I recently remembered a piece of interviewing advice from my high school teacher a long time ago, and I was curious whether this is actually a good idea or if there’s a better strategy.
This teacher said that during an interview, if you’re asked a question you didn’t expect and might need a moment to contemplate (for example: something oddly specific like “tell me about a time you overcame a challenge involving a squirrel in the workplace” or a question that requires a bit of creative thinking like “if you had to describe your work ethic using a movie title, what would it be?”), it’s perfectly fine to say “that’s an interesting question, I’ll need a moment to think about that one” and just take a moment to think about it quietly.
From my limited perspective, this seems pretty solid in principle. While good preparation of relevant experiences and answers to common questions can help avoid this, I think it’s still reasonable to assume that an interviewee is going to encounter a few questions that make them think and might need some time.
In practice, when I used this tactic during a mock interview, I found it to be beyond awkward. I just looked at the wall and tried to talk through my disjointed thoughts with the interviewer (mostly just “hmmm”s and “well, there was that one incident … but that wasn’t a squirrel, so…”). It also was difficult to concentrate since the silence and time pressure (and nerves) made my brain focus less on the question at hand and more on things like “my answers to that last question might have been lacking” and “I wonder if I LOOK like I’m thinking hard or not.” Then when I felt I had a good response, I couldn’t really think of anything more elegant to say than, “Thanks, I think I have an answer now.”
Is this a solid piece of advice and I just needed more practice with my execution? Or is this a bad idea to do in an interview? Do you have any suggestions for better ways to handle questions that you might need some time to think about? I know for some questions it’s possible to start answering as long as you have a general idea of what you want to say and you can think about it as you talk, but what’s your advice if you’re not sure how to even start?
I’d really love to hear your feedback on this, and please let me know if I’m off-base with any of my assumptions here as I’m still pretty inexperienced (I’ve only been in the work force for about two years so far).
The real problem is that interviewers shouldn’t be asking questions like “describe your work ethic using a movie title” unless the job they’re hiring for requires that specific type of creativity and the ability to come up with creative answers under pressure. Some jobs do. Most jobs don’t.
But of course, you can’t control that as the interviewee, so you still need a way to handle questions that you don’t have an instant answer to.
Asking to take a moment to think is generally fine. It would be odd if you did it in response to something like “why are you interested in this job?” or another question an interviewer would reasonably assume you wouldn’t need to search your brain for … but for questions like the ones in your examples, it’s perfectly fine to say, “Let me take a minute and think about that.”
That said, a pause can go on so long that it starts to feel off and with most questions, that point is right around the one-minute mark. Which doesn’t give you all that long to think, frankly — and knowing you only have a minute can create the kind of pressure that sometimes makes it impossible to come up with an answer. So if you’re really struggling to think of something, it’s also okay to say, “Nothing is coming quickly to mind! Could we come back to that later in the conversation and I’ll let it percolate in my head meanwhile?”
Also, know that with “tell me about time when…” questions, if you can’t think of a relevant example, it’s okay to say, “I haven’t encountered that specifically, but something similar was…” or “I haven’t experienced that exactly, but my thought would be handle it by…” (More on doing that here.)
And — while it doesn’t sound like the sorts of questions you’re asking about — there are some questions that will take a while to answer, but where the interviewer wants you to think out loud as you go. With problem-solving questions (like “how would you figure out the number of windows in New York” or so forth) or in technical interviews, interviewers generally want you to talk your way through figuring out the problem because they want to hear how you’re approaching it (and in those cases they can be more interested in your thought process than your ultimate answer).
6 a.m. Wake up and put on knit cardigan, slacks, and sensible shoes. Feed my cat, Mr. Foibles. Have tea and English muffin while I read Shakespeare and listen to symphonies.
7 a.m. Get into twenty-year-old Corolla, turn on NPR, get rattled by news and switch to listening to a Charles Dickens book on tape read by Alistair Cooke.
7:15 a.m. Arrive to an exact replica of your hometown library, or what you imagine a library to look like, basically where Giles from Buffy works.
7:20 a.m. Pass front desk where I nod and greet the morning staff, all of whom have matching hair buns and pointy glasses. “Hello, Miss Ganderhoof. Miss Hemshaw. Miss Garlic. Miss Snippercase…”
7:25 a.m. Enter back office and hang up overcoat on coat rack. Open letter from mayor in which she declines to provide more funding for books “that no one reads anymore.”
7:35 a.m. Crumple up letter, think better of it, uncrumple letter, smooth it out, and place gently in bottom of recycling bin.
7:40 a.m. Push aside uncataloged books on desk to clear space to read my “at work” book: The History of the Dewey Decimal System.
10:00 a.m. Look up from text, astonished how fast time has passed. Open up a bag of Werther’s caramels.
10:30 a.m. Overzealously shush patrons.
11:00 a.m. Nap time.
12:00 p.m. Wake up when phone rings. Miss Skiffy, the new hire, asks whether we can forgive a book fine that’s under one dollar. Vehemently refuse, and ask her exactly how we are supposed to fund a library if we don’t collect fines?
12:05 p.m. Enter time machine and head to Woolworths lunch counter circa 1961 where I have potato soup, ham on rye with a side pickle, and some of Dixie’s sumptuous apple pie with vanilla ice cream.
12:55 p.m. Return to work. Say hello to Miss Bannister, Miss Hillywicket, Miss Faucet, and Miss Twelvepenny.
1:00 p.m. Work to clear cobwebs from book stacks. Become weakened and feverish and call cleaning services for estimates (all too high).
1:30 p.m. Find list of the most offensive books in print and order them all with your tax dollars.
2:00 p.m. Personal enrichment/reading time.
3:00 p.m. Start to write essay about how television ruined book-reading. Scrap the essay and start new one about how the internet made libraries obsolete. Scrap essay and start new one about how social media made thinking obsolete. Scrap essay and shake futile fist at iMac being used as a doorstop.
4:20 p.m. Shush the noisy orphaned children entrusted to our care after school lets out.
4:25 p.m. Shush quota for day met.
4:30 p.m. Pop a Werther’s and lock office door. Say good night to Miss Rigby, Miss Havisham, Miss Spankings, and Miss Stuffington.
5:00 p.m. Return to attic apartment with sweaty green walls. Tuck into a plate of mutton, beans, and pudding.
6:00 p.m. Wrap self in wool blanket and indulge in glass of port as I reread the Encyclopedia Britannica.
7:30 p.m. Since I don’t own a TV, amuse self by reading show descriptions in my PBS program guide.
8:00 p.m. Remove cardigan and rest of day clothes and put on long nightshirt and nightcap. Pull a card catalog box from beneath bed and organize it until I get drowsy.
9:30 p.m. Fall asleep and dream I’m someone important, like a business executive or something.
I have played Vampire Survivors twice - that’s two (2) times - in total. In only that short space of time, the arcade-style game has sunk its teeth into me. You swat away hordes of monsters with weapons and magic that fire automatically. All it needs from you is one hand on the wheel. You are, in essence, the pale captain of a battleship that must weave its way through demons and bats. The garlic and holy water cannons will take care of the rest.
Not only do I crave more vampiric survival, but I also wish it had been released years ago. This is the perfect pre-lesson huddle. The perfect after-school treat. A nerdy talk generator for those locker chats.
Those who happen to find themselves in Philadelphia have an opportunity to make their lives just a little bit sunnier. Co-stars and married couple Rob McElhenney and Kaitlyn Olsen, a.k.a. Mac and Dee from "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia," are also business partners as the proprietors of Mac's Tavern, a bar found in the middle of the City of Brotherly Love.
The cast of the longest-running live-action sitcom has always had strong, loving ties to the program's setting, even if its members all live in Los Angeles. McElhenney himself grew up in Philly and Olsen famously went into labor while attending a baseball game between the Phillies and the LA Dodgers. The series' fictional bar, Paddy's Pub, is portrayed as a little-frequented, unsanitary dump where the owners spend more time getting drunk behind the counter than running a business. Mac's Tavern, on the other hand, is a real, honest-to-god establishment, devoid of any rat-infested basements or ocular patdowns.
From Paddy's To Mac's
The sports bar is located in the heart of Old City at 226 Market Street, right down the block from the Declaration of Independence and the Liberty Bell. According to its website:
Mac's Tavern was formed by a small to semi-medium group of partners, comprised mainly of old friends. Mixed with a few national, local and (perhaps) cult celebrities — most notably, Rob and Kaitlin McElhenney of "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" fame — the dynamic is as unique as it gets.
The description boasts craft brews and grub alongside a jukebox and plasma TVs, though there's sadly no milk steak or rum ham on the menu. There was most likely no kidnapping of restaurant critics, either, since the bar has successfully been in operation since 2010.
The interior space isn't an exact replica of Paddy's Pub, but there's painted artwork of the "It's Always Sunny" cast running alongside the top of the wall. Fans will probably also appreciate the signed Chase Utley jersey on display, though will note the lack of stickers. ("You guys put Philly on the map!" wrote Utley in an address to "Always Sunny.")
The space occupies the site of a former dry goods store that, according to the site, was possibly frequented by the likes of neighborhood denizens Benjamin Franklin and Betsy Ross. Now, Mac's Tavern has once again become a part of modern Philadelphia history. Truly, though, one has to wonder what the Founding Fathers would think about the spaghetti policy.
Good morning. The cold front has pushed off the coast, and temperatures have fallen into the upper 30s to low 40s for most of the region. Our primary concern remains the potential for rainfall to turn into wintry precipitation this evening, and during the overnight hours. Secondarily, we are worried about cold temperatures on Thursday night falling below freezing, with wind chills in the low teens. Please protect your pets, and check on neighbors.
Thursday
Today will be cold, wet, and windy, with light to moderate precipitation winding down through the morning hours. Expect high temperatures to remain at about 40 degrees or slightly higher this afternoon, with northerly winds gusting to 25 or 30 mph. Rain remains possible this afternoon, although showers should be very light. There are two main forecast questions that we’re struggling with, and they’re both important to determine impacts from later today into Friday morning. First of all, how quickly will a freezing line advance from northwest of the Houston metro area down toward the coast? And secondarily, when will the precipitation end altogether?
Most likely, the freezing line will reach western parts of the metro area, including Katy; and northern parts, including The Woodlands; sometime this afternoon or shortly after sunset. This means that travel through Houston should be fine today and likely through the evening commute unless you’re going north of Conroe or to places northwest, beyond Hempstead. For more inland parts of the state, including Austin and Dallas, there are fairly serious icing problems today. You can check highway ice conditions at the Texas Department of Transportation’s Drive Texas website.
Icy conditions have already developed in central and northern Texas this morning. (DriveTexas.org)
As the freezing line moves in, it looks as though very light precipitation may still be falling this afternoon, evening, and overnight. Our primary concern is that this will leave a thin glaze of ice on elevated roads and bridges into Friday morning. Within the Houston metro area, my sense right now is that essential travel will still be possible if you go slow and use caution. However, it does not take too much freezing rain to make a mess of things. The latest models have trended a bit drier in terms of overnight precipitation, which gives me some hope that ice accumulation is not going to be a significant problem in Harris County and most of the immediate area surrounding Houston. But again we’re walking a pretty fine line here. Matt and I will update the site a couple of more times today to bring you the latest data we have on this.
It looks like overnight temperatures will drop into the mid- to upper-20s for much of the Houston area, with the coast remaining near or just above freezing. Combined with winds, this will make for extremely cold conditions out of doors, but we don’t think it will cause widespread issues with pipes. So far the state’s power grid is holding up well, with electricity capacity far exceeding demand. We think that will continue to be the case tonight and into Friday, but can offer no guarantees.
Low temperature forecast for Friday morning. (Weather Bell)
Friday
So what can we expect roadways to look like Friday morning? This will depend on precipitation overnight, and right now our expectation is that there may be a light glaze on elevated roads and bridges. There is a chance for more significant ice accumulations, but as I look at the data right now that seems unlikely. Temperatures should rise above freezing during the mid- to late-morning hours, after which the threat of any ice on the roads will quickly abate. A winter weather advisory from the National Weather Service is in effect through noon Friday. High temperatures on Friday won’t go far—perhaps only to 40 or 42 degrees—but they’ll go far enough. With partly cloudy skies we can expect another cold night, with a light freeze possible in Houston.
Saturday
The first day of the weekend will be sunny and cold, with highs in the upper 40s. Winds should finally die down some, but this in turn will yield ideal conditions for cooling overnight, so a light freeze will again be possible for much of the metro area.
Sunday
Sunny with highs in the mid-50s. Lows Sunday night should finally remain above freezing for all but some areas in Montgomery County and points north.
Next week
For the most part we should see sunny weather next week, with highs in the 60s and lows in the 30s and 40s. Rain chances are low for the most part. So cold, but not extremely cold.
My fellow Romans, I write to warn you of a grave threat to the Roman economy and way of life. The progressives are at it again in their obsession with raising taxes, this time to pay for their proposed Aqueduct New Deal.
Can you imagine taking wealthy Roman job creators’ hard-earned gold to mandate water accessibility for all? Talk about class warfare! They say Rome is getting too big and running out of freshwater for everyone. They claim Rome is in the middle of a water crisis. But if that’s true, then why do I have a full lead cup of water in my hand right now as I’m writing this scroll?
The progressives promise these aqueducts will bring water from far away rivers to avoid overdrawing the Tiber River while equalizing access to drinking and bathing as a basic human right, but just know that what these progressives really want is to control your life! They want to tell you when you can and can’t have bacchanalian orgies in your private villa pool. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Janus-faced progressives secretly want to take all the water for themselves and their poor constituents. It’s political bribery to buy votes for themselves with free hydration, and they’re too obsessed with everything being free. What are we, Carthage? Don’t fall for this brazen redistribution scheme!
Let me ask all fair-minded Romans this question: Do the poor and all our slaves even deserve public water? I can’t help but think that Jupiter must have a good reason to make the thirsty suffer, and, if anything, thirst is a great motivator for plebeians to pick themselves up by the sandal strap and go get their own water. It could even be a lucrative business for them! They could start their own water-ferrying company, or at least earn a little extra gold on the side. It’s the perfect side hustle for the burgeoning gig economy.
And are progressives considering the damage that public aqueducts will do to the economy? Rome employs thousands of plebeians to walk to the Tiber and bring back buckets of freshwater every day. What will happen to all these jobs? We can’t put all the water-fetchers out of work. Trust me, aqueducts are no revolutionary innovation; they’re an economic Trojan horse! It will decimate the Roman economy, and take away the dignity of water-fetchers everywhere.
So my proposal for the water shortage crisis is more water-fetchers! Let’s get rid of the minimum wage in order to encourage businesses to hire as many water-fetchers as possible. If we can get Rome to full employment/enslavement, the water supply will come roaring back, I guarantee it!
Instead of raising taxes, which are already much too high in Rome, we should actually cut taxes. If aqueducts are as good an idea as the progressives say, why get the government involved to screw it up? Rome’s hardworking taxpayers should have to pay only for the aqueducts that lead directly to their companies or private villas. So instead of a small tax raise making everyone lose money, we can make aqueducts profitable by letting private enterprise build them and charge daily usage fees. And I promise these privately owned aqueducts will trickle down water, and profits, to everyone!
And if we really want to promote a freshwater free market, let’s cut all the bureaucratic red tape and regulations interfering with the agora’s blind wisdom. You don’t want some elitist bureaucrat telling you how much water you can have, and you definitely don’t want the government having the power to plug up your pipes whenever they want! That will lead straight to death panels of corrupt officials deciding who gets to drink and who doesn’t. Believe me, you don’t want that for Grandma and Grandpa! Besides, who better to regulate the public water supply than the people who use the most water? I assure you that irrigation diggers, farmers, and wealthy patricians can and will self-regulate themselves with honor, selflessness, and charity.
So I implore you, my fellow Romans, don’t listen to the progressives. Public water means having no water for anyone, and the state murdering your grandparents! And worst of all, a slight increase in the top marginal tax rates! The Aqueduct New Deal is a bad deal for Rome!
This scroll was paid for by Tribunes for Water Freedom
1. My company asked us to take a religiously-themed strengths assessment
My work asked us to take a strengths assessment ahead of a retreat. The test asks you to rate statements on how much they describe you. When I took it, a lot of the statements jumped out at me as religious/Christian or using religiously-coded language. Some examples: • “I am a spiritual person.” • “I have been richly blessed in my life.” • “My faith makes me who I am.” • “I do not give into temptation.”
After taking the test, it tells you how you scored on 24 strengths. This is another area where a lot of the language seems religious or religiously-coded. The strengths are sorted into six categories: Wisdom, Courage, Humanity, Justice, Temperance, and Transcendence. One of the possible strengths is “spirituality,” and part of the description for that strength includes: “Become aware of your strength: Understand what spirituality is all about so you can begin recognizing it in yourself and others.”
I was born and raised Catholic, and am now an atheist. I can recognize that this upbringing left me sensitive to feeling like I’m having religion pushed on me again. Right now, I’m definitely feeling a little upset that my work asked me to fill out a religious character assessment test and I’m not thrilled about the throwback to my very religious childhood, which used almost all of the same language. I’m also now dreading the possibility of discussing results with coworkers turning into a discussion on the value of religion. Is this a valid thing to be upset about, or do I need a reality check? If I’m overthinking it, please tell me so!
Yes, this is a valid thing to be upset about! Your workplace has no business asking you to assess your “spiritual strength” or expecting you to discuss it in any way. You’d be on solid ground if you want to point out that some of the test is inappropriate — to your boss, HR, or whoever is running the retreat, depending on your sense of who will be the most responsive. And if it comes up at the retreat, you should feel free to say, “Some of the assessment felt religious in nature to me and not appropriate for a work discussion.”
In doing that, you should factor in how much capital you have, how much capital that particular statement will expend in your particular workplace, and how much you care to fight it. But you’re certainly not overreacting if you choose to take it on.
2. Nail-clipping coworker
I’ve never caught him in the act, but I know my coworker is clipping his nails at work. I hear the distinct *clip clip clip* of nail clippers coming from the neighboring cube daily. The coworker in question is older than me and I’ve worked next to him for about eight months now. Before that he was at another end of the office, which was pretty much empty except for him. He is quite the lone wolf and I’ve never actually talked to him (we work in completely different business sectors within the larger company) so I would feel like quite the creep peering into his cube to try to confirm my suspicions. For context, I work in a small office (~40 people) and since the pandemic, there are about 10 of us who come in to work regularly. It’s just me and him in this area of the office so I can’t really ask anyone else if they are hearing the clips too. Maybe I’m just paranoid, maybe it’s the sound of something else? What are your thoughts on clipping your nails at work?
Well, there’s what people should and shouldn’t do at work … and then there’s what you can do when someone doesn’t follow those rules, and the two aren’t always the same thing.
People shouldn’t do a full nail-clipping at work! Snipping one bothersome nail isn’t a big deal, but deciding to clip all 10 nails is a personal grooming project for home, and a lot of people are grossed out both by the sound and the act.
But lots of people do rude or inconsiderate things at work that they shouldn’t do. If you want to speak up, though, there’s no reason you couldn’t lean around his cubicle and say, “I’ve been hearing that noise a lot and it’s driving me crazy. Would you mind doing that in the bathroom?”
3. Should I stop saving time slots for clients who regularly cancel?
I own a personal chef business and have clients I cook for on a weekly basis. Well, ideally at least.
I have three clients that I save a weekly time slot for, whether or not they actually use it. One client almost never cancels or reschedules (only once over the holidays). My other two clients often skip two weeks or even three weeks in a month. Sometimes I don’t know they want to cancel until the week before, which is not enough time for another client to fill their slot. I generally don’t charge for cancellations unless they cancel with less than two hours notice.
I know my clients enjoy knowing they have a saved slot every week, but the loss of income is sometimes too much to absorb month-to-month.
I’m thinking of no longer saving time slots for repeat offenders so I don’t lose business (I’m afraid new clients see a sparse schedule on my website and decide not to do business with me). Should I take away their guaranteed saved slot on my schedule every week, or should I keep going like this and just be grateful I have someone to potentially fill the slot? I don’t want to come off as rude or controlling to my current clients.
It’s not rude or controlling to stop holding slots to people who aren’t paying for them!
You have a bunch of different ways you could handle it: You could charge a fee for holding slots (presumably lower than what they’d pay if they used it, but more than the zero they’re paying for that slot now). You could require clients who want weekly slots held to pay for three out of four slots every month, whether they use them or not. You could require people to confirm their reserved slots X days ahead of time, with the understanding that you’ll open those slots up to others if they don’t. You could do away with holding slots altogether (but could choose make exceptions for clients you know to be reliable). Whatever you decide, any reasonable client will understand that you can no longer reserve your time for them if they’re going to regularly not use or pay for it.
4. Someone left a nasty Glassdoor review using my title
I recently left a job after six years there. At the time I left, my title was director of operations. I left on very good terms. It’s a small company and I don’t believe there has been anyone else at the company with my same title, at least not in the last six years.
Now, someone has posted a nasty review of the company on Glassdoor, and filled in their job title as the former director of operations. I did not post the review and am mortified to think that my former bosses/coworkers will think it was me! What should I do? Please help!
Contact your boss and let her know — “I saw a review on Glassdoor from someone using my old title and I want to make sure you know it wasn’t me! I would never post something like that and disagree with the feedback entirely.” (Or whatever is true.) And if you could honestly leave a positive review yourself, you could also post your own and note that you’re the only who’s held that title in years.
5. Firms that use job listings to pitch their services
A colleague of mine recently asked for advice on a cover letter they’d put together for a specific type of job I am familiar with hiring for/managing. When I expressed surprise they were interested (they own a small consulting firm), they said they weren’t applying, but pitching their services for some of the job’s essential responsibilities, and wanted a second opinion on the language. I gave them the advice but was kind of taken aback by the approach.
Is this a thing people do now — more importantly, is it a thing business owners/hiring managers respond to? I know it would certainly have turned me off if I’d received it, but I am admittedly not in the target market for their services.
Almost every time I’ve hired for a job, I’ve received pitches like this from firms wanting to cover the work as a vendor in place of an employee. So it’s definitely a thing people try, although I can’t tell you with how much success. It’s always felt like a pretty out-of-touch approach to me (if we wanted to outsource the work to a vendor, we’d be doing that; we want an employee for a reason), but I can imagine a situation where someone might consider it if they were having trouble finding candidates who could do what they needed.
Many items are added to the Internet Archive’s collections every month, by us and by our patrons. Here’s a round up of some of the new media you might want to check out. Logging in might be required to borrow certain items.
Notable new collections:
Shakemore Festival (2007-present) Maryland: The Shakemore Music Festival is an annual weekend event comprised of 20 to 30 acts, featuring frequent appearances from what has become a large Shakemore family of bands (including Bang Bang Lulu, Caching Behavior, Cigarbox Planetarium, Go Pills, Weird Paul Rock Band, and many others).
Quantum Leap Podcast: The Quantum Leap Podcast talks about every episode of the cult hit time travel program, as well as the novels and comic books it inspired.
This month we’ve added books on varied subjects in more than 20 languages. Click through to explore, but here are a few interesting items to start with:
The audio archive contains recordings ranging from alternative news programming, to Grateful Dead concerts, to Old Time Radio shows, to book and poetry readings, to original music uploaded by our users.
Founded in 2005, Librivox is a community of volunteers from all over the world who record audiobooks of public domain texts in many different languages.
The Live Music Archive is a community committed to providing the highest quality live concerts in a lossless, downloadable format, along with the convenience of on-demand streaming (all with artist permission).
This collection hosts complete, freely downloadable/streamable, often Creative Commons-licensed catalogs of ‘virtual record labels’. These ‘netlabels’ are non-profit, community-built entities dedicated to providing high quality, non-commercial, freely distributable MP3/OGG-format music for online download in a multitude of genres.
On the January 31, 2022 episode of ABC's "The View," the hosts were discussing the recent decision by a Tennessee school district to ban Art Spiegelman's Pulitzer Prize-winning serialized nonfiction graphic novel "Maus." Spiegelman wrote "Maus" by interviewing his father about his experiences as a Polish Jew and survivor of the Holocaust, depicting Jews as mice, Germans as cats, Poles as pigs, Americans as dogs, the English as fish, the French as frogs, and the Swedish as deer. The district banned the book on grounds of "inappropriate language and nudity," an absurd claim to make regarding a book about the mass genocide of over six million people, and a clear act of antisemitism.
During the discussion of the book banning, co-host Whoopi Goldberg made the ill-informed comment, "Let's be truthful about it because Holocaust isn't about race," she said. "It's not about race, it's not about race, it's about man's inhumanity to man." "The View" co-host Ana Navarro immediately corrected her, stating, "But it's about white supremacists going after Jews." Goldberg disagreed and replied, "But these are two white groups of people!" She continued, "The minute you turn it into race, it goes down this alley. Let's talk about it for what it is. It's how people treat each other. It doesn't matter if you're Black or white, Jews, it's each other." Goldberg's comments immediately came under fire for being antisemitic, and as of Tuesday night, ABC News president Kim Godwin had announced to staff that Goldberg would be suspended for two weeks "for her wrong and hurtful comments."
Goldberg's Colbert Appearance Exacerbated The Situation
After the comments began flooding in regarding Goldberg's remarks on "The View," she recorded an episode of "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" where she continued the conversation and clarified her reasoning for believing that the Holocaust was not a race issue. Unfortunately, "The Late Show" aired after Goldberg had already issued an apology for her statements. This led to people viewing her appearance on "Colbert" as doubling down, not realizing that the apology was written after she had been rightfully called in and educated, as well as after her appearance had been recorded.
On Tuesday morning, Goldberg apologized publicly on "The View," in addition to a segment that included an interview with Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt. Her apology went as follows:
"Yesterday on the show I misspoke. [The Holocaust] is indeed about race, because Hitler and the Nazis considered the Jews to be an inferior race. Now, words matter, and mine are no exception. I regret my comments and I stand corrected. I also stand with the Jewish people."
ABC's decision to suspend Goldberg came after this public apology. There are plenty who see her suspension as a good thing, but many acknowledge it as a double-standard when compared to other hosts who have said offensive and problematic things in the past. The decision also continues to pit the Black and Jewish communities against one another.
Goldberg's Comments Stem From Common Misconceptions
Antisemitic hate crimes are on the rise not just in the United States, but around the world, and they have been, steadily, for some time. It's impossible to fathom just how deeply embedded antisemitism is in our global society, as it isn't just an act of discrimination or bigotry, but is linked to and birthed out of dangerous conspiracy theories that cause legitimate harm, continually putting the Jewish people in danger.
We (meaning Americans in this instance) frequently apply America's perspective of racism onto other countries and time periods, discussing them as if we're making a one-to-one comparison, which is not always applicable, and fosters ignorance. Jewish educational professional, essayist, and TikTok creator Shekhiynah Larks offered an important and nuanced dissection of how Goldberg came to her incorrect conclusion, noting that we often forget that whiteness in America has changed over time, where people who weren't considered "white" during the turn of the 20th century (Jews, Italians, Greeks, Poles, Hungarians, Slavs, etc.) are typically seen as white today as many of us benefit from white supremacy due to our lack of melanin and eurocentric features. But the Holocaust was absolutely about race, as the Jewish people were not only viewed as "not white," but subhuman and often compared vermin or disease.
While I cannot speak on behalf of Goldberg nor will I ever attempt to do so, it appears that her statements are rooted in ignorance on the subject matter from a history of misinformation, and perhaps most importantly, her own lived experiences as a Black woman in America. "The core of the problem is that people don't realize we're working with two definitions of race," Larks said in another video. "White supremacy and Aryanism define race in different ways."
Was Suspension The Right Call?
When people cause harm, accountability and making amends are necessary, and it very much seems like Goldberg was putting in the work to repair the harm that she caused. I can't help but view her suspension as a performative move, especially considering ultra-conservative Meghan McCain was never suspended during her four-year run on "The View" despite making a plethora of offensive and straight-up racist comments. Why was McCain given "teachable moments" while Goldberg was put on suspension the same day she brought on Greenblatt to have him help explain why the Holocaust absolutely was about race?
While I assume ABC's intentions came from the right place, this move not only expresses an unnecessary desire for punitive measures, it's also already stirring up more antisemitism from those who feel her suspension was an overcorrection, which we will not be linking to because giving hatred more attention is like giving oxygen to a forest fire. If there's any silver lining to be found in this situation, it's that Goldberg's misstep has at least sparked much-needed and long-overdue discussions about antisemitism, why it endures today and has for centuries.
Stand up for your Jewish friends, call out antisemitism, learn from the mistakes of others, and educate yourself and your community.
A brawl resulted Friday night at the Golden Corral restaurant in Bensalem, Pennsylvania, after it allegedly ran out of steak. The footage shows diners swinging punches, hurling chairs and screaming insults, with one man plaintively calling out "all I wanted was some steak" during a lull in the melee. — Read the rest
300 Ways to Serve Eggs: From Appetizers to Zabaglione
Culinary Arts Institute
1941
Submitter: I was eggstatic to find this book sitting on the shelf in our cookbook section. Marvel in the wonders of what egg dishes you could make in 1941. I love how staining on the pages adds to the ambiance of this classic.
Holly: I like a good egg as much as the next gal, but 80 years of egg splatter is a bit much.
Melissa Brown, “i,25,” 2018, flashe, acrylic, and oil on Dibond, 54 x 72 inches
*************
No matter how original, innovative or crazy your idea, someone else is also working on that idea. Furthermore, they are using notation very similar to yours. – Bruce J. MacLennan
Good morning. The overall forecast remains on track for Houston, with a strong Arctic front moving into the region tonight and setting up several days of colder weather. I still don’t things will get too extreme for Houston—much of the city probably will not see a hard freeze—but this winter storm will nonetheless have widespread effects across the state. Matt covered a lot of these issues in a post on Tuesday night.
Also, I’m not sure exactly what it means when the groundhog sees not his shadow, but rather the shadow of death, but I guess we’re about to find out. This is because Milltown Mel, a weather-predicting groundhog in New Jersey, died on the day before Groundhog Day. So, yeah.
Wednesday
Fog is draped over much of the region this morning as air temperatures, generally in the mid-50s, have fallen to the dewpoint temperature. This fog will burn off as air temperatures rise today, and we’re probably going all the way into the low 70s even though skies will be mostly cloudy. Winds will be light, from the east, at 5 to 10 mph. Some scattered, light showers will be possible this morning, and into the afternoon hours, but I think the better rain chances will come over night along with the front. Said front will arrive in northwest parts of the region by around 8 to 10 pm on Wednesday night, should reach downtown around midnight, and push down to the coast around 2 to 4 am.
This dewpoint forecast shows the front’s position at around midnight tonight. (Weather Bell)
Thursday
It will be a different world when you wake up Thursday morning, with air temperatures around 40 degrees, gusty northerly winds, and possibly some ongoing precipitation. The bottom line: It will be cold, windy, and possibly wet. High temperatures should hold at about 40 degrees during the daytime, and the possibility for some very light precipitation will linger throughout the daytime. What does this mean for our region? Well, it’s possible that areas northwest will see a mix of sleet and ice pellets during the daytime. A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect for Burleson, Brazos, Houston, Madison, Washington, and Grimes counties through 6 pm. Closer to Houston, we may see some sleet or freezing in the air, but surface temperatures should be warm enough to preclude any impacts on the ground. At this time we don’t anticipate significant impacts in the city and surrounding counties.
Area showing a “winter weather advisory” for areas immediately northwest of Houston. (Weather Bell)
Another big question remains how cold it will get on Thursday night. It’s looking like clouds and winds of 15 to 20 mph should help keep the extreme cold at bay, with temperatures in the mid- to upper-20s in places like Montgomery County and west Harris County, and temperatures in the upper 20s to freezing in Houston and down to the coast. These temperatures should be warm enough to preclude bursting unexposed pipes.
Low-temperature forecast for Friday morning in Houston. (Weather Bell)
Friday
This will be a cold, mostly cloudy day. Highs should peak in the upper 30s to 40 degrees, but a northerly wind will make it feel colder. But at least it will be above freezing. With more clouds on Friday night, lows should drop to about their same level as Thursday night, plus or minus a degree or two.
Saturday
Sunshine, finally. Clearing skies should help temperatures rise into the upper 40s to 50 degrees, and we’ll probably all welcome the lack of a stiff northerly wind. Lows Saturday night, under clear skies, should drop to around freezing in central Houston, with slightly cooler conditions for inland areas.
Sunday
The second half of the weekend looks quite nice, with highs in the mid-50s and ample sunshine. Most of the area should avoid a freeze on Sunday night.
Next week
Temperatures will be slow to warm as we head into next week, but highs should reach the low 60s by Wednesday or so, with lows in the 40s. Days should be partly to mostly sunny, with a mostly northerly flow. If you enjoy winter in Texas, be sure and get your fill.
It’s my first week in the new role, and my question is: how much should I/can I decorate my new office?
I was an outside hire in a new position within a small department. It’s a customer-facing role where I’ll have a lot of people in and out of my office looking for help. It’s also a new industry for me and, while there are similarities, some department members might feel like “what is she doing here and why was she hired into this manager role above me after my 20 years of experience in the industry?” (I don’t know that anyone feels that way, but I guess I feel they’d be justified if they did.)
I’m a big believer in surroundings affecting how people feel, and so I want my office to be inviting and comfortable. Right now, it’s a very large office with good light, but the walls haven’t been painted in years and the existing furniture is a hodgepodge of whatever others in the department didn’t want.
To be clear: I’m not ungrateful! It’s great the way it is! It’s got a big window with a nice view, and a desk, a bookshelf, another table, multiple chairs — everything a person would need to function. I’m so thrilled to have this office, to have this position, and I want to make sure my coworkers know this. Will bringing in my own furniture (nothing expensive — I have a desk at home that I bought for $150 and a simple but comfortable armchair around the same price point), for example, make me seem like a prima donna who thinks she’s too good for the furniture that was there? Or will it signal that I’m taking this role seriously and am excited to be here? How do I send the second message and not the first, while also ensuring that my office is inviting for customers?
At least for a while, I’d hold off on bringing in your own furniture other than, say, a lamp. It won’t necessarily make you look like you’re too good for what’s there, but it does risk looking like you’re overly focused on “stuff” and not on the job itself. I’m not saying that’s right — I agree that surroundings affect how people feel — but if it’s not in sync with the culture, it can look strange to do right off the bat. Wait and get a better feel for the culture first and let people get a better feel for you, and then you can decide.
If you do end up bringing furniture in, make sure you check with your facilities people first. There can be reasons you wouldn’t necessarily know about not to do it, like that it will cause drama with the more senior person down the hall who’s been asking for a new desk forever, or issues with how to store the displaced stuff. (Also, make sure you’re willing to part with anything you bring in. A lot of people lost personal belongings when their offices closed unexpectedly at the start of the pandemic, and for some people that stuff was lost for good.)
2. Recruiter made ominous comments about my current job
An external recruiter reached out to me a few months ago and I told him I was really only interested in work-from-home or hybrid positions, and I’m pretty happy where I’m at. He didn’t have anything at the time, but he reached out to me again last week. The position was a lateral move, about a $5k raise, and fully in-office, but with a slightly shorter commute than my current (hybrid) job. I was hesitant, but agreed to a phone interview to get more information.
I “passed” the phone interview and he reached out today to see about scheduling an in-person interview. At this point, I told him I still didn’t think it was the right fit for me, primarily due to it being fully in-office. I said that even if my current company decided to go back to fully in-office, I still know that they would be accommodating about my schedule (I’m going back to school soon) because I already have a few coworkers working odd hours and flexible schedules.
Here’s where it got weird: he said, “If that’s your only hesitation, I think you should consider moving forward. I know something you don’t, I can’t tell you due to confidentiality, but I don’t think you should base your whole decision on the schedule.” I tried to probe for a little more info. He said he couldn’t say anything specific right now, but “it’s nothing to do with [new company], more related to where you’re at now. We’ll be talking in a couple weeks.”
I ultimately decided I wasn’t interested in this position. I told him I was also hesitant about some of the job duties because they weren’t really my area of interest. He said he’d remove me from the applicant pool, no problem, no hard feelings … and then he ended the call with, “Keep my number, I’ll talk to you in a couple weeks, but don’t hesitate to reach out in the meantime.”
My boyfriend thinks he’s just fear-mongering so I’ll feel like I need his help finding a new job. I’m not convinced one way or the other. He is from a well-known recruiting company so I have no reason to think he’s shady. I just got a merit raise in December, so I really don’t think I’m about to get fired. And I already addressed the possibility that my company is about to force us all back into the office and he persisted. I can’t imagine what else he could be talking about! Why is he so sure we’ll be talking in a couple weeks? Is it normal for recruiters to have mysterious insider info about the company where prospective recruits already work? Is fear-mongering a common tactic?
No, this isn’t normal! It’s possible the recruiter really does have insider info, like that your company is about to lay off your whole team, but (a) he probably doesn’t, (b) he’d be being remarkably indiscreet if he did, (c) it would also be remarkably naive (companies’ plans change all the time; presenting them as a done deal before they’re a done deal, and when he doesn’t even work there, is terrible judgment), and (d) there’s something very arrogant about “We’ll be talking in a couple weeks.” It’s also true that some recruiters (not all) BS candidates in an attempt to get them to take jobs that wouldn’t be a great fit. I don’t know if that’s true of this guy — maybe he has real info and is genuinely trying to do you a solid, despite the aggressive feel — but you shouldn’t let yourself be pushed into anything just because a recruiter you don’t know well is making mysterious claims. It sounds like you’ll have more info in a few weeks and can assess his approach at that point (and please come back and update us because now we want to know too).
3. My coworker lied to my boss about what I think of her management style
I work at a call center for a huge corporation. We’re all licensed professionals answering very specialized types of calls. We’re 100% remote from all over the country, so we never meet our coworkers in person but we do chat on an app as a large group or occasionally individually.
Last week my manager, Britta, asked me to call her. She said that she’d recently been giving feedback to my coworker, Annie, and Annie said that she found Britta’s feedback to be “punitive.” When Britta asked for more information, Annie said “(my name) thinks so, too.”
I am not close to Annie. I have had three individual chats with her on the app, and one text conversation on my cell phone. I still have all of these communications. None of them mentioned Britta at all. Additionally, I don’t agree with this assessment of Britta’s coaching style, and I have never told Annie (or anyone else) I think that. I told as much to Britta, and she thanked me and we hung up.
I didn’t know what to make of a coworker making up a lie about me and then telling that lie to management. I have a mentor (Shirley) at work who has been there for about 20 years. I ran the situation by Shirley, and she said, “Don’t worry, Britta knows that Annie is a liar. I don’t know why she hasn’t been fired yet.” This made me feel a little better, but I’m still anxious about the whole situation. I don’t want Britta to think that I’m bashing her to coworkers or that I have a criticism of her that I don’t have, especially with my first annual review coming up. I think that Annie made me look unprofessional, and I have no idea why she did it.
I haven’t said anything to anyone else yet. I don’t want to make anything worse or create drama. Do I let this go or do I say something to Annie? I don’t appreciate being lied about at work!
I’d let it go. Experienced managers know “Jane thinks so too” can mean “I once saw Jane look annoyed when you were talking” or “I think Jane would agree with me, although she’s never said it” or “I am so clearly right that everyone on our team must agree with me.” And if Shirley is right that Britta already knows Annie has issues with the truth, it’s even more of a non-issue for you.
If it brings you peace of mind, you can always raise it with Britta again the next time you talk (“I was taken aback that Annie said that to you and I want to make sure it’s clear where I stand”) but I doubt you need to! In theory, you could address it with Annie herself too, but I don’t know that there’s much to be gained from doing that with someone you barely talk to normally — you’ve already set the record straight with your boss and taking it up with Annie is likely to stir up drama.
4. Is it too soon to start applying to job if I’m not available until April?
I’m going to be moving from Philadelphia to Arizona late next month. I will have to resign from my current job — they don’t offer a remote option — and find something else. Is it too soon to start sending resumes if I won’t be able to work until the first week of April? I’m not looking for a high level management type job — I do project accounting work — so I don’t expect there to be multiple rounds of interviews that could drag on for months. But with all I hear of the current labor shortage, I’m wondering if a company would be willing to hire a highly qualified candidate who couldn’t start for a month or two.
It’s not too soon to start applying! A lot of companies advertising now won’t be doing interviews for at least a few weeks, if not longer, and then by the time the whole process is over, a decision made, and an offer accepted, you’ll be pretty close to April (if not past it in some cases). You also might encounter companies that are moving more quickly, of course, but in those cases you can be up-front about your availability and let them decide if it will work for them or not. Plenty of jobs don’t mind waiting a little longer for the right person, but if it’s a deal-breaker they’ll let you know.
5. I was offered a second interview … but I didn’t have a first interview
Today I heard back from a job I applied to in early December telling me that they really enjoyed talking to me about the position and would love to offer me a second interview. I feel like it’s clear they sent the email to me in error, as I haven’t had a first email and hadn’t heard back from them at all till now, assuming they’d rejected me without notifying me. How should I proceed? I don’t want to be rude, but I also know they made a mistake so I clearly can’t go to the second interview and don’t want to ghost because I might apply there again in the future. I also maybe foolishly hope this means there’s still a slim chance I can get the original position I applied for. Is there any chance I can get a first interview out of this?
Who knows, maybe the error isn’t who they sent it to, but referencing a second interview instead of a first one. When you’re using template emails to respond to candidates, either error is possible.
In any case, handle it using the same tone you’d use with a colleague you didn’t know well who accidentally sent you some wrong information. So, for example: “Hi, Jane! This email might have been sent to me in error, since it references a second interview and I haven’t had a first interview yet. That said, I’d love to talk with you and your team about the llama groomer position so if the invitation still stands, please let me know and I can send you my availability.”
I know you’ve written that when job searching it’s best to assume you won’t hear back at every stage, and then to let any positive news be a pleasant surprise. I like the idea of this, but I can’t get past the fact that ghosting is still incredibly rude, especially at the later stages of a process.
I was recently in a situation where a few lengthy informational interviews (friends of friends) transformed into an actual job interview, and they told me they were sending an offer for approval to compete with another offer I had on the table. The offer is still floating in the ether and I have no clue if it will ever be approved, but it bugs me much more that the hiring manager (friend of a friend), and my contact in HR have gone from answering my emails within the hour, to ignoring my (patiently-timed, following your advice) follow-ups altogether.
There is something that feels too rude about ghosting to just let it go. Is that truly a job seeker’s only recourse here? Is there anything else that is professional but involves taking back a bit more agency?
Ghosting is rude at every stage — although also common — but ghosting after telling you they were going to send over an offer is particularly egregious, and even more so if they knew you were waiting on it because you had another offer you needed to respond to.
What’s particularly aggravating about ghosting is that, as you point out, it leaves job seekers feeling really helpless. It’s one thing not to hear back after you submit an application or have an initial phone screen, but it sure does feel like you should be able to say something if you’re ghosted after an intensive interview process … one where you might have taken time off work, bought a new suit, spent hours preparing, and generally rearranged your life to accommodate it. But most people don’t speak up because they worry about burning a bridge and not being considered if they’re interested in another job there in the future.
It sucks that that’s the case! You should be able to speak up about bad behavior without worrying that it’ll come back to bite you.
And since job seekers have financial and professional pressures not to speak up, employers keep mistreating them with impunity and let themselves believe it doesn’t matter. Given that, if you are in a position to speak up and accept whatever risks might come with that, it’s a service to others to do it. Realistically, it might not have much impact; it’s easy to dismiss one complaint, even a politely and professionally delivered one. But it’s still a good thing to do if you feel you can.
Personally, I would want to say something like this: “When you told me to expect an offer, I asked another company for additional time to respond to their offer so that I could consider yours as well, potentially putting that offer at risk. Since then I haven’t heard back from you, despite attempting to reach you several times. While I of course understand that things come up and hiring often takes longer than anticipated, I was surprised and disappointed to receive only silence during the X weeks I tried to reach you.”
Be aware, though, that if you send this message, there is a very high chance that this company won’t consider you for jobs in the future since people don’t like being chastised by job candidates, even when it’s well deserved.
Also, regardless of whether you ultimately say something like that or not, make sure the mutual friends who referred you know how you were treated. They’re well positioned to be more blunt than you might feel you can be, and them saying “Jane Warbleworth told me you told her to expect an offer and then never got back to her — what happened?” might embarrass the employer more effectively than anything you can say.
You should also consider posting about your experience on Glassdoor.
But yeah, it’s frustrating. This employer wronged you, you should be able to say that they wronged you, and the power dynamics that leave job seekers feeling like they have to silently accept rude treatment from employers suck.
Once a year, I offer a big discount on my my e-book, How to Get a Job: Secrets of a Hiring Manager, and it’s happening now. Use this discount code today for a massive 40% discount off the regular $24.95 price: newjob
If you’ve ever wished that you could look into the brain of a hiring manager to find out what you need to do to get hired, this is for you. Written from my perspective as a long-time hiring manager, this e-book gives you step-by-step guidance through every stage of your job search … explaining at each step what a hiring manager is thinking and what they want to see from you … from getting noticed initially, to nailing the interview, to navigating the tricky post-interview period, all the way through your offer.
You’ll learn things like:
what hiring managers are looking for when they ask common interview questions
how to talk about sensitive issues when you interview — firings, bad bosses, and more
how to avoid companies that aren’t a good fit
6 ways you might be sabotaging your job search
2 ways you can turn rejection to your advantage
Here are some things readers have said after purchasing it:
“Thanks to following Alison’s advice in this book, I’m about to start a new job in a stretch position. The director of HR kept complimenting my professionalism through the entire process, and really loved the questions I asked during my interviews. My new manager is so excited he was vibrating when I signed the offer last week. And partly due to selling myself well, and partly due to changing from clerical work to network administration, I have a 50% salary increase and room to grow.”
“Thanks to the tips, tricks, and advice in this book, I landed an incredible new job in a new-to-me industry doing something I love. I was also able to negotiate a great hiring package including a big jump in salary and benefits. I’m sure I would have found a decent job without this book, but I absolutely feel that I was able to find something incredible with it.”
“This morning my husband had an interview. I bugged him for over a week about reading your guide and he ignored me. Yesterday, I twisted his arm and finally got him to read it. He liked the advice so much he read it a second time. He really took it seriously and followed all of the advice you gave … He just called me to tell me the interview was done and that it had been the best interview he had ever had.”
“I used to have 50/50 luck getting past phone interviews and into the actual in-person interview. Once I read your book, I went 100% in getting past the phone interview, and I was ALWAYS in the top running for every position since then. I absolutely know it was because of your advice in the book. I could just feel the quality of my interviews go up exponentially after I read it.”
“A+, highly recommend. It gave me invaluable help in my last job search and I am sure will continue to provide value as I move along in my career. If you’re on the fence, GET IT.”
Get your copy with this 40% off discount code (newjob) now!
Now that society is collapsing, Everything Is Terrible! is reborn with their new and fantastical expedition into found footage... but this time the adults can stay home! EIT! has unearthed thousands of forgotten DVD & VHS tapes aimed at yesterday’s youth to bring you their most mind-melting movie to date. Watch in awe as all colors of the rainbow join forces to destroy the tyranny of adult civilization once and for all! All of your oldest friends will be there; skateboarding web-surfers, rapping math equations, gigantic baby ducks, and maybe even a wizard or two! And what EIT! show would be complete without a live experience that makes the Ice Capades look like a stupid piece of trash! Finally, an all-encompassing extravaganza created for kidz... by kidz!
Now that society is collapsing, Everything Is Terrible! is reborn with their new and fantastical expedition into found footage... but this time the adults can stay home! EIT! has unearthed thousands of forgotten DVD & VHS tapes aimed at yesterday’s youth to bring you their most mind-melting movie to date. Watch in awe as all colors of the rainbow join forces to destroy the tyranny of adult civilization once and for all! All of your oldest friends will be there; skateboarding web-surfers, rapping math equations, gigantic baby ducks, and maybe even a wizard or two! And what EIT! show would be complete without a live experience that makes the Ice Capades look like a stupid piece of trash! Finally, an all-encompassing extravaganza created for kidz... by kidz!
300 Ways to Serve Eggs: From Appetizers to Zabaglione
Looking for a job?
