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Now is the time when many eager, soon-to-be graduates are hoping to land their
first tech writing jobs. We will see (and have seen) an increase in questions
about resumes, writing samples/portfolios, networking, and interviewing.
As a hiring manager, I have some advice about what *not* to do in an interview.
I would love to see examples/advice from other hiring managers about what not
to do in an interview. I hope that newbies find this useful, and that
experienced writers find it entertaining.
An applicant for an entry level writing job had no experience, but an
intriguing resume and good cover letter. Because he lacked any professional
writing samples, I asked him to create instructions for backing a car out of a
driveway. The audience was English-speaking, 16-17 year olds who were familiar
with American driving practices but who were learning to drive for the first
time. He refused to create this writing sample. Now this is not someone with a
wealth of experience & writing samples, but someone with no experience
whatsoever.
ADVICE: Do what is asked of you in the interview (within reason) even if you
don't want to. It shows your ability and willingness to perform tasks when
asked to do so.
When I asked him if he had ever used a style guide, he informed me that style
guides were not "used" but rather "applied". I never did find out if he had
ever followed a style guide.
ADVICE: Don't correct your interviewer's grammar. Answer the questions asked.
If you don't understand the question, ask for clarification.
Finally, he offered a writing sample. It was a proposal for changing time
keeping to metric. I am not kidding. Something about dividing days into 100
units, and further dividing those units, years would consist of 10 months
instead of 12, etc.
ADVICE: When creating a writing sample, don't be obtuse. You won't look clever
by trying to be smarter than the next guy; rather you'll come off looking like
an pompous ass.
Oh I have so many more great stories, but I'll stop there for now. What kind of
behavior have you encountered in an interview that made you sure you would not
hire a candidate?
