Take the Water

Photo by Erik Mclean on Unsplash

If I’m offered water at an interview, I take it.

I used to always decline out of habit. To be polite. I don’t know. I just did.

I didn’t want my interviewer to go out of their way to fetch me water before an interview.

Until one day, someone asked, I declined, and they said something very curious to me: “Hey, don’t be nervous. Have some water. We are just here for a conversation.”

I wasn’t nervous.

But I realized my interviewer was trying to be friendly. It was his way of breaking the ice-kind of like talking about the weather.

“But I’m not thirsty” seemed like such a bland response.

So I responded with, “Oh, I’m not nervous. Thank you for offering, though. And just to prove you wrong, I think I might like a coffee instead.”

He laughed. I laughed. I obviously said I was joking right away. But he made me a coffee anyway. 😛

Moral of the story: a job interview is just two people talking to find out if they like each other. The interviewer is there to make sure you’re likable and competent enough to get the job done. You are there to make sure they can appreciate your sense of humor (read: sarcasm). Or that might just be me. 😁

In case you’re wondering:
1. Yes, I got the job.
2. Yes, I reserve my sass for my job interviews.