No one likes to talk about their mistakes, especially if they are very embarrassing. Still, there is an emerging error culture, which you can experience for example in fuck-up nights. In this spirit, I share three of my most embarrassing mistakes in connection with job interviews. I am sure similar faux pas happen to many of us. If it happens to you and you embarrassed yourself so much that you wanted to vanish through a hole in the ground, know that you are not alone. One day you might even be able to laugh (or write) about it.
I assumed everybody would know the model organism I was working with
I embarrassed myself because I assumed that everybody knew the model organism I was working with. I had just finished my master thesis in plant science. Like many plant scientists, I studied the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. This is indeed a household name in the plant science community.
Then I interviewed for a job in a mixed team of medical doctors, engineers, chemists, and biologists. On the day of the interview, I gave a presentation about my research. Somehow, it did not occur to me that not everybody in my audience was familiar with THE model plant Arabidopsis thaliana.
When one of the listeners asked about this species, I still did believe it is unknown to them. Instead of quickly introducing the plant, I was cocky. I joked about it being green (obviously), being small (obviously) … Only then it dawned on me what I had done. Now it was too late. I continued the talk mortified, but could not make eye contact with the person who asked about the plant.
I did not take an earlier flight
One very embarrassing situation occurred because I did not take an earlier flight. I had to fly in from another country for an interview. I planned everything out so well. I would be exactly where I needed to be when I needed to be there. After all, I had superior planning skills. What could go wrong?
In the end, it turned out everything could go wrong due to a delayed flight. It caused me to be massively late for my interview. Of course, I informed the interviewer and apologized. Even so, when I finally arrived all my calm and confidence was out of the window.
I lied about which university course I liked
I embarrassed myself in an interview when talking about my university courses. The interviewer asked me which one (of two courses) I liked more. One of the two was a good preparation for the job I was interviewing for. The second one not so much.
I liked the second course much more than the one that fit the job. But in order try and be a good match for the open position, I lied about this and said I liked the course more that prepared me for this job. I do not know if it showed that I squirmed with doubt. But it felt very wrong and uncomfortable. And for sure, I was not very convincing. Needless to say, I didn’t get the job.