Does sending a potential employer an envelope filled with broken glass and a note saying, ‘I would walk over this to work for you’ make you an innovative go-getter, or the likely subject of a restraining order?
In the tough, post-recession job market, people will try almost anything to stand out from the crowd.
Even in less competitive times, landing your dream job can be a challenge.
Neil Baker, the director of people and culture at Cooper Grace Ward, made the jump from a career in medical biology to HR, but found it tough to get employers to give him a chance.
“I found it difficult in the late 1980s to change careers. I have 500 to 600 rejection letters which I got over four to five years because I was applying for jobs while I was studying [HR]. I kept them as a reminder that it’s possible to change careers.”
According to a CareerBuilder survey, a lot of candidates go the extra mile to make themselves stand out and avoid rejection letters.
The problem is that not all of them get it right.
Here’s a list of some of the strangest things job-seekers did in an effort to impress employers:
- Wore a tuxedo
- Used an official celebrity fan site as one of their portfolio accomplishments
- Brought a baby gift to an interviewer who was pregnant
- Sat next to the hiring manager in a church pew
- Left sports game tickets for the interviewer
- Sent a nude photo of himself to the hiring manager
- Tried to do a stand-up comedy routine
- Waited for the hiring manager at his car
- Came dressed as a cat
- Said they “smiled on command”
What’s the weirdest job-seeker stunt you’ve ever seen?
