Do you mention your homebrewing hobby in job interviews

[jbob7171]

I know a lot of the general public still doesn't really understand home brewing and might associate home brewers as raging alcoholics. This picture below I saw somewhere on here says it best...

With those thoughts in mind, if you're in a job interview and are asked what your hobbies are, do you tell them home brewing? If you've done this, what have been the reactions?

I'm personally torn on this and would air on the side of caution and not mention it, but don't really know what I would do in the moment.

 

[b-boy]

Nope. Too many holy rollers out there to take a chance. I used to work for one. He would have disqualified me immediately.

 

[Transamguy77]

I only bring it up if the conversation goes that way, my current job now my boss and I had a discussion about beer so I felt it was ok to discuss. But otherwise no I would not mention it.

 

[BeerFst]

I have a section on the bottom with interests....Homebrewing is on there, though no ones ever brought it up. By the time someone gets to that question I'd think you probably have a feel for whether or not its a good idea to mention it

 

[Psylocide]

I started a new job in Sept., and my boss is a Teetotaler, however... I didn't start this until a couple of weeks ago, so didn't mention it but wouldn't have in an interview.

The other day he asked what I did over the weekend and told him with some hesitation that I was brewing a Stout and he actually was very interested because he brewed at one point as well.

So, interview... no, I wouldn't.

 

[yewtah-brewha]

I live in Utah, home of the holley rollers.. I heard a radio advertisement for a job opening and they actually mentioned home brewing, The job was for a account rep for a radio station..

 

[yewtah-brewha]

To answer the question, I say no, I had mine on my resume, but took it off,

 

[tmendick]

It depends on the job and how the rest of the interview is going. I did end up getting a job in HR after telling the boss that I homebrew, I also followed it up by saying that I do it because I like to experiment with ingredients.

 

[treacheroustexan]

I had an interview about a month ago and I mentioned my homebrewing and we ended up spending more time talking about IPAs than we did talking about the company..

I start Monday.

 

[JonM]

If you are absolutely certain that the interviewer is a brewer as well, and if you're absolutely certain that mentioning brewing will make for a better rapport, then yes. In all other circumstances, no.

 

[Pyg]

Honestly in almost all my job interviews I have never been asked.
However I am prepared if it ever comes up.
It should be noted that I make wine and not beer.
However, this requires reading and understanding written directions. detailed record keeping. Problem solving. Planning. creating and utilizing spreadsheets
Basic understanding of chemistry, biology and science.
and above all patience.
Now I usually try to avoid bringing this up because I can only imagine what a teetotaler thinks when they find out I have 200 bottles of homemade wine in my basement.
However If I have to, I tell them I make most of my wine to give away around the holidays (lie).

For the record I also do not tell people I golf, and I am neurotic about keeping stats and spreadsheets for my game, which is another plus, but somehow frowned upon!

 

[Joewalla88]

I mentioned it in my last interview, when they asked me about my hobbies. I still got the job. I just explained how interesting I think it is and that it wasn't about getting loaded.

 

[jbob7171]

It depends on the job and how the rest of the interview is going. I did end up getting a job in HR after telling the boss that I homebrew, I also followed it up by saying that I do it because I like to experiment with ingredients.

That's a great point... if you can make it somehow related to the job you're interviewing for, that's the only way I can see it as a positive, unless of course you know the interviewer also does it.

Most of the responses have been along the same lines I was thinking, probably not a good idea to mention unless you know it's going to go over well.

 

[jbob7171]

I had an interview about a month ago and I mentioned my homebrewing and we ended up spending more time talking about IPAs than we did talking about the company..

I start Monday.

Haha, that's great! Interviews that go completely off-topic are the best. Congrats on the job.

 

[seefish]

Depends on who I was interviewing with, if it was an initial review by an HR person or something then I probably wouldn't. If the interview was with the person I'd be working for then I would absolutely mention it...its part of who I am, if they are not ok with that then it probably wouldn't be a very good working relationship anyway.

 

[Hello]

I probably would not unless the conversation lent itself to discussing hobbies. Even then, I'd have to assess the person. While it is my hobby and it shouldn't matter, the stigma that comes with brewing beer isn't always wonderful.

 

[mikeasu]

I'd be careful too - maybe not with HR, but if the hobbies come up with potential future peers during the interview...esp. if the interview is more "we know you can do the job, but want to see if you're a good fit with our crew", then why not. It did come up in my last interview - the likely supervisor and program manager both homebrewed, so I was able to easily mention it, and my decent clone of one of their local brews (DuClaw's PB porter).

Just found out this week, landed the job!

 

[kh54s10]

I wouldn't mention it unless the job was related. There are too many that would think uh-oh this guy would be hung over all the time.... Or even think that homebrewing was illegal.

 

[KPSquared]

Wow...I wouldn't even hesitate. If I can't be me, I don't want to work there. Then again, where I live, work is plentiful... If jobs are hard to come by, that's a different story

 

[FloppyKnockers]

Under the hobbies section of any application I write "making my 'people to kill' list smaller".

... I'm still unemployed.

 

[z-bob]

Do they even ask about hobbies at job interviews? Seems like a boundary violation.

 

[FloppyKnockers]

Do they even ask about hobbies at job interviews? Seems like a boundary violation.

it's an option to answer, but it always feels weird to leave anything blank on an application.

 

[dkevinb]

No. It's not pertinent to what I do for a living (design embedded systems/write software). They really don't care what my hobbies are. Most places nowadays have gone to behavioral interviews, which involve the interviewer reading from a pre-written script, so the topic just won't come up. In any case, I see no reason to bring something up which may be construed as controversial by some people during a job interview.

 

[FourSeasonAngler]

Wow...I wouldn't even hesitate. If I can't be me, I don't want to work there. Then again, where I live, work is plentiful... If jobs are hard to come by, that's a different story

THIS!


- When I interviewed for the job I've been in for over 7 years now I was asked what my hobbies were and I answered honestly. I believe that honesty will go a long way towards making a good first impression.

Why would you want to spend the majority of your waking hours in a place where you couldn't be yourself or honest with others. That's just insane.

 

[Seriuqs]

I don't go out of my way to bring it up, but I inevitably get asked what kind of interests I have, so I list that along with my other hobbies (archery, woodworking, skiing).

I think the important thing is how you present your hobby and how you can draw it back around to the job you are interviewing for. My opinion is that those questions aren't asked because they really care about your hobbies or interests, but they want to see how your mind works and if that translates well to the job requirements. I work in engineering/management in the steel industry, so I mention that I like homebrewing because I enjoy the analyzing the process to improve my product, the experimentation of tweaking a recipe, and making something with my hands that other people enjoy.

As far as interviewing with a teetotaler - now I as I mentioned before I work in the steel industry where our Christmas/holiday parties still have an open bar, so I am going to go out on a limb and say we might have a few less teetotaler's in this industry than some others. YMMV. Ultimately I think you can gauge the interviewer during the interview and know if they will be the type to get uptight about homebrewing.

I also want to mention I agree with what KPSquared said - if I can't be me, I probably don't want to work at that place anyhow. I have learned this through some particularly negative employment situations where the red flags were there in the interview process. Its like a first date - if they treat you poorly in the interview, they probably aren't going to get super cool once you start the job.

 

[Grannyknot]

Depends on the employer.
But here in Tennessee, you might as well be telling them you like to smoke marijuana.

 

[241]

I don't even tell my co-workers. None of them know

#officepolitics

 

[Tin4]

I know a lot of the general public still doesn't really understand home brewing and might associate home brewers as raging alcoholics. This picture below I saw somewhere on here says it best...

With those thoughts in mind, if you're in a job interview and are asked what your hobbies are, do you tell them home brewing? If you've done this, what have been the reactions?

I'm personally torn on this and would air on the side of caution and not mention it, but don't really know what I would do in the moment.

I tell my future employers my hobbies are sitting quietly and practicing my breathing. It explains why I spend so much time in my office by myself breathing heavily.

 

[dryboroughbrewing]

I think I said 'clocktower sniper' the last time someone asked during a job interview. Got the job too.

 

[johnmac22]

I live in Utah, home of the holley rollers.. I heard a radio advertisement for a job opening and they actually mentioned home brewing, The job was for a account rep for a radio station..

Same up here. I dont mention it at all. There is enough of a mixture of people but you figure out quickly who is who and keep your hobbies to yourself...