Second Sunday Series: This is the second of 12 columns focused on reader questions, appearing over 12 months — one on each second Sunday, from September through August. September’s questions followed the theme: Stay or leave a difficult job situation during COVID? while last month’s questions focused on navigating age issues during job search.
As a response to the confusing and upended job market, I’m devoting a year of “second Sundays” to job seeker questions. This month, I’m presenting recaps from three questions about how much to reveal in interviews about one’s response to the pandemic — see what you think.
1. The situation — This individual has been struggling with mental health issues since her layoff last spring. The uncertainty over her work status, the sudden need to home-school her kids and being isolated have all taken a toll. Fortunately, she feels able to work now, in terms of both her schedule and her mental health. Even so, she worries about taking on too much, and wonders how much she should reveal to a potential employer about her needs.
Advice: It would be easy to advise job seekers to be up front about their mental health needs, on the premise that the world is different now than it was even a year ago. Undoubtedly, employers would understand and accommodate issues from their new workers, right?
Well, maybe. In truth, managers and employers are struggling as much as their workers, so there’s some level of empathy built-in. But that may be exactly why less disclosure is better than more. A manager who is already coping with difficulties may not be drawn to candidates with similar problems.
Rather than revealing things that can’t be un-revealed, this candidate — and others with similar concerns — should instead advocate for the specific things they need to perform the job while staying balanced in their personal lives. For one person, that might mean a flexible schedule, while a different candidate might need mentorship on a particular process.
In all cases, candidates should identify early in the job search how many hours they can handle, and what kind of work would suit their current mental health needs. When that’s not easy to discern, starting out part-time or with contract employment will help guard against taking on too much, too quickly.
2. The situation — How many details about pandemic-related obligations should a candidate provide while talking with an interviewer? This sales representative has been home-based through much of his career, so he’s comfortable with the work-from-home aspect of the jobs he’s been pursuing. But twice now he’s felt he may have over-shared when chit-chatting with recruiters as part of the interview process. Without quite meaning to, he has revealed that he has three kids at home right now, that his elderly parents are located two states away, and that he’s been struggling to maintain a productive schedule.
Advice: Yikes. Of course it’s easy to see what this candidate might be doing wrong. Pretty much any of the things he’s been revealing is enough to plant doubt in the interviewer’s mind about his ability to focus on the job.
But where do you draw the line when recruiters ask, “How are you managing during the pandemic?” or, “Have you and your family been well?”
As an adviser, there’s no benefit to pointing out which questions are borderline illegal: When someone inquires after your family’s health, you’re likely to respond. The issue is, how best to navigate the conversation, to keep from saying too much?
For this individual, the over-sharing seems to be linked to his extrovert personality. He’s an outgoing person who makes friends easily — part of his long success as a sales representative. Normally, that’s a helpful quality, but being cut off from his normal level of daily interactions has shifted his judgment somewhat. To compensate, his plan now is to literally practice ice-breakers and other warm-up conversation until it feels natural to say less while still presenting a warm and friendly nature.
3. The situation – This job seeker is in the happy position of interviewing for a job it looks likely she will be offered. Just one problem: She promised to help a family member who has been recovering from COVID, so she won’t be available for work until January. When should she tell the interviewer?
Advice: This one is a little tricky, but the standard advice applies. First, unless directly asked, don’t discuss hiring dates until an offer is made. If asked pre-offer, be a little vague: “I have some things on my schedule that I need to manage, but I should be able to start relatively soon after we finalize an offer.”
And second? It’s never necessary to elaborate on your other obligations. In this case, it would almost certainly be too much information to share.
Do you have a question you’d like to see discussed in a second Sunday column? Send me your concerns about job search, career planning and workplace issues and I’ll try to shine a light on possible solutions.
Amy Lindgren owns a career consulting firm in St. Paul. She can be reached at alindgren@prototypecareerservice.com.
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November 07, 2020 at 10:55PM
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Working Strategies: Reader Questions: How much to reveal in an interview? - TwinCities.com-Pioneer Press
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