Job interviewer tells job interviewee to shut up after he spent 5 minutes explaining his background and interrupted the interviewer 7 times: 'John, you really have to shut up and listen.'

Author image for Emmy Pratt
Emmy Pratt • Senior Editor
Nov 17, 2025 8:00 PM EST

In this situation, he really needed to be told to shut up.

Unfortunately, we aren't really taught how to interview for jobs in school. There are a lot of things that you'd think would be common sense not to do in job interviews, but people make the same mistakes over and over again. One of the biggest "no-nos" in job interviews is talking badly about your past employer. It doesn't matter if you were working at one of the meatpacking plants from The Jungle by Upton Sinclair. The interviewer has no idea and no way of verifying if the adverse claims you made about your previous employer were accurate, or if you complain about every place you work because you don't really like working. It's not fair, but it's just like how you shouldn't complain about your "crazy ex" on a first date. It is a red flag to most people.

Another no-no in job interviews is to talk for too short or too long. If you say far too little, you risk appearing unprepared and not gregarious enough for the position. Speaking for more than 2 minutes per question can make you seem arrogant and inconsiderate of the interviewer's time and the other questions they had planned to ask. 

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  • 01
    A man sitting at a desk talking to a woman
    via Mina Rad

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • The interviewee in this story was not only long-winded, but he also had a terrible problem with interrupting his interviewers. He interrupted them so much that one of the interviewers had to end the interview prematurely and set him straight.

  • 02

    Am I the bad guy for telling a guy to shut up during a job interview?

    I was interviewing this guy for a very good software engineering position. He passed the first round, and both I and everyone involved in the second round really liked his resume and experience. On paper, he had everything we were looking for, and honestly, this looked like a life-changing opportunity for him.
    via u/sirtuinsenolytic
  • 03
    Then he shows up, very serious and not smiling at all. I'm used to that in tech interviews, and I understand it can be an intimidating environment.
    via u/sirtuinsenolytic
  • 04
    We did a round of introductions, and then he opened the interview by saying, "Let me tell you a little bit about myself." We said, okay, go for it.
    via u/sirtuinsenolytic
  • 05
    He started talking and talking about his personal and professional background. After about three minutes, I jumped in to ask a follow-up question based on something he mentioned. He replied, "I will answer, just give me a moment," and continued talking.
    via u/sirtuinsenolytic
  • 06
    A man and a woman sitting at a table
    via Mina Rad

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 07
    A coworker jumped in with another question, and he said the same thing to her. At this point, we were kind of looking at each other, but decided to let him continue and give him the benefit of the doubt.
    via u/sirtuinsenolytic
  • 08
    But after more than five minutes, I jumped in again with another question. I had to talk over him to do it. He finally paused and answered, but in such a long- winded way that he ended up veering into another topic. My coworker asked another question, and the same thing happened.
    via u/sirtuinsenolytic
  • 09
    At this point, I was ready to end the interview. I tried to politely wrap it up several times, but he was unable to read the room and just kept talking. I finally raised my voice slightly and said. something like, "Thank you very much for sharing your
    via u/sirtuinsenolytic
  • 10
    background. In the interest of time, I'd like to ask if you have any questions for us." This is standard protocol and helps us prepare answers for future interviews.
    via u/sirtuinsenolytic
  • 11
    He asked a question about the team. As I was answering, he raised his finger and interrupted to talk more about his background. I let it go. Then he asked another question, which my coworker started to answer, but again, he spoke over her to talk about himself.
    via u/sirtuinsenolytic
  • 12
    I tried once more to interrupt politely, but he kept talking. At that point, I was done. I said, "John, you really have to shut up and listen." He was surprised, as was my coworker, but he finally stopped talking. I continued, "You walked into this room with a 99 percent chance of getting the job. Now that chance is zero. The only
    via u/sirtuinsenolytic
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    reason is because, in less than fifteen minutes, you've demonstrated that you don't have the capacity to listen at all. So I'm telling you now, you're not getting the job. But if you take anything away from this interview, let it be this: no matter how good you are technically, if you can't listen, you'll never excel in this career."
    via u/sirtuinsenolytic
  • 14
    Man programming using laptop
    via Danial Igdery

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 15
    He apologized and said, "Can we start again?" I replied, "You had your chance. Best of luck in your future interviews. Make sure you listen." Looking back, I know I could have handled that differently, but I still feel bad for the guy.
    via u/sirtuinsenolytic
  • 16
    Elem Wiz NTA. Honestly, he needed to hear it from someone in a position of hiring authority. Sure, his ego may be bruised, but that likely needed to happen.
    via u/ElemWiz
  • 17
    Sea_Voice_404 I interviewed someone once who wouldn't stop talking. When the hiring manager asked what I thought I told him the person was qualified, but monologued the entire time. Someone else had that same feedback. Hiring manager ended up calling her and gave her feedback, and she apologized and he brought her back in to try again. We all liked her, she just wouldn't stop talking. Second time around she was fine, she took it to heart and ended up getting hired. She was at the company for at
    via u/Sea_Voice_404
  • 18
    redpandainglasses Yes, it exists! I once interviewed someone who wouldn't stop talking! We started with "tell us about yourself and why you're interested in this position and she talked for literally 10 minutes. One of the other interviewers asked "you've shown you struggle to be concise... that's important in this job because xyz... how would you address that?”
    via u/redpandainglasses
  • 19
    Mogura-De-Gifdu Stress can make some people talk too much, nice of this other interviewer to still have given her a chance!
    via u/Mogura-De-Gifdu
  • 20
    Sea_Voice_404 That was the problem in my case and why they gave her another chance. She ended up being a fantastic person to work with but just had massive nerves during the interview.
    via u/Sea_Voice_404
  • 21
    Beth21286 Happens to lots of people, a good interviewer will snap you out of it. OP tried several times but this guy probably needed cutting off to get the point, hopefully he'll take that into his next interview.
    via u/Beth21286
  • 22
    StormBeyondTime Overall, it was likely the interrupting and talking over the interviewers, in addition to the long- windedness, that toasted his chances. Chattering can be nerves, but the other two are just rude. NTAH.
    via u/StormBeyondTime
  • 23
    joeygladstone I interviewed somebody like this once. Seemed good over the phone, resume was solid. Brought him in to the office for an interview, and couldn't get a word in edgewise. He completely derailed me from asking any questions myself. I honestly wish I stopped him like OP but after 45 minutes I told him I had a hard stop.
    via u/joeygladstone
  • 24
    On his way out he hit the snack bar and loaded up his jacket with 2 drinks, a couple bags of chips and some cookies. To be fair I offered him to take something when he sat down and he initially declined. But 5 things seemed like too much.
    via u/joeygladstone
  • 25
    Billy JayJersey505 You actually gave him more feedback than many people would have. NTAH
    via u/BillyJayJersey505

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