Bringing homebrewing up in a job interview

[ReverseApacheMaster]

Bad idea. This is the reason why I keep my home brewing out of my face book. You know the first thing they do is to google up your name. You will never know why you didn't get the job or the promotion. People just don't understand, they are ignorant. To them a guy home brewing beer on a week-end = moonshining alcoholic.

If they asked me about my hobbies, I'd say: home emprovement, cooking, fishing.

It's sad, but the real Big Brother is your employer now-a-days.

You know you can make your facebook private so the info doesn't show on facebook, right?

At my last gig I used to add some colleagues on fb. It started to be a problem when I added the wrong people. I un-friended a lot of them because I didn't like hearing my personal business floating around work and obviously they couldn't respect that division between work and personal. So if you have colleagues on your fb, I can understand why you might want to keep it off.

Lots of employers have social media policies that (try to) dictate what you can and can't do on your own social media sites. I think it's mostly nonsense but aside from violating the concerted activity protections under the NLRA they can usually do what they want.

I actually have it on my resume under an "other interests" section but labeled as "craft brewing". It tends to get either ignored or people ask what it is and I get to set the tone of the conversation before they have a chance to assume I'm a drunk. However, for 99% of professions I would keep it off.

 

[VTDuffman]

I'm wondering if this isn't a completely regional thing. The thought to hide my hobby, my passion from my employer or perspective employer has never even crossed my mind, not once. I also don't live in a place where alcohol is considered "evil," "devilish," or any other variation of the word "naughty," so your mileage may vary.

 

[thegerm]

if your prospects are many and you have options, sure, tell the truth, let your passions shine through and make no compromises.

if however you are like the rest of the world and need to pick your battles in order to thrive in this world, I'd be cautious. Know your audience. I worked at a baptist church in houston as a software developer for a while, and you can probably guess how much I talked about my personal hobbies at work.

 

[Formito]

I'm in research and have interviewed others for similar positions and I can say with certainty that saying you can cook/bake/brew/whatever else involving similar skills is always a plus. It shows that you are interested in that kind of work and you can apply it to your life.

 

[RickFinsta]

There's always a line; for instance, I usually talk about my drag racing car I built, my competitive shooting (but not my Title II firearms!), playing guitar, and homebrewing. They all show the employer who I am and what I am capable of accomplishing. If they have a problem with any of them, I don't want to work there.

 

[ABrewingApe]

I'd definitely let it come up unless you live in one of those "dry" places one hears about and homebrewing really IS the easiest way to have hooch on hand.

In places where that's not the case, homebrewing means that you have deliberately chosen a leisure activity that requires you to do independent research, show initiative, be detail-oriented, and have standards. Most employers like that sort of thing. If your interviewer doesn't know enough about beer to know what's involved in making it, nothing wrong with giving a (very) succinct rundown of the process--your ability to do that and the enthusiasm you show for it will also reflect well on you.

 

[Cape Brewing]

I am certainly not a mucky muck but I work directly with a bunch of them in my office. A huge percentage of the folks I deal with all day have titles that start with "Chief" and the something something. (Wall Street fat cat firm).

And they all know I brew. Hell... I've had half of 'em out to my house to try my beers.

I think the biggest thing when talking about brewing at work is that it is discussed in the right manner. I CONSTANTLY and openly talk about how beer has a bad connotation to it with some folks. I can't remember how many times I've said something like, "it's frustrating because if I told folks I was into collecting fine wines, everyone would raise an eyebrow and think, 'hmmm... he's sophisticated'... but when I say I'm into fine beers, people think I am sitting in a parking lot pounding Bud Light funnels with no shirt on".

I have found that if you put that problem right out there and explain that this is something I take very seriously and it's not "sitting around drinking", they tend to understand it much much better.

Now that I've done that... and since "craft beer" is getting more and more popular, I've actually gotten calls from mucky mucks asking for good beer recommendations since they might give them as gifts. I even did a beer dinner/tasting for my COO last fall.

 

[Airborneguy]

i do little things to the coffeepot to relieve the stress at the office. they might not be legal in certain circles or ethical in others- i don't know - i'm not some sort of ethnic lawyer geometrist...
it seems to be working with the stress though - kind of like imagining everyone in their underwear when you have speak in public

What the hell? I really don't even know what to say about this.

 

[BenjaminBier]

Once you're working at the company, you'll have a feel for what's appropriate. I was surprised how widely alchohol is discussed at my current corporate job. At my last company, a European-owned design house, it was a forbidden topic. It's hard to tell when it's appropriate for a given employer. I would leave it off the resume and not bring it up in an interview unless the interviewer brought up alcohol.

 

[kingwood-kid]

I interview and hire as part of my job. When I'm looking at a stack of applications, one red flag is enough to enlarge my recycling pile. Applications and interviews are your opportunity to present a sanitized, employable version of yourself. Every imperfection looks like the tip of an iceberg. Having kids means missing work once a week when they're sick; having problems with your boss means frequent insubordination; homebrewing as a hobby means you're a drunk.

When you've got the job and you've started to fit in, then you can talk about what you do outside of work. Just remember that the CFO who talks to himself is a brilliant eccentric, the middle manager is quirky, and the guy in the mailroom is a dangerous loner.

 

[1Q84]

I'd probably be too timid to mention it in a job interview, just because yeah, I'd be nervous that they would take it the wrong way.

That being said, I'm taking a music history class this semester and my teacher on the first day told us about how her and her husband are homebrewers.

 

[Cambone]

What the hell? I really don't even know what to say about this.

I'm glad you caught this. I thought everyone was going to let it slide.

What is with this guy? He needs to clear this up, but I read it as "I spike the coffee pot at work without telling anyone and now everyone is less stressed (=buzzin').

 

[j1laskey]

FWIW...I work for a large pharma company in the Oncology Dept....when people caught wind that I brew, they started asking question. These people are Harvard trained PhD's, I was a little nervous how the "nerds" would perceive my hobby. Would they assume that it was a "habit" and not a hobby, like Cape stated above, that I am serious about.

The first question I get is, "How hard is it to get into?" And the second, "Is it expensive?"
And then the follow up statement of, "I've always wanted to do it".

I think telling someone in HR I brew might be a little different then telling my colleagues. But then HR sucks anyway.

 

[samc]

No stock answer as it all depends on the interviewer and the company. In general I was always more impressed with a candidate who asked me interesting questions about the job available. In most situations you want an intelligent candidate so the more you ask the less time they have to ask you ridiculous "what are your hobbies" type questions. What next? How many people have you killed?

 

[zeg]

Personally, I would not mention it at a job interview and I certainly would not put it on a resume or CV. This is simply because for the vast majority of situations, it's irrelevant, and if it has any impact on the hiring decision, it's not likely to be a positive one.

 

[McGarnigle]

I wouldn't put home brewing on my resume because it seems trivial (unless the job is at a brewer, bar or beer store).

If they ask hobbies, I'd admit to it. Maybe I've been out of the job search for too long, but that seems like a silly interview question. My company never ask stuff like that.

(fixed typo)

 

[bja]

You know you can make your facebook private so the info doesn't show on facebook, right?

There are software programs available to get around the private settings and they can still see everything.

 

[TopherM]

There is some stat floating around that something like 1 in 3 chemists has tried homebrewing.

And about 4 out of 5 engineers, it seems!

 

[DakotaRules]

And about 4 out of 5 engineers, it seems!

Also 3/4 of all statistics are made up on the spot.

 

[spearko520]

I'm glad you caught this. I thought everyone was going to let it slide.

What is with this guy? He needs to clear this up, but I read it as "I spike the coffee pot at work without telling anyone and now everyone is less stressed (=buzzin').

no you have to read the first part - apparently it was a joke that went over like a bomb. I am at work worrying about what people think and i think to myself "when they find out what you do to the coffeepot, you will be fired for sure"- one could infer that i am urinating in the pot, spiking it, or worse or whatever- i'm sure they will catch it on tape. so that then leads me to think "why get stressed over i job that i will be fired from when they find out i am peeing in the company coffeepot" so it's like imagining people in their underwear. you debase those around you to alleviate stress of a situation where you have put too much stock in the imagined expectations of others and self inflicted pressures of performance.
sorry. bad joke. i'm not sure if an in depth analysis makes it any more funny. probably not.

 

[passedpawn]

no you have to read the first part - apparently it was a joke that went over like a bomb. I am at work worrying about what people think and i think to myself "when they find out what you do to the coffeepot, you will be fired for sure"- one could infer that i am urinating in the pot, spiking it, or worse or whatever- i'm sure they will catch it on tape. so that then leads me to think "why get stressed over i job that i will be fired from when they find out i am peeing in the company coffeepot" so it's like imagining people in their underwear. you debase those around you to alleviate stress of a situation where you have put too much stock in the imagined expectations of others and self inflicted pressures of performance.
sorry. bad joke. i'm not sure if an in depth analysis makes it any more funny. probably not.

I thought it was really funny. Especially the ethnic lawyer geometrist thing.

The fact that my sense of humor is similar to yours should give you alarm. Perhaps you should take some time off.

 

[edmanster]

I would be scared to bring up homebrewing in a interview at most places around here (Utah) even if beer or alcohol was mentioned.. Been at my current job 15yrs so just to get myself outta the spotlight of religion cult my next job will hopefully be alcohol/beer related (drinking, selling, making, consulting)

 

[Tinga]

I've just started job searching and I'm polishing my resume now. I have homebrewing on my resume as in "I'm the President of the Homebrewing and Craft Beer Enthusiasts Club" I started the club and am the first President to have a club like this on campus so I'm the one going through all the red tape with admin to make sure no rules are broken.

So I hope it shows initiative, leadership and willing to try new things where I have to work under certain rules. Can anyone tell me if that's a good thing or not?

 

[spearko520]

I thought it was really funny. Especially the ethnic lawyer geometrist thing.

The fact that my sense of humor is similar to yours should give you alarm. Perhaps you should take some time off.

No alarm- thanks for the save- i had my head in the oven when i read that.
and for the record, that was the character i always fantasized that they would add to the cast of LA Law.
if ford farlaine taught us nothing else, it is that "they can't all be golden". If a million people have to die, so that one person, somewhere on this big ball of dust we call a planet, can laugh- then it will all have been worth it.

 

[bernerbrau]

I always bring this up. Interviews are a two-way street; you're interviewing them as much as they're interviewing you. If some place doesn't want to hire me after I've mentioned a homebrewing hobby, then I don't want to work there.

 

[petey_c]

Since I homebrew, my opinion is biased. I don't think it would be a bad thing to include, for all of the reasons listed here. However, most people don't homebrew (thank God) and I believe they might see it as a liability. (lost days due to over consumption.)
"Also 3/4 of all statistics are made up on the spot." I actually thought it was closer to 83%.

 

[ScoRas]

I think it's completely fine. I'm a biochemist myself. I second the thought that if someone saw this as a red-flag, then it is someone you do not want to work for.

I went to college in quite a liberal place, and my first interviewer asked me if I gardened. I said yes, definitely, and only started to stutter when she asked me what I grew...

 

[carltjones]

I believe my mention of homebrewing was a positive when probed about hobbies. She asked to be my best friend and mentioned her love of microbreweries. 2nd interview is next Tuesday as an assistant purchaser at a huge greenhouse. Also discussed growing hops.

 

[TopherM]

Much better bringing homebrew UP in a job interview than bringing homebrew TO a job interview.

Kinda like there is a HUGE difference between peeing IN the pool and peeing INTO the pool.

 

[BesteBrew]

Well didn't the job because "they decided to pursue a candidate with more experience". So who knows if it made a good impression or not. How's a man supposed to get experience when everyone keeps on telling him that he doesn't have enough... Sigh. Me and my freshly filled keg of wheat stout will become best friends tonight.