Thursday, October 18, 2012

"Tell Me About When You Are Lazy."


That's not a bad request of job applicants. Even if you gave them advance notice, the discussion could be profitable. Discovering how they define the request would be revealing and it probably wouldn't be hard to spot self-serving versus candid replies.

It's not a question of whether people will goof-off or day-dream, but a question of how often and when. You want to know their priorities and their proclivities. Do they know when to back-off? Are they capable of relaxing? We usually hear more about the first than the second.

4 comments:

Dan in Philly said...

What a very interesting question, and the answer can reveal quite a bit about the self-knowledge a candidate might have. I am reminded of the old chestnut answer to "what are your weaknesses" that "I work too hard."

To me, that kind of is a weakness. Nothing wrong with hard work but there are times in a problem solving job when you must be able to relax and stop working and let your brain think about other things - daydream if you will. At those times you will find your mind is able to solve an otherwise insolvable problem quite on its own.

I am "lazy" delibrately when I am struggling with a tough assignment which requires innovation and creativity. It's one of the keys to my productivity.

Michael Wade said...

Dan,

Good point. The best questions go beneath the surface.

I agree. Laziness can be an important part of productivity.

Michael

Bob said...

I am not sure you are lazy when you are relaxing or contemplating.

I think you are lazy when you are avoiding things that need to be done or being slothful.

Michael Wade said...

Bob,

I see your point and yet I've found that there can be a very fine line between relaxing and sloth. Either one has produced some of my best ideas.

Michael