Posted on 02/07/2015 5:28:16 AM PST by Tired of Taxes
Great story...thank you.
Good for the kid wanting a job, and dressing properly for the interview.
Good for the Target employees for going above and beyond in helping him.
Small things like this can change a kid’s life. Wouldn’t surprise me at all if there wasn’t a follow-up article 15 years down the road...about the kid owning/running his own franchise.
Got my first job at 16 because I wore dress pants, had a tucked in collared shirt and had hair above my ears (this was 1977). The department store manager walked by me as I was filling out my application and said, “You are hired, can you start now?”. The thing about this was that I had just left school and was in compliance with my school dress code.
After that I dressed properly and learned to speak standard English. I am not black but I dressed and talked like the hick I was (and still am).
The old truism is to dress like the boss:
http://www.menshealth.com/mhlists/job-interview-tips/dress-like-the-boss.php
Look at all these simple things the kid, both on his own and with the advice of the Target clerks, was primed to be doing right:
http://theundercoverrecruiter.com/infographic-how-interviewers-know-when-hire-you-90-seconds/
Same here.
Always showed up at interviews in a jacket and tie. Dishwasher, busboy - whatever the position. Always got the job - even though I got some odd looks.
That was an interesting atmosphere. Boss only wore clip-on ties when dealing with clients. Otherwise it was a tie-free environment.
I finally decided I wanted to look more professional, so I started wearing ties. Boss looked at me, and said 'You preaching somewhere?'
I worked there all through high school, kinda cool being 16, wearing a suit and driving a Lincoln Town Car.
I remember that song - and the video - well. :-)
I hope so.
It's really tough out there for teenage boys to find jobs these days. At least that's how it seems.
My son is widely known around here for his love of vintage ties. The dress code is very casual at his office but he chooses to observe Formal Fridays just so he can wear his suits and funky ties.
Gotta say, for a kid who spent his toddler years eschewing clothing of any kind, I certainly never saw this coming.
I’d imagine that, in 1977, short hair would’ve been a welcome surprise to a prospective employer. I was 12 then, and I remember the long hair many boys were sporting.
It seems most people grow up with one way of talking, only to have to “adjust” it later for work. I grew up (in a Little Italy) with a very expressive way of talking... until a boss (of Irish descent) pointed it out once. LOL.
I wouldn’t shop at Target to save my life.
I find some of the comments to be inappropriate. Why can’t we just accept this for what it is...a human interest story that we hope ends well for the young man.
Because he’s clearly not a “victim”.
Good advice.
“What are you talking about? . . . And, if you wouldn’t hire some black teen applying for a fast-food job because he had a clip-on tie, I feel sorry for you. . . . Jeesh!”
________________________
You are too, too kind with your reply. I once had a manager who came back from a lunch interview with an applicant and said he wouldn’t hire the guy because (drum roll) he salted his food before tasting it, by which the manager inferred a personality flaw. I was aghast (Hi. My name is Jon, and I’m a saltaholic).
Got a big smile a couple weeks later when the manager was fired for (drum roll) basic ineptitude. Sadly, the idiot with the bizarre, random, arbitrary standard for judging people had probably cost the company some talented people. Why, I ask further, do some people relish the chance to p!ss on a random act of kindness like the story posted here?
Those were the good old days. :-)
Nowadays, if you're a teen seeking a job, you have to complete an application online, and if you call the business to follow up on your application, they'll say, "Don't call us. We'll call you if we're interested." (Come to think of it, Target is one of the businesses that does that.)
In my ‘before I retired’ business, I would have given him a clip on tie. Cops don’t need to get strangled by their acoutterment.
The Golden Rule in action - it ain’t that hard, is it?
I hope it ends well, too. But I also hope he’s not discouraged if he has difficulty landing a job right now. Many people are having difficulty, even those with experience.
A well tailored suit, a perfectly tied tie, an expensive wrist watch, and freshly shined shoes might make a great first impression. After interviewing many people, however, I have found that they confer no additional intelligence and experience.
“Maybe this is the difference between women and men: I would have shown the kid how to tie a tie, but expected him do it himself.”
The women didn’t know how to tie a tie.
The man tied the tie.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.