What Happened During The Interview?
One of the best, and funniest, interviewing stories I've ever run across is recounted by celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain in his bestselling breakout book, "Kitchen Confidential." The problem: the interviewer, owner of a high-end group of steak houses in New York City, spoke with a thick brogue. Bourdain had much difficulty understanding him, but the interviewer was getting visibly annoyed when asked to repeat questions. What to do?
How Did the Interview Turn Out?
The last question posed to Bourdain was, or at least sounded like, "What do you know about me?" Bourdain feared that asking the interviewer yet again to repeat a question would be the final strike against him, so he answered directly, and honestly. "Absolutely nothing." The interviewer looked aghast. Once outside, and on the street, the realization struck Bourdain that he had misheard the question, that it actually was "What do you know about MEAT?" An obvious query to pose to a chef looking for work in a steakhouse, and an area in which Bourdain was, ironically, quite expert. Needless to say, Bourdain never heard back on this job application.
Advice
- If you have trouble understanding an interviewer, for whatever reason (accent, mumbling, speaking too softly or too rapidly, etc.), the less risky course may be to ask for questions to be repeated, even if this seems to annoy the interviewer. This way, you may avoid a very big gaffe.
