Thursday, February 19, 2015
Ask The Experts: Should I Disclose My Mental Illness In An Interview?
Fast Company | Business + Innovation: The interview process is always fraught with trying to present the best version of yourself in hopes of impressing your potential future employer while still staying true to yourself. That balancing act becomes a lot more complicated when you have a complicated history of mental illness that has negatively impacted your career path.
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I think this is a very interesting situation because it is important to be truthful about yourself, but on the other hand you do not want that to jeopardize your chance of getting the job. Employers should not discriminate people with disabilities, but it is bound to happen if they believe the disability will inhibit the job that needs to be done. There are many ways they can make it seem like they were not discriminating and that they just found a better candidate for the job based on different qualities. It is a very difficult situation to be in because you need to explain your limitations, but you do not want them to overshadow your strengths and skills. I think it is important to be truthful and if that employer does not hire you because of your disability, then they would be at a loss of a possibly great worker and they will have to deal with the thoughts of discriminating against someone with mental disabilities.
Whenever I am thinking about interviews, what I try and remind myself is that the person interviewing me wants me there as much as I want to be there. While I am trying to sell myself as the best worker, they are simultaneously trying to sell themselves as the best workplace. What a lot of people tend to forget is that interviews are a two way street. So I agree with the expert in this article, a person should lean towards disclosing their history of mental illness. This is because while the candidate is trying to sell themselves to the company, the company also wants the person there. And if this job discriminates based on mental illness, the person interviewing should not be working there anyway. That is probably the most important thing to remember. If an employer will turn a candidate down for a mental disorder, then that company is not worth the candidates time and will likely not be able to accommodate as well anyway.
Whenever I am thinking about interviews, what I try and remind myself is that the person interviewing me wants me there as much as I want to be there. While I am trying to sell myself as the best worker, they are simultaneously trying to sell themselves as the best workplace. What a lot of people tend to forget is that interviews are a two way street. So I agree with the expert in this article, a person should lean towards disclosing their history of mental illness. This is because while the candidate is trying to sell themselves to the company, the company also wants the person there. And if this job discriminates based on mental illness, the person interviewing should not be working there anyway. That is probably the most important thing to remember. If an employer will turn a candidate down for a mental disorder, then that company is not worth the candidates time and will likely not be able to accommodate as well anyway.
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