A woman claimed that she cut a job interview short after about 15 minutes once the interviewers began describing her potential future boss. The woman, Ivanna, explained in a TikTok video that the interview started at 12 o’clock and that she was out of the building by 12:15. The role was in her field at a textile rug company roughly 10 minutes from her home in New Jersey.
Ivanna said the position required five days on site and that the pay “wasn’t that great.” She described meeting a woman she had assumed was in human resources based on an email, though the woman handled accounts payable, payroll, and benefits. That woman got straight to the point, telling her the job involved a lot of work, a long list of duties, and that she would be busy. Ivanna said her internal reaction was that she would definitely ask for more money.
She then described the controller joining them, sitting down, and asking about her background. According to Ivanna, he started by saying she had too many jobs on her resume and that it did not look good that she had hopped around, even though she explained they were contract positions, which she considered normal. She paraphrased him, saying they needed someone long-term and that “you can’t just come in for 6 months.”
Interviewers described the owner’s style and pressed for details on a past role
Ivanna said she told the interviewers she had planned to stay at her last job for a long time, but it became “so toxic and bad for my mental health” that she left for personal reasons. They asked her to elaborate, and she said she was trying not to talk negatively about previous employers. The interviewers looked at each other and told her, “Explain what that means, go ahead, we’ll tell you why in a second.”
She described telling them she had issues with her director, who was “very disrespectful,” and that it was a “very toxic work environment” that got bad for her mental health. Ivanna added that no matter what she did, it was never going to get better.
She said she knew she was right because “That whole team crumbled. Everyone left or got fired, and essentially he got fired for, you know, misconduct, for creating a hostile work environment.” Explaining past exits can draw scrutiny, as seen when a Gen Z coworker blamed bullying for leaving.
The interviewers then described the owner as an older, old-school man who “can be a little much sometimes.” Ivanna translated this as meaning he would constantly call her, ask what she was doing, and micromanage her. She said she would work directly with him on checks and sit for 30 or 40 minutes while he went through every single one, questioning amounts and reasons. If she did not have answers, he would question whether she knew how to do her job.
Ivanna said they indicated that was just how he was and that everyone in the office dealt with it. She quoted them saying, “You feel his wrath. If he gets mad at one person, like, he’s just gonna yell at everyone type of thing.” They added that he can yell and be kind of rude. Ivanna said her reaction at the time was “oh, okay, this, this job sounds amazing, thank you,” while internally thinking “what the f–k did I get into?”
She described one interviewer possibly trying to backtrack by saying every job has its good and bad, and pointing out that one employee had been there 20 years, he had been there 15, and another had been there 12. They told her that if it was that bad, none of them would still be there, and that he is old-school and needs to know where his money is going. When she asked if this was an everyday occurrence, they said it can be.
Ivanna said that once they confirmed it could happen regularly, she told them, “I don’t think this job is for me.” They replied that they understood and could see that. The controller then pointed out that she already seemed to be having flashbacks or getting uncomfortable. He kept her there to ask another question and later said, “I know that you would have no problem doing this job, but that would- that probably wouldn’t work out.”
Toward the end, Ivanna said they thanked each other for being honest. The woman told her she would not have wanted her to come in for a week, deal with it, and then realize what she got into. They apologized as if she was losing a big opportunity, saying, “We’re so sorry, we’re so sorry this didn’t work out.” Ivanna told them, “No, it’s fine. It’s honestly fine.”
She said in the video that the job market is rough, but this role was not a loss, citing the five days on site, the environment, and a wage she does not consider livable in New Jersey. She added that no job is worth that, especially not for a textile rug company, and concluded, “I don’t know who they’ll find, good luck to them, but I know d–n well it was never gonna be me after that.”
Several viewers shared their own takes on the video. One commenter wrote, “NEVER disclose problems at another job.” Another suggested the company may have already had someone in mind, stating, “They def had someone they wanted lol they really played.” A third described a similar short interview, writing, “I’ve had an interview exactly like this before. I ended it at 12 minutes. The interviewer looked so shocked and I’m like you just talked me out of the job haha.”
One viewer pushed back on long-term expectations, saying, “Biggest lie we’ve been told is not to job hop. That’s how I have continued to make more and more money.” Another noted simply, “At least they were honest.”
Published: Nov 11, 2026 03:15 pm