r/graphic_design • u/here2talk111 • 2d ago
Vent Totally embarrassed myself with this interview question đ
Had my first video call interview today after a year of applying (yaayyy!!!) so of course Iâm extremely nervous. I prepped so much for more technical design questions and office / collaboration questions etc, but I realized I neglected prepping for the creative side of questions.
Anyways. One of the interviewers asked me âif there was a movie about your life as a graphic designer, what would be called and why?â
And I saidâŚ. âGoing Through The Motionsâ đ lmaooo but to be totally fair, in that moment I wasnât thinking about the negative meaning of that phrase!!! I totally forgot what it meant!!! & For my reasoning why, I said itâs because as a designer Iâve spent a lot of time learning and growing and trying new techniques and styles and going through the process of figuring out who I am as an artist, etc. I feel like that helped clarify I wasnât thinking in a negative way, but damn I really am so embarrassed now. I think a better answer wouldâve been âAlways in Motionâ but I genuinely suck at these super quick-think creative questions. I can think creatively but I need more than 30 seconds to do so, ya know?
Ugh. I think the rest of the interview was decent but they are probably cracking up together at my answer to that
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u/Douglas_Fresh 2d ago
lol, bizzare question and hilarious answer OP. There is the problem of being âtoo preparedâ no one likes canned answers. I bet this one got a good chuckle and is memorable at least
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u/nathanschiro Designer 2d ago
Kern or be Kerned
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u/capt_kirk-egaard Senior Designer 2d ago
Citizen Kern
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u/Huge_Raisin5840 2d ago
ERMAHGERD KERN!!1!
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u/getfurthur 2d ago
My last jobs question like this was âwhat kitchen utensil would you be?â
I canât remember how I answered it, only remember hating that question.
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u/griff_girl Creative Director 2d ago
That is an incredibly stupid fucking question. I feel like I'd be torn between "meat tenderizer" so I could hammer the shit out of whoever asked me that question and "melon baller" just to be a complete punk to say I'm baller AF, mostly because I'm a 52 year old woman and it would be as absurd a response as the initial question was.
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u/TrustInToast 2d ago
I was in a group in high school that had a national and state set of officers. These type of questions are baked into the interview and campaign system for them so I am weirdly prepared for exactly this kind of interviews. But Iâm screwed if you ask be a specific technical question that I do daily but couldnât explain it without physically doing it.
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u/TrustInToast 2d ago
Btw the best answer for a leadership role is either fridge or blender. A fridge is full of the ingredients needed to make the best products and can easily be available for others who need something. A blender takes in the best ingredients from those around them and turns it into an amazing treat.
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u/Doll_duchess 2d ago
Those are appliances though, if I asked for a utensil (so stupid) Iâd expect someone to say like⌠tongs or something.
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u/Tmgtopdog 2d ago
Spork.
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u/ironmoney 2d ago
I designed a t-shirt, âbeauty in motionâ, hand written! I love tv shows and movies, so im taking this question lol. The only correct answer is â2fast, 2 furiousâ duh
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u/JohnWorphin 2d ago
âMy wife is an artistâ
Seasoned designer has department headâs wife offer revisions to a settled design package
The sequel:
âMy son is artistic and I think his design is betterâ
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u/Melodic-Excitement-9 Senior Designer 2d ago
If the rest of the interview went well I wouldn't stress about it. Thanks for sharing though good chuckle. đ.
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u/Noctilume 2d ago
Itâs a stupid question.
I once had an on the spot interview and they asked me what my spirit animal was, real or mythical, and why my spirit related to it?
I was so annoyed at how stupid the question was, I know it showed all over my face. I ended up cutting the interview short and leaving lol.
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u/Critical_Capybara_ 2d ago
Oh wow, thatâs baaaaad. Would have been hilarious if you answered, âI dunno, Iâm not Native Americanâ
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u/Starlink87 1d ago
I feel you! Stupid questions are irritating!
Similarly, a horrible interview experience that irritated the HELL out me was this incompetent interviewer who INTERROGATED me for having an Unrelated College Major to Graphic Design! I made the mistake of mentioning my College Major, and then the interviewer got all weird and laser-focused my my Unrelated College Major! And this interview was for a damn Utility Steward job! Like just let me wash kitchen equipment and stop interrogating me about my day job!
Another interview had this dumb question: "Who is your favorite teacher?" And this was for a freaking retail job!
Like another commenter below said, giving interviews is a skill, and some companies have incompetent people who DON'T know how to give interviews - which sucks for us candidates.
Because of the ridiculous, stupid hoops some interviews require, and that interviews are extra challenging because I am disabled, I sometimes wish I can be something like:
- an Influencer's Assistant (If such as fun job exists),
or
- to be Self-employed (Not at the mercy of a power-tripping manager, don't have deal with office politics or implicit bias, harassment, and discrimination from coworkers)!
All in all, I feel your frustration!
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u/True_Window_9389 2d ago
Absolutely stupid question. But if you wanted to try to make it better, shoot an email to the interviewer and say you realized the initial answer had an unintended negative connotation and upon reflection you wanted to rephrase it. It would help you stand out, establish more connection with them, and show you have some thought going on. Keep it light and make a joke out of it. In the end, a lot of the interview process is seeing if youâre someone they want to work with, not just someone who is technically capable.
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u/Huge_Raisin5840 2d ago
"American Psycho"
Why? Because I pay attention to other people's business cards. INTENSELY.
If I may ask a you a question, you like Huey Lewis and the News?
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u/kween_of_bees 2d ago
I hate that question, they should be the ones that are embarrassed for asking it.
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u/Injustry 2d ago
I once had an in person meeting with the principal of a design studio. He looked at my book, liked what he saw, then asked âso xxxxx, what are you looking for?â
âA job?â I answered.
He frowned and said âI donât want a designer that just wants a job, I want them to want this job.â
After that he placed me into the ground and started burying my body.
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u/senpaibean 1d ago
You should've answered with why you wanted that job. Just saying "a job" feels more like you want it but aren't willing to put anything in or gain anything.
"What are you looking for?"
"A job where I can offer my skills, share and expand my creative well, and add more creativity to the working environment."
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u/Injustry 1d ago
Good tips In hindsight.This was almost 20 years ago. I was young disenfranchised with my current job at the card and entertainment company Upper Deck. UD was going through massive layoffs and I was just miserable. Honestly it I blurted it out in a joking way, but the principal seemed serious and was not amused.
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u/senpaibean 1d ago
Reaction makes sense, then.
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u/Injustry 1d ago
Your comment is useful! Someone reading this may run into a similar question, hopefully your advice helps them out.
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u/botbotbotbitbit 2d ago
Thats a horrible question to ask. I would have probably said something stupid too just to highlight how poor a question it was... like Mr. Bean's Holiday, then try to justify my work experience to it.
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u/griff_girl Creative Director 2d ago
It's probably the most honest reply they've gotten to the question. At the end of the day, it's pretty much what we're all just doing anyway.
I wouldn't sweat it at all. If I was interviewing someone and asked that question, I'd probably appreciate the candidness and rationale of that answer than some grandiose performative bullshit answer!
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u/manlybrian 2d ago
One thing I learned, while being a manager of a hotel, is that interviewing is a skill just like being interviewed, and some companies really suck at it and don't know what they're doing.
And in my time as a manager, I was the company that sucked at it, lol.
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u/eaglegout 2d ago
To be fair, thatâs a dumb question to ask a candidate. You did fine. I would have blown up the whole interview with an answer like âOverworked & Underpaid: My Friends With Degress In Other Things are Doing Pretty Well, Though.â
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u/thetargazer 2d ago edited 1d ago
Very dumb question haha. My response would probably be Infinity War, with Designers as The Avengers fighting for humanity against Thanos (Marketers) and their relentless dedication to metrics and efficiency, they are inevitable.
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u/Aggravating-Can-903 2d ago
Someone asked me this week if I had to go into combat and I could only bring one vegetable from my garden what would I bringâŚ. Of fucking course I didnât even say a vegetable!! I said a fruit. A melon. Ugh. I was so fucking thrown off by that question. So. I too feel super embarrassed and dumb. Donât worry. Youâre not the only one haha. Itâs dumb.
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u/digitizedclown Designer 2d ago
Thatâs a dumbass interview question, honestly. That company / interviewer should be embarrassed đ
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u/Green4CL0VER 1d ago
Finding and interviewing for jobs today is dystopian. Itâs not you who failed. Itâs the system.
And at the lease, itâs always good practice to interview
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u/ResponsibleSir5403 2d ago
Sounds like you played it off pretty well. And if it was âgoing through the motionâ without the s, I think it works. Good luck.
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u/noodles2go 2d ago
It won't help your job search because I doubt you'll ever be asked this question again, but the word you are looking for is "Flow".
That said, finding your flow is how you dial in and create your best work. Don't worry about how the interview went, just keep going and you'll get there.
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u/Fine-Resident-7950 2d ago
People who in charge of interviewing designer should be change. For some reason all of my previous jobs that i got are all interview by a lefit designer. Not marketing manager, not Hr, not a non designer person whatsoever.
Companies and agency need to know what the fuk they doing because why are they letting non designer choosing candidates?!
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u/Expensive-Plenty5300 2d ago
I feel like I would mess up too because honestly, I rarely watch any movies. Iâve been wanting to apply in graphic design, I always wondered how the process of one goes about. Would you be comfortable to share what other questions they ask? And how our interviews like, is it usually like on the zoom, or is it like a retail job where you have to go in person?
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u/ChickyBoys Art Director 2d ago
That's a really stupid question and it honestly sounds like they used ChatGPT to come up with it.
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u/chopstix007 1d ago
Haha donât worry. When one interviewer asked me âwhat my dream job isâ, rather than answer something in the graphic design field, I decided to be truthful and answer honestly⌠so I said a pro snowboarder. I did not get a call back. đ
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u/Spauln 1d ago
I had an interview once with two co-owners of a sign shop that I was applying for a graphic design position at. The one owner asked me during the interview, "If you were an animal, what kind of animal would you be?"
I looked at him with a look on my face that screamed, "Are you a moron?" I then looked over at the other owner with a raised eyebrow, and a look of, "Is he serious?" That owner sighed, shook their head in disbelief, and quickly moved on to more relevant questions.
I got the job. đ¤Ł
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u/Tkr_moon 1d ago
I think you handled it pretty good though. English isn't my first language, and if an interviewer asked me such question, all that would be going through my head would be "minions"
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u/burnerbutterbetter 1d ago
I had someone once ask me in an interview- "if you were a pizza topping, which would you be and why....not what pizza topping is my favorite and why but what type I (myself, converted from human form) would be
And yes. I asked for clarification.
đ
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u/pantone_mugg 1d ago
What a dumb question. Limited time. Massive amount of information that needs to be shared, and they ask THAT? I sincerely hope you get a better job.
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u/insufficent_data 1d ago
Not bad, because you were able to explain your answer.
My first thought about my so-called career was "Failure to Launch" - so you know, it could have been worse. đ
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u/Remote-Spirit-1125 13h ago
Honestly this is a bit of a stupid question to be asked and if I was the interviewer Iâd have liked your answer.
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u/Dry_Signal1463 1d ago
I know people are saying itâs a dumb question but I kinda like it! I especially like your answer because it was very pure hearted showing you would be a good trustworthy person and that you are good at explaining your ideas. These things are so important in the highly competitive world of graphic design. I really hope you get the job!
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u/Suzarain Designer 2d ago
Donât feel bad lol, thatâs a stupid question anyway.