Job interviews are among the most daunting things in the world - it's tough to mentally prepare, get your answers in order and appear professional without messing things up.
The annoying thing here is that you can never fully prepare if your interviewer decides to catch you off guard with an odd question or test that could influence their decision, which could decide whether you get a monthly pay cheque or not.
Apparently, this is a well-known move, as several hiring managers have taken to social media to share their 'special tests' that they carry out in interviews to test candidates' wits.
Advert
In a post on Reddit, one user asked: "Managers of Reddit, do you have special 'tests' for interviewees that you put them through without their knowing?"
This thread brought on a number of responses, as one user wrote that she had something that generated 'positive interest' from HR and unwanted eyes from the legal department, naming it the 'alphabet test'.
She further explained: "At some point during the interview, I would request that the interviewee 'please do me a favour and take a pen and paper and write the alphabet for me,'" which she pointed out teaches her two things.
"This taught me two very important things. One, if they knew the alphabet, which was actually relevant to a most basic function of the job and surprisingly (or not) an occasional problem," she said.
The user went on: "Two, whether or not they could follow instructions and perform a very simple although seemingly stupid task as requested without asking me 'why?'"
Apparently, the test was relevant because her company uses an alphabetising system to work through tasks efficiently, and logging things incorrectly can mess up the work they carry out.
Others took to the comments to share what they thought about the method, as one manager said that it helps to weed out the 'mindless drones', as they want to highlight that it's important for 'people to understand why they're doing what they're doing'.
A third shared their test specifically for the food and beverage industry, explaining: "I used to work in a cafe. The work was simple. I asked applicants to butter me a two slices of bread, and put a slice of cheese on it to make a sandwich. Those who failed to wash their hands first; failed," as some commented that they 'didn't want to know' the pass rate.
A candidate then pointed out: "This thread is scaring the shit out of me, I'm desperately unemployed and had 2 big interviews this week that I thought went well."
No pressure then, job-seekers.
Joshua Nair