#9: Don’t Say “I Won’t Do That!”

Tonya Lain of Adecco understands the importance of balancing work and life. But when you start off the interview with that—saying, in essence, that you won’t or can’t do something because you have “conflicts with other commitments outside of work such as school or daycare and discussing those priorities first”—it’s a turnoff.

It’s also a big mistake when people indicate “they aren’t willing to do other tasks that aren’t part of the job description,” Lain says.

“When a candidate is inflexible and expects their job description to remain static, it’s a big red flag for me. I’ve had people say they didn’t like it when things changed with daily routines or that they’d prefer to have a structured schedule and to know ...

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