It’s common sense (well it should be anyway!) that job seekers shouldn’t bad mouth former employers on a job interview. However, when you’re looking for a new job, there’s always a good reason for it and you should be honest — in a professional way. I’m not talking about getting into an hour-long drama explaining how tired you are of the office politics.
I read an article where the author stated to use the following reasons to explain why you want to leave your current employer:
- Seeking new opportunities
- Looking for more responsibility
- Interested in career advancement
Yes, these are practical reasons to look for a new gig but they’ve been around FOREVER and are ultra cliché! Everyone who doesn’t want to talk about the fact that they hate their boss will use one of these reasons.
If one of these reasons are legit for you, skip the cliché and give an example. For instance, share a relevant and measurable work accomplishment that explains why you’re ready to tackle new responsibilities and how it will add value to an organization.
Unless the person interviewing you has just fallen from a turnip truck or is on their first day of the job, they’ll dig for more information to learn more about why you want to make a change. It’s best if it comes directly from you instead of having the interviewer make an incorrect assumption about you or your work.
And what if you really are leaving your job because you hate your boss. Is it best to be honest? Well, we’d like to think we could be because there is a laundry list of bad bosses out there. But, like it or not, perception is reality and yes, you will be judged way too harshly if you were that honest. In this case, my suggestion would be to think of the second most important reason you want to leave your position and go from there.
The most important thing to remember is to be your real, unscripted self.
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Within the last several months I interviewed a candidate who, when asked why he was searching for a new job replied “Because my boss is an idiot!” He then went on to tell me the various and assorted ways in which his boss displayed the aforementioned idiocy. Score 1 for candor, but score ZERO for being moved along in the candidate pipeline.
Exactly Robin! Everyone has a story but it’s not always best to share it in a job interview.
Thanks for your comment sweetie!
As you said–badmouthing is definitely out, but I think one could make a case for respectful honesty. “I’ve had one of those tough situations in which my very best efforts were not appreciated by my boss. It was unfair and stressful, but I am not one to stay and cause trouble. I want to move on in a positive manner.” That’s just wisdom. But I do like your idea of coming up with the second reason and using that.
Sue, I agree that can work well. My my concern would lie with the fact that not everyone call pull off expressing that with diplomacy and eloquence. If there’s any hint of emotion in the statement, there’s a risk that the interviewer is perceiving the person as a troublemaker. I do agree with you but not sure it’s for everyone unless they’ve really thought it through.
Thanks for visiting and commenting!
I have to agree there are plenty of terrible bosses out there, but it is necessary to come up with another reason for leaving a job. I previously experienced a boss who was a sociopathic bully who never accepted responsibility for her mistakes and lied to make others look bad to the owners. I had been looking for a new job for several months and when asked why I wanted to leave the position I used my second and third reasons, which were more acceptable in an interview. This is what I said – “The company has recently gone through some structural changes and I do not see any opportunities for me under the new structure”, which was mostly true since you didn’t know what that structure was from one day to the next. The second reason I gave was “Benefits”. The company did not offer any benefits. Therefore, that was legitimate reason to want to move on. I most certainly could not be honest and give any examples because they were so horrible that no one would believe me!