Top 10 Things NOT To Do if you are a Candidate

Listed below are the top 10 things of what NOT to do during the interview process or after getting hired. These are real life examples (or as we recruiters call them - horror stories!) from things candidates actually did while recruiters in our office had them in the interview process or did shortly after getting hired with one of our clients. We could not help ourselves from adding a light hearted element of humor to some of the items below! Enjoy!

1. Do not, we repeat not, ever ask fellow employees and your manager on the first day of your job if they have ever seen maggots in their water. (We kid you not - this actually happened!)
2. Do not ever scream at the top of your lungs while stomping on the ground that there is a spider (or any other creepy crawler) on the ceiling of the room that you are interviewing in. Probably best to avoid mentioning at all!
3. If you are hired by a company, it is probably not ever a good idea to show up in former work uniforms bearing a former company's logo. This holds true especially in this case where uniforms or logo shirts were not required by the company the candidate went to work for!
4. If you are not selected as the sales candidate of choice and are NOT hired for a position we have you in on...it is never a good idea to in this case go out into the territory and tell the company's customers that you were hired and are their new sales rep - when in fact you were turned down for the position!
5. It is never a good idea to break down and start crying mid way through an interview. We don't even suggest allowing yourself to tear up. Kinda makes you look a bit unstable!
6. A candidate once asked the company we had him interviewing with for reimbursement for a $120 dinner bill for dinner for him alone the night before his interview. We were told by the company that the receipt included a nice steak, but mostly alcoholic beverages!
7. When interviewing, be truthful! If you have a criminal history, or have a spouse who isn't behind relocating across the country, if you don't have a degree, ...don't lie! We could write a book on the many lies we have heard and discovered from candidates!
8. It is best to leave all the 4 letter words you know at home the day of the interview. It is never really recommended to swear like a sailor when you are in an interview. We don't even recommend doing it after getting hired...yet it is a sure fire way to get eliminated from consideration if you have major potty mouth!
9. Don't ever send your resume to the company that just hired you. It is probably a dead give away to them that you have no intention of staying with them and are only using them until the next better job rolls around. Oops!
10. If you do not get selected as the candidate of choice for the position we have you in for...do not freak out, have a temper tantrum and stalk us or the company with several phone calls and emails trying to get us to reconsider the decision. It is best to suck it up and move on...stalking in general is not accepted by anyone these days and your annoying follow ups and desperate pleas for reconsideration will probably just make you look bad....or even worse, have you be referenced on a recruiters top ten no-no's list! : )

Welcome to the Windmill!

As recruiters specializing in the Building Materials Industry, speaking to hundreds of industry professionals on a weekly basis, we wanted to find a way to provide an easy and effective way to communicate and keep as many people within the industry we know and talk to informed on a more frequent basis. We will update our Blog posts frequently, on a weekly basis at a minimum with new jobs we are working on, questions or topics that may be of use and of interest to us all.

The name of our Blog - The Windmill - evolved simply from taking part of the word Windows and part of the word Millwork and combining them...fortunately it actually made a real word which certainly helped make some sense! Although since the actual word appears to have no relation to the Building Materials industry, we felt it warranted an explanation as to how we came up with the name. Please feel free to share your ideas, comments and suggestions with us on anything relating to the Building Materials Industry.

This Blog is an evolving work in progress for us and we will strive to make it as informative as possible to keep you all coming back to visit the site frequently.We take an immense amount of pride in serving both candidates and clients in the industry and look forward to helping all of you find your next dream job or perfect candidate for that hard to fill position!

About Carlyn Burns - Account Executive

I started my career with MRI in Upstate, NY and then upon moving to the Charlotte, NC area in 2002 I joined MRI of Lancaster County.

I absolutely love recruiting and helping people find their dream jobs as well as finding candidates for companies that make an impact on their organization. In addition the Building Materials industry has become something that I really have a passion for…not only for the innovative and new products that are continually being introduced but also for the fantastic people the industry attracts as well.

I have a beautiful 6 year old daughter, Cassidy, who is the love of my life! In my spare time (which is not much these days!) I enjoy reading, movies, gardening and spending as much time as possible with our newest family member – Bailey – a golden retriever puppy born on 12/18/06! ceb@mrilanco.com 803-548-8140, ext. 16

About Julie Specht - Project Coordinator

I am originally from the Chicago area and moved to Charlotte in 2004 and joined MRI of Lancaster County. I went to college in Illinois and earned a degree in Marketing and when I moved to Charlotte ended up getting into recruiting and it turns out to be a perfect fit. What I like most about recruiting is getting satisfaction of matching people up with career opportunities, getting to talk to hundreds of candidates and clients and continually learning about the Building Materials industry, which I love!

In my spare time I enjoy spending time with friends and family, reading, travelling and spending time outdoors. Moving to Charlotte turned out to be one of the best decisions of my life. Not only finding a rewarding career, but being able to live in the Southeast and having met some wonderful people.

jas@mrilanco.com 803-548-8140 ext.19