Gonzo chef Anthony Bourdain recounted a story in his popular book “Kitchen Confidential” about a job interview he had early in his career.
The job was for a chef in a steakhouse and the interviewer, the owner, was a fairly well-known restaurateur. As the story goes — or at least as I’m remembering it — Bourdain thought the interview was going well and he was feeling relaxed. The the interviewer asked, “So, what do you know about me?”
Bourdain didn’t want to appear to be part of any rumor milling about the restaurant owner, though he certainly had heard stories. So he simply said, “Practically nothing.” At which point the interview abruptly ended, to Bourdain’s confusion.
The kicker to the story is that after he left the interview and replayed it in his mind, he realized that what the steakhouse owner actually asked was, “So, what do you know about meat?”
There isn’t much one can do about mishearing a question, other than to repeat it or ask for clarification.
But what’s worse in this example is that Bourdain’s response was the wrong one even if it had been the question he thought he had heard.
When you’re interviewing for a job, it should be part of your preparation to research what you can about the business, it’s parent company, if it has one, and, if possible, the person with whom you will be interviewing.
Besides giving you a better understanding about the company and the way it does business, it will show that you have an interest in it and in the position. It will also give you an opportunity to ask insightful questions that will demonstrate initiative.
You can conduct research by visiting the company’s website and doing Internet searches.
But if you find any dark rumors about the person conducting the interview, it may be better to plead the same sort of ignorance that Bourdain did.
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