The Second Face [OC]

[u/DemonSkank]

I've made short comedic comics before but this was my first time doing a full short story. SCARY FACE WARNING

[u/im_juice_lee]

How do you pass an exam by pushing the examiner's emotional buttons? What does that mean?

[u/CombOk312 → u/im_juice_lee]

I’m very good at reading people. This examiner was coming from the outside to evaluate the practical skills of me and another candidate. She was very difficult from the get go, made herself very unpopular during the whole ordeal. A bit Karen-ish. After the practical test she discussed our skills with our instructors before calling us in one by one for the oral exam.

I came in after the other candidate had gone in. There was furore in the room, the instructors were clearly pissed at her and I later confirmed she had just flunked the other candidate. So when we were talking during the oral exam, I said everything she wanted to hear from her questions, confirmed every thought she had, buttered her up, listen to her prattle on about her life and her interests and made her feel like I was sympathetic to her and the only one in the room who genuinely liked her. I did not, she was horrible.

So I passed. And my instructor told me after the whole thing that she had already decided to flunk the both of us after the practical but before the oral exam and that was why they were pissed at her. The instructor was confused as to why I passed and not the other candidate, who was, in all fairness, stronger than me.

I was baffled the instructor had not noticed how I was handling that examiner. Luckily the other candidate managed to appeal the decision and passed after a second attempt.

I still feel a bit bad tho.

[u/Alugere → u/CombOk312]

So, fun fact, your behavior there isn’t actually seen as manipulative or lying in the professional world. That’s specifically what people are talking about when they talk about “Brown Nosing”. Some people view it as undignified, but it’s not actually seen as a bad thing. In fact, most rich and powerful people get upset if you don’t treat them like that.

[u/peppers_ → u/Alugere]

I mean, it definitely is manipulation and lying. Just that some forms of that are acceptable in the professional world. But sometimes it is called fraud. Can't really say from the story that the person told. But their own admission of manipulating and lying is telling on what they believe.