Ask Aunt Jobby: When Job Interviews Get Hot And Sweaty
Got a career question you’d like Aunt Jobby to answer? If she doesn’t know the answer, she’ll get an expert to answer any mom’s question about returning to work, finding a job, managing work and family issues or even negotiating the tricky waters at work.
Q: I have a job interview next week. But it is as hot as Hades where I live and I sweat profusely. What should I wear to the interview so I don’t look like I’ve just emerged from a sauna? asks Carly in Mt. Pleasant, DC.
Aunt Jobby’s advice:
Eeeek, Carly. Nothing like shaking someone’s slippery hand or grabbing hold of a resume still damp from perspiration to inspire confidence. Not.
aunt jobby is a working mom just like you
To avoid spreading your bodily fluids around the interview room, try to:
- Arrive early so you can cool down in the lobby or in the ladies room somewhere near. Pat yourself down with paper towels in the bathroom before arriving at the interview.
- Wear a sleave-less dress like a sheath, with a matching jacket or a light summer cardigan (if it is good enough for Michelle Obama, it is good enough for employers), say experts at Wiki Answers when asked what candidates should wear to an interview on a hot summer day.
- Give your makeup a dry run, and we mean a dry run. Go for a walk or a run, or take the metro, in the heat on another day to see if the makeup survives without running down your face. You really don’t want to look like a reject from the band KISS until you’ve heard you didn’t get the job.
Good luck! Let us know how you went.
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Filed Under: Featured • Managing Your Career • Moms Returning to Work • Working Moms Resources
About the Author: Julie Power is a writer and editor with experience in both the United States and Australia. After living in the United States for 16 years, she recently returned to live in Sydney with her husband and twin boys (9 years old).
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Excellent advice! I used to have the same problem – didn’t have AC in my car – needed money to fix AC – needed job to get money to fix AC – needed to not look like I took a dip in the water fountain before trying to get the job to get the money to fix the AC to prevent the flood victim look. Oh the cycle!
Aunt Jobby doesn’t have her own profile, so Julie is letting her use hers for now.
She said: “Angelina, I feel your pain, and the heat. It could be menopause but am hoping it is empathy. The flood victim look is a nice one for the front page of the newspaper but corporate America tends to like to make its donations to victims in a more organized way. I think hanging out at a local cafe is often a good idea, review your resume, cool off, go over notes (and hope like anything not to spill coffee over new outfit!). Thanks for your feedback on my first advice column.”