Tuesday, January 21 – “Why Did I Leave My Old Job?”

Happy Tuesday!

Here’s what’s on the job description for today:

1. New roles from a scale-up in the tech industry focusing on in-person event booking.

2. Today’s Question: “I find it awkward to discuss leaving my old job. How can I answer in a way they accept?”

IN HIRING

Headout

• Serving 20M customers across a whopping 196 countries, the company is taking advantage of the surge in demand for in-person events.

• With a range of quite interesting roles, Headout is a great place for those who believe in the future growth of in-person events.

• Here are a few of the most interesting roles available

  • Associate, Growth & Strategy – Click here for full details

  • Senior Manager, Revenue Operations – Click here for full details

  • Program Manager, Strategy & Growth – Click here for full details

Click here for the company’s career page

TODAY’S QUESTION

“I find it awkward to discuss leaving my old job. How can I answer in a way they accept?”

Recommendation: It’s tough because the real reason is likely not something you want to spend time discussing in an interview. Here’s how I’d take this question on:

• First, the reason they’re asking is to see if they can remove you from the interview process and there is little upside to be gained in your answer.

• Second, given that this question is meant as a way to cut people who they judge as a bad fit, answer in a way that is easy to understand, logical, and simple.

  • One of the keys to answering this question is to have it make sense. If it’s complicated and comes with a long story, it may bring on a few challenging follow up questions. Instead, you want them to move on and forget they ever asked.

• Finally, craft an answer that blends the reality of what happened and the job you’re applying for. Again, keep it simple and logical.

  • For example, often people left because they hated a job or a person they worked with. An answer might mention the misalignment in what you wanted out of your career and the direction of the company/team, which is why you’ve applied for this position, where you feel your goals and the company vision align better.

Conclusion:

This one trips up a lot of candidates. To plan for this, keep things simple and logical, while bringing in an aspect of the company you’re interviewing with.