I was fired the other day. It came as a total shock because my boss had never given me any negative feedback or anything, so I never had a chance to try to improve. I wasn't aware I needed to (though I don't know if I could have, as I was already putting in my full effort). This is the most basic entry level job, so I never imagined I would be perceived as a poor worker. But apparently I'm "too slow," though he said my quality of work was fine.
My problem is this: a couple of weeks ago, this library I've been trying to get a job at for a long time had an opening, so I applied. Right after I was fired, the library called to schedule an interview. Before, I would have been thrilled because this is the chance I've been waiting for. Now, I'm just full of dread, because the application they have says I'm still employed.
How am I supposed to tell them at the interview that I just got fired? I would say that the best thing to do is not mention it unless/until they specifically ask if I've ever been fired. The problem with that is, they'll probably ask a lot of questions that assume I'm still working there. Questions about my "current job." How am I supposed to answer those? Answering as if I do still work there would essentially be lying, which I don't want to do. And then they could ask later in the interview if I've ever been terminated, and when I answered, then they'd know I had answered the previous questions under false pretenses. Which comes back to where I started... If they mention my current job, and I correct them and say that I'm currently unemployed, then they'll wonder why. It would give them a reason to ask if I've ever been terminated, even if they originally weren't going to ask that question.
I feel like no matter how I handle this, I'm digging a hole for myself.
I'm not even worried so much about how to explain why I was fired. Sure, that's embarrassing, but I have an answer that's both good and truthful. I'm conscientious and I didn't realize that it was slowing me down. I learned that from now on, I should check with my boss regularly to ask how I'm doing instead of assuming he'll tell me if I need to improve. I'll ask how I can measure my progress and then set specific goals for myself to make sure I'm always on track. I think explaining it like that would show that I take personal responsibility and learn from mistakes, while indirectly letting them know that my boss failed to give me feedback.
What I'm afraid of is blowing my chances by having to flat out tell them I was fired before they even ask... That's so awkward.
Like, how are you even supposed to phrase it? I keep imagining that they ask something like, "Why do you want to leave your current job?" or "Describe your responsibilities at your current job." And then I answer, "Actually, I'm unemployed right now, but at my last job....." And they ask why my application says I'm still employed. Or they silently wonder, and then ask later in the interview if I've ever been terminated.
Or if, miraculously, they never explicitly ask about my current job, and I simply don't bring it up... Would that be dishonest somehow? And if they somehow found out later that I was fired, would it look bad? If that happened they might even think that I lied on my application.
My problem is this: a couple of weeks ago, this library I've been trying to get a job at for a long time had an opening, so I applied. Right after I was fired, the library called to schedule an interview. Before, I would have been thrilled because this is the chance I've been waiting for. Now, I'm just full of dread, because the application they have says I'm still employed.
How am I supposed to tell them at the interview that I just got fired? I would say that the best thing to do is not mention it unless/until they specifically ask if I've ever been fired. The problem with that is, they'll probably ask a lot of questions that assume I'm still working there. Questions about my "current job." How am I supposed to answer those? Answering as if I do still work there would essentially be lying, which I don't want to do. And then they could ask later in the interview if I've ever been terminated, and when I answered, then they'd know I had answered the previous questions under false pretenses. Which comes back to where I started... If they mention my current job, and I correct them and say that I'm currently unemployed, then they'll wonder why. It would give them a reason to ask if I've ever been terminated, even if they originally weren't going to ask that question.
I feel like no matter how I handle this, I'm digging a hole for myself.
I'm not even worried so much about how to explain why I was fired. Sure, that's embarrassing, but I have an answer that's both good and truthful. I'm conscientious and I didn't realize that it was slowing me down. I learned that from now on, I should check with my boss regularly to ask how I'm doing instead of assuming he'll tell me if I need to improve. I'll ask how I can measure my progress and then set specific goals for myself to make sure I'm always on track. I think explaining it like that would show that I take personal responsibility and learn from mistakes, while indirectly letting them know that my boss failed to give me feedback.
What I'm afraid of is blowing my chances by having to flat out tell them I was fired before they even ask... That's so awkward.
Like, how are you even supposed to phrase it? I keep imagining that they ask something like, "Why do you want to leave your current job?" or "Describe your responsibilities at your current job." And then I answer, "Actually, I'm unemployed right now, but at my last job....." And they ask why my application says I'm still employed. Or they silently wonder, and then ask later in the interview if I've ever been terminated.
Or if, miraculously, they never explicitly ask about my current job, and I simply don't bring it up... Would that be dishonest somehow? And if they somehow found out later that I was fired, would it look bad? If that happened they might even think that I lied on my application.
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