When no really means no
I was doing a phone interview with a company in Florida. My interviewer tells me that I would be expected to fly out to Florida on my own dime for an in-person interview.
Then he asked, “Can you fly out Wednesday?” It was Friday, so I was like, “Five days from now?” When he said yes, I started laughing and said, “Are you kidding me?” He snapped at me, “Yes, I’m serious!
We are trying to get this position filled as fast as possible! If you’re not serious, maybe you’re not right for the position!”
To which I replied, “You’re right, I don’t think I’m right for this position.”
He immediately softened and started saying stuff like, “Well, wait a minute, let’s talk about this.” And when I kept saying, “Look, I am clearly not a good choice for your company —” he kept cutting me off and insisting that we continue the interview.
A few days later, I got a call from the company again, informing me that I was one of the top three candidates. So when should they expect me for my interview?
Cue another five minutes of insisting that I didn’t want the job, before finally cutting them off and hanging up.