About Job Interview and Application Questions: What do you do in your spare/free time?

 Shocking 

   It’s taken me about two weeks to write this post because I keep getting overwhelmed with negative emotions. I was reading a discussion thread in one of the LinkedIn groups I belong to, it was about interview questions, etc. and one PR “professional” posted that if someone said that they liked to sit at home and read that person can forget about being hired. What? I was shocked and angered. What’s wrong with reading? I love to read, I love books. I think that either; 1) this “professional” is very young and has little responsibility outside of work and therefore has lots of time on their hands, 2) is very inexperienced with people, 3) arrogantly bias, or 4) simply following their superiors instructions. Whatever the reason, this person really needs to check out this website: http://www.leadershipinstitute.org/resources/readtolead.cfm.

Don’t Assume Anything

   Now, if that reading is the only thing they said they do, well, I know some people who would find that strange, but instead of writing that person off you should ask them what they read. You may learn something important about that person. Maybe they’re reading technical journals that will help them do their job better.

Maybe, like me, they read a variety of different subjects. And, just talking to the person about what they like to read they might relax a little and tell you about other things they like to do that goes a long with their reading. Besides, do you really know how much free time that person has? I know I don’t count house work, taking care of relatives (whether children, elderly, or disable) to be “free/spare” time. They may only have an hour a day to relax. That could seriously limit the time they have for adventure trips and charity work. One more thing, which person is more likely to be out of work due to a serious injury, someone reading or someone doing extreme sports or a bar fly?

Let’s see what You can Learn about Me from My Love of Reading

   One of things I like to do with my “free” time is to read – real books, sometimes eBooks, and sometimes magazines and newspapers. I enjoy – mysteries, memoirs/biographies/auto-biographies both historical and contemporary, science, history (yes textbooks as well), every once in a while a fantasy, and firsthand accounts of places and cultures I’ll never see myself.

   But in order to get these books I have to go and buy them. Oh sure, I could order over the internet, but that means using a credit card, and using internet access that I rather use for something else like research and emailing friends and family. Plus, I like holding a book in my hands, flipping through the pages, checking to see if it’s really a book I want before I pay for it. So I go to bookstores and search for books. While at the book store I meet other people, talk about books, have a snack or lunch at the café (if there is one) and do other things like type up this post. I might even make a new friend and maybe learn about a job opening.

   There are quite a few book stores in the greater Milwaukee area, a lot I haven’t visited yet. I look at traveling to these places as a bit of an adventure. A couple of weeks ago, I was headed to a book store located in a nearby suburb, as I drove along I saw a parade being staged so I found a parking spot and watched. Just before the parade started I got out of my car and joined a fun group of spectators to watch the parade itself, we all had a lot of fun. It reminded me of my childhood when I used to march in a couple of precision drill teams. Afterwards I headed off to the book store.

   There have been other times when I’ve gotten a little lost looking for a book store and found some very interesting places. Parks I didn’t know about, beautiful neighborhoods, different kinds of shops (I usually stop and check them out), and wonderful cafes and restaurants to return to. Of course there are some bizarre things as well.

Conclusion

   I do list sitting at home and reading as one of the things I do in my free time. If you saw that and decide to write me off as future employee you would have missed out on learning a lot about me as a person and a worker. If you were paying attention to what I wrote above you would have learned that; 1) I’m interested in the world and the people on it, 2) I can take the initiative and work on my own, 3) I tend to think outside the box, and 4) I am a team player as well (remember the Precision Drill Team bit). And you would have missed out on a value asset.