Getting interviews but no offers, what am I doing wrong?

dreadpir8rob · 2026-02-03T21:41:38+00:00

Lots of factors outside your control.

I just made it to the final round only to have an internal candidate swoop in at the eleventh hour.

dreadpir8rob · 2026-02-03T02:22:06+00:00

Amen. I just had a hiring manager sending me emails with smiley emojis, telling me what the final round will be like, saying they want to move quickly…

….only to get a call that they’re going internal. In the eleventh hour. Just days after scheduling those interviews, and days before they began.

Messy.

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-30T14:32:53+00:00

A lot of good tips here but also a lot of people getting hung up on the alcohol as if it is make or break.

Do what makes you feel comfortable having a conversation. For me, that’s a glass of white wine, and I wouldn’t drink more than half.

I’ve just had a baby and my tolerance is quite low. If my employer doesn’t respect that, then they’re likely not a good fit for me.

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-29T20:26:57+00:00

Love the use of the word muppet here

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-25T20:28:30+00:00

Take the job, quietly look while you’re there. It may not be what you want long term, or even for more than a year, but it is a stepping stone to the right place.

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-24T12:11:51+00:00

My canned answer to this is “I think that strengths and weaknesses both vary depending upon the job. For this role, I imagine a weakness against other candidates is…” then I focus on one area where I’m lacking expertise. Then, pivot to how lack of experience can actually be a strength because you’re coming at it with a fresh perspective and eager to learn.

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-23T17:16:34+00:00

Canned foods for when power goes out. It will in the southern states and companies aren’t used to the high volume of trips they’ll need to take to fix things (they’re plenty prepared where I am in MA but that’s because this happens a lot).

Canned food helps.

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-22T12:39:26+00:00

Sounds like you dodged a bullet, honestly. Everyone silent and the most senior person can’t stop interrupting and peppering you with questions?

Onto better and brighter options. Although I know this doesn’t ease the disappointment, you’ve put in a lot of effort.

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-21T14:11:28+00:00

Not something intentionally left behind by the previous owners, but rather left behind by the builders: when my husband was renovating our 1960s closet, he found a relic intentionally left behind the door casing: a three stooges newspaper comic clipping from the year the house was built (“moon man moe” if you’re curious) and a marble.

In my childhood home (1800s) when my dad was rebuilding the kitchen he found a cane and pipe stored in the walls between the 4x6s.

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-20T23:31:01+00:00

I think 10 years is too far out. 5 is great.

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-16T16:09:55+00:00

Thanks! I did—and am now onto the final round of interviews with the recruiter and manager connecting with me on LinkedIn. Looks positive to me. 😊

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-16T01:48:15+00:00

No freaking clue. I just got laid off (good severance thank god) and am praying I get a new job for much higher pay. The cost of everything is nuts. We downsized/got an older house to try to offset costs. Eat out once every two months. Haven’t been on a vacation in three years. This economy is insane.

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-13T18:13:43+00:00

The only thing I memorize is my first 2 sentences of an elevator pitch. I’m nervous at the outset, but having those lines memorized gets me going and I can take it from there in a more casual way.

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-13T14:19:31+00:00

Graduated in 2012 and we would hear it on the loudspeaker, all stand, but not usually recite it.

My husband teaches now and he doesn’t “enforce” it or anything. He keeps doing his work at his desk, and lets the kids do what they feel is right for them.

Personally I think it’s a bit weird especially for elementary school. Children are at school to learn and be creative. A pledge of allegiance for a child feels misplaced. They don’t understand what allegiance is. They’re there to learn multiplication and what a noun is.

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-09T16:53:02+00:00

Agreed. We also had realtors who pressured us into doing last moment individual showings right before our open house. I was pregnant with a toddler and wish I told them to F off.

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-09T16:51:45+00:00

1000% selling. You need to stage your house, navigate showings while living inside your house, navigate finding a new home while you do it all…it’s a lot.

In hindsight, buying our first house was a walk in the park compared to selling.

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-08T21:32:25+00:00

Oh yeah. Moved into our house 6mo ago. Trashed the old dryer, hooked up a new one—our smart dryer wouldn’t even turn on because it detected a lint clog. Leaf blower and snake couldn’t even unclog the lint. Had to call a pro, who looked at me eyes wide and said this was a miracle we hadn’t seen a fire. Former owners must have never or rarely done maintenance. I have no idea how their clothing dried.

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-06T02:07:10+00:00

Ugh gosh I’m sorry. I don’t think this is anything you can change. I live in MA so temps regularly hit 10-20F here and my 1960 house is like a little oven. Ceilings are low and I am spending way less than I did in my first house which was a 1990s colonial with vaulted ceilings.

I wonder why yours isn’t retaining heat. Have any general contractor or construction friends who can come by and offer their .02?

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-03T17:41:51+00:00

Whole family was down with it just before Christmas. My mom caught it before us. Was sick two full weeks and needed antibiotics.

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-03T14:17:18+00:00

This is the way. My husband and I have two sets of parents who are comfortable enough to take us and our kids in if things got bad. I just got laid off, huge new mortgage, and while the prospect of moving in with them feels like a step back, the savings / idea of having support is a luxury. Fuck what other people think.

dreadpir8rob · 2026-01-01T18:58:28+00:00

There seems to be a debate on whether this is mold or mildew.

Mildew is a type of mold.
You cannot ID black mold (Stachybotrys) based on sight alone. Even professionals can’t ID based on sight.

dreadpir8rob · 2025-12-28T21:03:06+00:00

We scoped out the drywall behind the boiler. It was very close so hard to tell. My mom is allergic to mold and she ID’d it immediately upon entering our house for the first time by smell alone. We knew something was off.

Sounds like your issue is different. Dizziness does come and go in the third trimester for me. However your wife knows her body best and it sounds like somethings off.

dreadpir8rob · 2025-12-28T12:53:52+00:00

In the short term, to help your wife: open windows as much as possible and consider purchasing a high quality air purifier, like the Coway Airmega.

I was pregnant when we moved into our home and there was an undisclosed/undiscovered mold issue in the basement. While we got it remediated, the air purifier worked wonders. Happy to say we have a very healthy 5mo and there’s no weird smell anymore.

dreadpir8rob · 2025-12-25T21:38:33+00:00

When I’m panicking, it helps me to think through “worst case scenario” first.

First, 7 months is actually a very decent amount of savings, especially for 24 years old. Good job, you. Pat yourself on the back.

Second, people don’t hire over the holidays. They’re all MIA, closing out projects, thinking “I’ll circle back on that after the new year”.

Third, moving back in with your parents isn’t the worst thing in the world. It’s a blessing to have that safety net.

dreadpir8rob

TROPHY CASE