Sometimes humor can lighten up a job interview and help you stand out from the competition. But at other times, humor is misplaced and can cost you the job. A variety of employers have shared the strangest and funniest things people said in job interviews. Do you think these people got the job?
Strengths and Weaknesses
When asked about their strengths, some job candidates came up with very unique responses, according to an article by CNN. One candidate said, "Well, I do own a bike." Answering about your biggest weakness can be trickier, but some candidates just failed completely. One said, "I get angry easily and I went to jail for domestic violence. But I won't get mad at you." Another replied that she often oversleeps and has trouble getting out of bed in the morning. That person did not get the job.
Previous Employment
Sometimes job candidates give the worst possible answer to a question. According to a CNN article, when asked why he left his last job one applicant responded, "I have a problem with authority." Another said that when he had a problem with a co-worker the resolution was that they both were fired. And yet another candidate mentioned that he was fired because he refused to attend anger management classes. Sometimes too much honesty isn't such a good thing.
Witty
Some answers to interview questions are so witty that the candidate gets the job. Dorothy Sliwicki, an interviewing coach, wrote on her blog that a candidate's creative answer to a difficult question was the reason he was selected. He was asked to choose between one really difficult question and five easy questions. He chose the difficult question and was asked, "Which comes first? The chicken or the egg?" He responded with chicken. When asked how he knew, the candidate replied that he was promised to only be asked one difficult question. In her same blog, she reported that another candidate, when asked how a man can go eight days without sleeping, replied that it wasn't a problem because he could sleep at night.
Bizarre
Some responses to questions are just so bizarre that they defy explanation. A blog post by Bacal & Associates reported that one candidate walked in with a black briefcase. When asked why he should be hired, the candidate said that if he was not, the bomb would go off. When the interviewer threatened to call the police, the candidate flipped a switch on the briefcase and ran. Thankfully, nothing went off. Another candidate, when asked about his hobbies, began tap dancing in the office. Yet another applicant interrupted an interview to ask who the lovely "babe" was in a picture on the interviewer's desk. When the interviewer said it was his wife, the applicant asked for his phone number.
References
Writer Bio
With features published by media such as Business Week and Fox News, Stephanie Dube Dwilson is an accomplished writer with a law degree and a master's in science and technology journalism. She has written for law firms, public relations and marketing agencies, science and technology websites, and business magazines.