I know I can nail the technical questions but I’m worried that i look sleazy.
The additional context wasn’t necessary but I wanted to see how the photo posts are formatted for lemmy
Old guy here with some dad advice. Given that you’re concerned, I assume you don’t dress like this on the regular.
Wear it around, a lot, beforehand. Get comfortable so you act comfortable. Interviews can be nerve wracking enough without fidgeting because you aren’t used to the clothes you’re wearing.
Yeah you’re right, I don’t usually wear this and it does feel weird. The pants, belts and shirt combined were only 40 dollars so I was really worried it would look cheap.
I appreciate the advice immensely.
You look good. Have interviewed tons of people in my time. What you put together should be fine.
And if that’s not good enough for some places you probably don’t want to work at them anyway.
It’s not about the cost of the clothing, it’s about the intent to appear professional at an interview. Trying is good.
I’ve seen people rock up to interviews wearing hoodies and tracksuit pants. So yeah dressing appropriately shows you’re interested.
You look good! Good luck
I’m 8 years into the IT space and got my start at a help desk as well. Now I’m running a team for a large international company.
I’m not sure if Lemmy supports DM’s as I haven’t explored it much but please feel free to reach out to me with any questions etc and I’d be happy to give you some tips! You got this boss. 💪
8 years in IT? you must be handsome AND talented, king
6 years in IT here. Went from service desk to NAS lead. It’s not talent…it’s more of what a Fortune 500 company will spend on you to develop internally. At least in my experience.
Another older fart here. As others have said, you look good! Wearing it a few times to get used to it is a great tip.
Especially since they are inexpensive clothes, if you need to clean them, wash and dry them carefully. Dunno your setup, but make sure the washer is set to cold or the low side of warm. Dry medium and don’t over dry. If the washer and dryer have a “permanent press” setting, that should work ok. Immediately hang them; don’t let them sit in the dryer.
Looks sharp, I learned a little too late to do the “Military Tuck” when the sides got a bit bunched up. It can really help clean up the look with non tailored shirts.
I appreciate this advice, since my wedding is coming up soon and I’m thinking this might be an issue with my shirts. Would I need a belt to make this work? I’m planning on wearing suspenders.
I am not sure. I think as long as your waistband has enough tension to hold the fold in place it should work. Otherwise you may need a belt. Congrats on the wedding.
If you have time to take your clothes to a tailor they can make it fit much better. It’ll usually only cost around $8-15 and it made a huge difference in how I feel in my clothes
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There’s many a times this could have been useful for me and I’ll think I’ll store this away for the future.
Interview secrets they don’t want you to know.
Kids: this works 💯
This is solid advice. When I wanted to dress up more often for work, I’d wear a blazer or suit around the house. I did this for maybe a month. And I learned something about men’s dress attire they can be super comfy once you’re not worried about messing it up. Plus they make you feel spiffy. Now my go-to feel good about myself attire is jeans and a tweed jacket. I only don’t wear it all the time because I think I’d look too pretentious.
I was an IT help desk manager for 10 years. Your attire is perfect, and it’s a good sign that you’re concerned about looking professional.
Here’s a pro tip - In your interview you will almost certainly be asked how you’d solve an issue that you have no idea how to approach. What they’re looking for is how you’ll respond emotionally. The correct answer is to assure the end user that you will find a solution, don’t panic, and then check internal documentation. “Have we run into this before?” Insist that the company should never have to solve the same issue twice because documentation is paramount. Never be afraid to say that you’d escalate the issue but KEEP OWNERSHIP. Ownership is huge to these people.
I’d be glad to go into more detail about what they’ll be looking for if it will be helpful.
I won’t wish you good luck because you’ve already got this!
I was never a direct manager, but I’ve been in on the hiring process for many candidates. Great advice, top to bottom.
When we interviewed we also liked to hear people say they’d Google it. It seems stupid but I want someone with the initiative to find the solution to a problem they’ve never seen.
Also the thing about ownership is key, and for us was always an indicator of someone who might want to move up later. Help desk folks who want to move up do everything they can feasibly do and offer their take on what they think the next level needs to do before escalating. If it truly needs to be handed off then it’s because of permissions. But the best help desk people try to hang on to the ticket as long as they can so they can provide the most consistency to the end user.
Yep I Google stuff all the time in my help desk type job. Usually when it’s windows being stupid for whatever reason.
I’m a senior-most IT engineer for a major company and most of my job is still Googling. The rest is learn.microsoft.com.
Every good engineer I have ever worked with googles things. To me it’s actually a red flag if someone doesn’t Google stuff. That tells me they think they know everything, or that they would rather punt than learn. I think googling is a critical job skill for IT.
I just want to second saying you’d Google it in the interview if it comes up. I got my first job because of this in software engineering a long time ago.
Interviewer: “If you didn’t know how to solve a technical problem, what’s the first thing you’d do?” Me: “Well… to be honest, I’d probably Google it…” Interviewer: “Oh yeah that’s actually exactly what we want!”
It did feel stupid to say at the time but it made sense after.
In your interview you will almost certainly be asked how you’d solve an issue that you have no idea how to approach
^ This completely. I am a tech support Tier 1/Tier 2 support hiring manager for a private tech company. Our software and hardware product is our own creation and we have no expectation you’ll know how to fix any of our stuff.
I ask someone a question troubleshoot a TV screen + generic PC that’s showing a blank/black screen. In the scenario both should be powered on and displaying our software, but it’s possible neither are at the moment. I ask how they’d approach getting things back up. My POV is that it’s a type of fault that everyone who’s ever worked a PC/ChromeBox/VCR/DVD/GameConsole/CableTVbox/etc has ran into and should be able to spitball an answer regardless of background.
What I am listening for is the steps you would take to work through a problem and why. I am also paying attention to if you are someone that can work through a problem, it’s a surprising number of people who just don’t seem able to.
Someone who I didn’t hire wasn’t sure and ended up suggesting we check the wifi.
Good luck on the interview, and the clothes look great. Anything business casual will almost always be accepted and if they ding you on no tie be glad you dodged that bullet
This is fantastic and great advice. Listen to this guy!
Anything that can happen will happen, and because the manual is finite, eventually the will be a situation that the company is unprepared for.
Take responsibility, yes, but don’t act beyond your authority. Tell the person that you’ll find out, and ask the appropriate person.
If there is time pressure, don’t take on more than you can reliably handle - don’t take info and promise to contact the person unless you can do that. It’s always better to give the person contact information and ask them to call or come back.
For years companies loved “I can” statements. “I can help you with that”, “I can find out for you”, etc. But I think that might have fallen out of favor, check with someone younger than me (lol!).
One more tip to add to this. It’s related to this so I wanted to comment here. Be likeable. No body wants to work with know it all snob.
I’m a week late to replying to your comment, but yes! We call them “hot dogs” in my area - people who pretend like they know everything. That’s just setting yourself up for failure. Escalation paths exist for a reason.
So much this. As someone who runs a technical call center, I don’t know is an acceptable answer but follow it with a plan to find out!
Never be afraid to say that you’d escalate the issue but KEEP OWNERSHIP. Ownership is huge to these people.
Your advice is great in general, but procedures may vary. When I worked in professional IT support, we have often transferred ownership to the next level group, together with the escalation.
But then our customers were all professional IT guys too, devs, admins, sometimes managers. No whining panicking end users :-)
If you want your shirt to be buttoned all the way to the top, I would recommend pairing it with a tie. In addition, I might consider a lighter shirt as the overall outfit is pretty dark.
Don’t stress it too much though, your outfit is perfectly fine! Go ahead and kill it!
As someone who has been on both sides of a helpdesk interview, 99.5% of the time a tie is overkill. OP looks dressed for the job, and that’s usually what they’re looking for.
I wore a tie to my first interview as a programmer. Worked there for 15 years and I got made ribbed for wearing a tie (that one time) for 15 years.
Sounds about right. lol
For my first helpdesk job interview, the recruiter sent the wrong information in the interview packet. The dress code she sent said “business formal” so I went in all suited and tied. Looked like I was interviewing for CEO. The managers interviewing me were wearing jeans and polo shirts.
You should have pulled a Robert California (The Office US) and walked out of the interview, walked into their boss’ office, and interviewed for that job!
Same. Although I would roll the sleeves. That’s how I interviewed for my latest help desk gig.
That’s how I interviewed for my current job, too! I work in media.
Rolled sleeves is perfect for jobs that are not overly formal. It’s manly, it inspires confidence and gives the idea of someone who’s ready to… Well, to roll up their sleeves and get to work
Yeah, that’s solid advice. And definitely never wear a short sleeve dress shirt. That’s like the most cliche thing you can do in IT (even if they are more comfortable). Rolled sleeves is like the acceptable middle ground and generally looks better.
I concur. A tie in an interview is almost always overkill, especially for help desk work. OP is perfectly dressed for what I’d expect for front-line IT. Hopefully their help desk has a more relaxed dress code, but it’s always good to go in looking professional.
I didn’t wear any ties to my interviews for higher level IT positions and it worked out well for me. Generally unnecessary in the tech world.
You got this dude 🤙🏻
HR person here that sometimes has helpdesk positions to fill as well. Absolutely appropriate. Like others already said, you are better dressed than most people we interview for such positions.
Piece of advice if you don’t usually dress like that: Wear those clothes for a half a day going grocery shopping and doing regular daily shit. Helps make you feel more comfortable in them. Just give them a check up to see if they got dirty afterwards.
On a personal note, great choice of colours too. Best of luck to you!
You look like an average human in nice clothes
You look fine, don’t overthink that.
Good luck!
Thanks. I got the A+ a few days ago and I already got an interview. I know I’m insanely lucky so I don’t wanna squander it.
Good luck! The best advice I can give for IT these days is to not be afraid of learning and certifications. Far too many people get complacent in their skillset. I started at an ISP help desk back in 2006 and today I’m senior management. 99.9% of the people I passed on the way here had a mentality like “well I used to install stage 1 Gentoo back in 2003 so therefore I am a master Linux admin” and just refused to take on new projects / new areas.
You’ve got this!
It’s not luck. You did the work, you earned the badge.
You have the right skills, the right attire, AND the right outlook. You’re gonna do great
You’re better dressed than 90% of software engineers I’ve interviewed. Definitely not goofy
Software engineer here to say I show up to an interview in similar attire (I ask the recruiter what the expected attire is so I may dress slightly more or less formal depending on that), but after that I’m thankful there’s no dress code because I dress in a T-shirt and gym shorts basically all day every day barring weather concerns.
I never would have thought to call his outfit sleazy or even bad.
I would even tend to call him “overdressed”.
Whenever I had in-person interviews my go to was jeans, sneakers and a presentable t-shirt (plain color, or a small logo, no metal bands or similar). Everything in good condition and clean. An unbottoned casual shirt on top, if winter.
Usually “know your shit and don’t be an embarrassment” is the bar to clear in IT.
You look fine to me! Only the belt is kinda strange. The pointy end should point towards your back, while the buckle should be aligned with the zipper
Good catch! I think it is too long for him
You look really well put together and professional. Only advice is next time look for a shirt that’s not so baggy around the waist.
I think it’s actually just about right for helpdesk. Good job OP. Crush that interview.
Looking sharp, my man. I think this looks fine for an interview. The point is that you are making an effort. You’re not there to win a beauty contest, you’re there to present yourself as a responsible and capable employee. Interviewers are generally aware that not everybody has the cash lying around to get a tailored suit for an interview, so it’s okay if you look a little awkward or feel uncomfortable.
If you want to take this to the next level, look into “dress shirt stays” or “shirt keepers”. They’re a device that help keep the shirt looking freshly tucked, and some have the added benefit of also keeping your dress socks hiked up if you have that problem as well (like I always did).
Can’t see your shoes in the pic, but obviously a nice pair of black dress shoes will really complete this outfit.
Good luck with your interview!
Shirt stays are the shit!
About the shoes, if you can, match them with your belt. Nice touch.
Oh and rock some crazy dress socks, it’s fun.
Appropriate attire I think. Make sure to leave the top button undone unless you wear a tie. If you’re planning on wearing dress shoes you may want to switch to slacks over jeans (if they are jeans, if they’re just a slightly more casual pant ignore this), but don’t think that’s a hard and fast rule or anything, you can still wear dress shoes with jeans if you don’t have an in between type of shoe. Your dress socks and shoe color should match your belt, but again there are exceptions to any “rule” of fashion, just keeps it easy tho if you’re unsure.
The shirt may be a tad big on you, I’d suggest tucking it in a little tighter unless you have time to get it tailored (just go to a dry cleaner, cheap and usually a few days to turn around, shouldn’t be more than like $15ish depending on your area).
I have no idea of your hygiene but as others have said make sure you aren’t giving off anything off putting. Deodorant, brush teeth obvi, maybe a small spritz of a light cologne (one spray, no more, spray in the air in front of you and walk under it).
I have hired lots of IT staff: Your outfit is fine, but you might want to make sure your shirt is fully tucked in so you look a little more squared away.
Just relax, be yourself, and remember you are interviewing them just as much as they are interviewing you.
Yep, I agree with this. Ask what their training programs are like, do they offer opportunities to learn and grow? Certifications help, but actually being able to do stuff correctly and with understanding is far far more critical.
Pay and benefits are important too.
Yep, no reason to work otherwise. All I’m saying is, see what the company’s managerial philosophy is like by asking gentle but probing questions:
- Do they want to empower their workers to improve, thus improving how the company functions long term?
- Or, are they a churn and burn operation, focused on max output for minimum pay?
Most companies are somewhere in-between, and that’s the thing to figure out. Just my opinion though.
looking sharp; own it
ps - interesting name lol
FreeBSD was a nightmare for me to use. I applaud the people who managed to resolve those driver issues.
Lmao ya I get that
You look perfect. Very professional. Not over suited up for the role. I hire a lot of people and you look exactly how I’d expect an interviewee to show up. You got this, you’re gonna crush it big dog! DM me for cheerleading any time
