing the candidate at his or her best. Rescheduling will really freak out the candidate, unfortunately. So reschedule to later that day or the next day if possible and reassure the candidate that the crisis hasn\u2019t hurt his or her chances at the job.<\/p>\n
What other kinds of interview awkwardness have you had to handle as an interviewer? Any other coping strategies? We\u2019d love to hear them!<\/p>\n
Image courtesy of Victor1558.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
When you\u2019re sitting across from a candidate (or on the phone with one), pretty much anything can happen. Candidates are usually nervous, and not all of them think well on their feet. Here are some tips on how to handle these moments gracefully and put the candidate at ease after something unexpected happens.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[99],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n
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