15 Job Seekers Who Were Smart Enough to Outwit Their Employers

A job interview sometimes resembles a game of tennis or badminton. Every question from the recruiter or boss needs to be answered in a timely manner. You also need to show that you are more skillful, intelligent and, in general, better than other candidates. At the same time, you shouldn’t slip up when the interview doesn’t go according to plan.

• I came for an interview for an airline pilot position. There were about 12 other people besides me waiting for their turn. Then it was time for the individual interview.
  The head of training and the HR guru sat me down and weren’t quite sure what to make of me. I was clearly the first (and probably only) F-14 pilot they’d ever interviewed, so they fumbled with questions like “Um... what makes you think you can handle a 250 knot turboprop?” Then came the clincher, “So, why should we hire you versus all those other people out there?”
  They expected an answer involving hundreds of carrier landings, flying supersonic, blah, blah, so I must be a great pilot. Instead, I thought for a second and said, “I’m sure any of us can fly your planes just fine. I’d like to think I’m the sort of person who you can sit next to for ten hours, and not want to slug.”
  The interview screeched to a halt. Director of training looked at the HR dude and said, “Write that down.” HR said, “Already got it.” They thanked me, shook my hand, and I knew I had the job. © Jim Guibault / Quora
• I was looking for an interesting job for 6 months. And I found it: Looking after aquarium fish for the largest exporter of marine animals in the world! I sent my CV and was invited for an interview. The interview went a little like this, all my answers were completely honest.
  — What do you know about marine animals?
  — Nothing at all.
  A few worried glances were exchanged.
  — Do you see this as a career path?
  — No, in 6 months time I will return back to Uni doing a business degree. I don’t think this will help that degree, nor will that degree help this.
  Needless to say, they were completely shocked at this point.
  — Well, this isn’t a place you can just jump in and have a bit of fun for a bit and then leave.
  — Actually, this is exactly what this place is. You work with marine animals, caring for them and selling them. Correct?
  They answered that was correct.
  — Well, who’s more perfect for this job than me? I know nothing about any of these animals. That means when I learn something about them, I will be amazed! This amazement will then be transferred when I talk to customers about them. As for the care and feeding of the animals, all the other staff are bored by it, but I will be excited, which will lead to me taking great care.
  The HR manager smiled at this.
  — So what you’re saying is not only should we give you the job, but you will be better than our other staff who have degrees in marine science, because you know nothing about our industry?
  — Yes.
  I was offered the job on the spot and started the next day. © Jordan Morris / Quora

• I don’t change jobs very often. As a rule, I start looking for a new place when there is nowhere to grow at the old one. This is my third job now, and although I got the job through a friend, I wasn’t modest in my CV.
  I set the salary higher than I could have been offered, and I knew it. When interviewing with the manager on the phone, I also blatantly said that I was offered a little too little (although it was noticeably more than at my previous job). As a result, my salary is the highest among all my colleagues and higher than some of those who have a higher position. © RukiKryuki / Pikabu
• My second interview for a receptionist position, having been unsuccessful the first time. I knew 2 men would be conducting the interview, so I wore a cream-colored skirt suit where the skirt was so short it barely showed beneath the fitted jacket.
  I left my legs bare and wore white sandals with 6-inch pencil thin stiletto heels. I was showing as much of my 46-inch legs and my feet as I could. Under the jacket I wore a cropped low cut halter-neck top. Lots of cleavage on display. Not one item of clothing that should be worn for an interview.
  It had the desired effect. I was successful. Both men were mesmerized. Unlike my first interview where I dressed correctly. © Miss Claws / Quora

• There were 15 candidates when I was applying for a job in a large European company. But they chose me after I answered this question, “Have you had any unusual stressful situations at work?” I replied, “Just a week ago, our restaurant caught fire. In the smoke, we grabbed a cash box from the cash register, grabbed the expensive audio system, and rushed outside to save the property.” The French employers turned pale and made me a job offer immediately. © Svetlana Krupenko
• I waited the interview for 2 hours with many other people. And then one woman revealed the secret of how it happens. She answered a bunch of questions, and the last one was crazy, “How many sofas are there in Chisinau?”
  I couldn’t find the answer online. So, it was my turn. And I decided to spoil the recruiters’ fun and purposely moved the sheet of paper that covered all the questions so that it was the bottom question that opened first.
  They expected to see my stunned face after easy questions, but they didn’t get this effect with me. And I answered it simply, “A lot.” They, however, still meticulously asked, “And why? And why?” © Ecaterina Coleva

• A PE teacher came to our university. The requirements for the candidate were as follows: higher pedagogical education, experience of 5 years, sports rank. At the end of the interview, the guy said, “Don’t call me, I have 3 more interviews this week, I’ll call you myself.” The director of the college then shouted that people nowadays were way arrogant, that he didn’t want to see that man ever again, but when he called back, they immediately hired him.
• I was being interviewed via Zoom for a part-time consulting gig where I would be a contract CFO for a mid-size IT Mid-Stage funding consulting firm. Everything was going well, until I was asked a question that I didn’t expect. The owner of the company asked me, “Can I trust you?”
  This question seems like a trap. If you say, “Yes,” you could be lying. If you say, “No,” are you telling the truth? I said, “No, and you should not trust anyone!” I then went on to explain that in my position, I would have no access to his funds, but would only be reporting on fund movements. Only he would be able to actually authorize any expenditures or cash transfers, and he should ensure that he keeps things that way.
  In no way did I want access to, or control of, his money. Give me access to the transactional data, but no authority or ability to touch funds. I don’t want to be a suspect if anything goes missing. After he came back from his shock, he eventually offered me the position. He mentioned this interaction a few times, in meetings with others, while I was at the company. © Randall Parker / Quora
• I crawled out into the job market after a 5-year maternity leave. Not a jobseeker, but a godsend! I went on interviews for 6 months, no one wanted a beauty like me. Came to the next interview, the manager is a young woman.
  She says, you know the job is pretty lame, the salary is small, do you really need it? And I reply, “Well, you know, I am a mother of 2 kids who are 3 and 4 years old. So, I am, too, not that valuable acquisition.” And then she’s like, “Oh, I’m a mom of two as well!” We chatted a bit about children and she hired me. © Piyavka2023 / Pikabu

• I had just finished my PhD qualifying exam. I had presented and answered hard questions for 2 hours, and I was exhausted. The committee dismissed me to wait in the hallway while they decided my fate. As soon as the door shut behind me, I bent my knees and crouched on the floor to rest.
  The back of my pants split, right down the middle. After I was called back in to receive congratulations and feedback, I had to be very careful not to face away from any of my committee. I must have looked funny during my walk home, but I had passed, and I didn’t care at that point. © halligan8 / Reddit
• When my daughter turned 2, I decided to return to work. I was invited to 2 interviews on the same day. I asked my mother-in-law to come and babysit while I was at the interviews. And if I got the job, she would move in with us and help out.
  So on day X, my mother-in-law called and said she was ill and couldn’t come. I decided not to lose the chance, took my daughter and went to the interview. At the first company, the boss immediately asked why I had brought my daughter with me. I explained that I had no one to leave her with, but later it would not affect the work. But he was clearly annoyed by the presence of the child, and the interview didn’t go well.
  I was already thinking of not going to the second interview, but still decided to do it. I entered the office and was met by a nice woman. I apologized for bringing the child and explained the situation. But she smiled, said she had 3 children herself and understood everything. We talked about my work experience, career ambitions, she told me about the company’s values and took me on probation. © Mamdarinka / VK

• When I was still studying for my Master’s degree, I spent 6 months looking for a job with a flexible schedule, preparing for interviews, answering questions beautifully and thoroughly, but I only received rejections.
  I got tired of it all and at the next interview when asked, “Why do you want to work for us, what attracted you to our vacancy?” I answered, “I just need a job where I’ll work and get paid for it.” The same day I was hired. © Valeria Ogarkova / Ward 6 / VK
• I have wanted to work in media for a long time and recently decided to send my CV. But I wanted to work not as a journalist, but as a photojournalist. I have been a photographer for many years, I love this, so I decided to move my career in this direction.
  I received invitations to several interviews. I failed them all but the last one. And when I went to the last one, I realized that there would be no other chance. So when I was asked about my work experience, I didn’t say that I didn’t have any.
  I told them that many times I had to secretly photograph marriage proposals so that the girl didn’t notice me, and I never failed this task. So for special materials, I can take photos without anyone seeing me. Now I work as a photojournalist, and I am very grateful to all the guys who ordered secret photoshoots from me. © Chamber No. 6 / VK

• I’m a teacher. I moved to Germany when I was 61. So, I’m going to a job interview. 8 people are sitting at a long table, and there’s a chair in the middle of the room. I sit down with all of them. They laugh, saying that my chair is the one in the middle. I laugh back, saying I thought they were all candidates too.
  After the usual questions about age and family, I hear an unexpected one, “What is your dream?” And I replied, “To raise an Olympic champion or a world champion.” I was immediately hired to work at the school. © Vladimir Shlyonkin / Dzen
• I was trying to get a job as a network administrator for a very large and well-known entity. I had passed 4 interviews and was lucky enough to move on to the next. My next interviewer happens to be a woman that I am informed works as an admin, and I have no idea why she is interviewing me.
  She asked, “Why does it REALLY hurt to hit your funny bone?” I answered, “Because there is no bone covering or protecting the nerves at that location, so you are really making direct contact with nerves.”
  At this point I had had enough. I asked her what is with all the ridiculous questions that have absolutely nothing to do with what I am interviewing for? The door opens at that moment and another woman comes in and asks the person interviewing me to leave. The person who had been asking me questions says to the other, “I like him, he is pretty sharp!” and she leaves the room.
  I am now informed by the person who is sitting down that she is the interviewer I was supposed to have been speaking to. I asked whom the person was who was just asking me a series of strange questions. She said, “That was my secretary, Betty. I told her to come in here and see if you needed anything such as water since I was going to be a few minutes late.” © Bernard Lee Crawford / Quora

And here’s another bunch of stories about weird interviews. Check them out.