Fragrance or Odor? How to End an Interview Before it Begins

I readily admit it. I do not understand why people think that when they go out in public they should smell. "Smell," if pleasant is called a "fragrance," if not, it's called "odor."

It has always been my understanding that the French, not wanting to bathe with the new fangled invention called "soap," invented perfume to mask their unpleasant body odor. The story, I hasten to add, is not exactly true. Apparently, it was the Greeks who invented perfume, the Arabs who made it commercially viable, and the French who promoted it for the given reason.

In any event, I can assure all job seekers that no employer, hiring manager, or person with a functioning brain has ever said, "Let's hire the one who smelled good!" I can promise you that the opposite has happened many times. If a person literally cannot tolerate being in the same room with someone, they won't interview them! And they certainly won't hire them!

Be it perfume, cologne or scented aftershave, if a candidate has an unpleasant smell they will have a very short interview and no job offer. I vividly remember one day returning to my office after lunch to the sight of my colleagues opening windows and opening and closing front and back doors to create a draft to get an odor so powerful out of the office that when I arrived my initial reaction was, and I quote, "What died in here?" (The office was in Manhattan and dead mice were sadly not a rarity.)

Then there was the man who I had no choice but to interview. He was the only qualified candidate we had been able to find for a very difficult position. When the interview concluded, I told him, "Now we have to discuss your smoking." He reaked of cigarette smoke. He said, "Not to worry, I always chew breath mints before an interview. No one knows I smoke." "So, how," I asked, "do I know you're a smoker?"

He was embarrassed. I had to explain to him that the stench of the cigarettes permeated his clothes. I told him he had to take his clothes to the dry cleaner, keep them in the plastic covering, and hang them in a room where he never smoked. He honestly had no idea!

Obviously, you don't want to smell bad for a job interview. But you also don't want to smell "good," because "good" is subjective. What one person likes may turn someone else's stomach. And there is no way to know beforehand if the interviewer is going to like or dislike your chosen fragrance. So, here's my advice:

Take a shower! Don't put anything scented on your body! (For some reason, deodorant does not seem to be an issue.) Have no odor whatsoever when you interview! There are countless reasons why applicants do not become candidates. "Stinking to high heaven" should not be one of them and it is the easiest to avoid. SO AVOID IT! And popping a breath mint or two may not be a bad idea either...

ARE YOU AN EXPERT IN YOUR FIELD? THEN I INVITE YOU TO BE A GUEST ON MY PODCAST, BRUCE HURWITZ PRESENTS: MEET THE EXPERTS. FOR COMPLETE DETAILS, TO APPLY AND TO SCHEDULE AN INTERVIEW VISIT: https://hsstaffing.com/video-podcast

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