Job hunting used to be fairly straightforward: send your CV, show up for an interview, maybe get the job.
These days, it’s more like a chaotic mix of unpaid labour, personality quizzes, and outright ghosting. Employers expect Olympic-level enthusiasm and 10 years’ experience for barely more than minimum wage. And somehow, we’re all just meant to smile through it. If you’ve been job hunting in the last few years, these painfully familiar recruitment nightmares will probably hit a little too close to home.
1. Being asked to do a full campaign or strategy “just to see how you think”
They’re not hiring you yet, but would love a detailed social media calendar, launch proposal, or three-page pitch deck by Friday. It’s not paid, of course. It’s “part of the process.” Most jobseekers can spot this red flag a mile off now—it’s free labour dressed up as a “skills assessment.” You either get ghosted afterward, or they “go in another direction” and suspiciously use your exact ideas two months later.
2. Five-stage interviews that lead absolutely nowhere
You’ve met the hiring manager, the team, the senior manager, the founder, and someone who just seemed to be there for vibes. You’ve answered questions about your childhood ambitions and favourite biscuit, and then… silence. Dragging candidates through endless rounds with no clear update isn’t just disrespectful, it’s exhausting. If a company needs five weeks to decide whether to hire someone for a mid-level admin role, it’s not a good sign.
3. “We’re like a family here” being said like it’s a selling point
This phrase used to sound warm. Now it gives people the ick. “We’re like a family” usually means blurred boundaries, zero work-life balance, and someone crying in the toilets while their manager refers to them as “a trooper.” Actual families come with guilt, passive-aggressive feedback, and emotional burnout. So no, we’re good—just be a functioning workplace that respects boundaries and pays on time.
4. Skills tests you never get feedback on
You spent two hours doing a copy test, or a spreadsheet task, or writing a fake press release, and then nothing. No feedback. No update. Just silence, like it never happened. Even worse is when you see the role re-advertised the next week with strangely familiar phrasing. If companies want work, they should pay for it. The era of free “trial” tasks is well and truly wearing thin.
5. “We’ll be in touch either way” (they won’t)
Every job hunter knows the sting of waiting on a reply that never comes. You even triple-checked your junk folder, just in case. But no, they’ve vanished. It’s the false hope that makes it worse. They smiled and said, “We’ll follow up with feedback,” and then promptly never thought about you again. Classic.
6. Jobs that want 10 years’ experience for a junior salary
You’re asked to be creative, flexible, proactive, strategic, resilient, calm under pressure and available for weekend events, all for £22,000 a year and no pension. At this point, employers are listing five separate roles under one vague title and wondering why people aren’t biting. If you want someone senior, pay them like it.
7. Interviewers clearly not reading your CV
“So… what do you do exactly?”—said while your LinkedIn is open in another tab and your experience is literally listed in bullet points right in front of them. When you’ve taken time off, travelled to their office, and prepped properly, it’s wild how many interviewers come in winging it. It’s not just unprofessional, it’s lazy.
8. Application portals that actively make you want to give up
These systems still expect you to upload your CV, then manually retype every single detail into tiny boxes that don’t format correctly and crash halfway through. By the time you get to the “Why do you want to work here?” question, you’re wondering if the job’s even worth it. If companies want decent applicants, their application process shouldn’t be built like a 2004 blogspot form.
9. “We’ll get back to you by Friday”—which Friday, exactly?
It’s always Friday. The mythical day when feedback will arrive, interviews will be arranged, and hiring managers will finally “circle back.” Spoiler: they won’t. Recruiters should just admit when they’re disorganised. Giving fake timelines only adds to the stress, especially when candidates are juggling multiple applications and offers.
10. Not being told the salary until the final interview
“Competitive” isn’t a salary. It’s a warning sign. If you’re not transparent with pay up front, you’re already showing you don’t value people’s time or energy. Too many jobseekers get to the final stage only to find out the role pays far below their expectations. Salary shouldn’t be a plot twist.
11. Vague listings that say “you’ll wear many hats”
This always means chaos. It means you’ll be expected to juggle three departments, cover for your boss on sick days, and answer phones when someone’s off, all while being told you’re part of an “agile team.” It sounds flexible, but it usually means no structure, poor support, and lots of blame when things go wrong. Hats off to anyone still falling for this phrase.
12. Interview questions that belong in a dating profile
“What kitchen utensil best describes your personality?” “If you were stranded on a desert island, what three items would you bring?” Who is this helping, really? It’s meant to test creativity or culture fit, but it just ends up making people feel awkward and judged for not being quirky enough on demand.
13. Overuse of corporate buzzwords that mean absolutely nothing
“We’re passionate disruptors in the innovation space, driving stakeholder synergy via omnichannel solutions.” Sorry, what? If your job ad reads like it was written by a chatbot on espresso, nobody knows what the actual role involves, and nobody trusts that it’s a stable gig.
14. Companies who want you to relocate… for a part-time role
They’re offering 18 hours a week on minimum wage, but expect you to move cities because “we really believe in team culture.” It’s beyond unrealistic. Remote work proved that location doesn’t always matter. So unless you’re offering London wages and actual security, stop expecting people to uproot their entire lives for your ping-pong-table startup.
15. Being treated like you’re lucky to even apply
Some companies act like they’re offering a golden ticket, not a job that pays the bills. They’re vague, patronising, and completely unaware that the power dynamic has shifted. At this point, jobseekers are tired. They know their worth, and they’re over the nonsense. If you want people to apply, respect their time, their effort, and their very reasonable desire to not be messed around.
