Hey, Who Drives That Subaru?

I had been offered an interview at a car maintenance business. Although it was my first interview, I actually wasn't very nervous. I wanted a job, but I wasn't desperate to get one. I knew that I had enough knowledge about cars that I could do the job well.

When I got there my interviewer, Mike, was a young guy around 25. Mike revealed to me that this was his first time he ever interviewed someone. Ironically, he said, he was a little nervous. I shrugged it off because I didn't know what to expect from an interview anyway.

Mike ended up asking me some questions he had jotted down on a post-it note. He didn't bother to take notes based on my answers, which I found a bit odd at the time. In total, he probably asked me five questions.

The funniest part came when he asked if I had any questions for him. A car parked outside had been on my mind since I had noticed it before entering the store. I thought that it probably belonged to one of the employees, so I asked him, "Who drives the Subaru WRX? That's a sweet car."

He laughed, and I immediately thought I asked the wrong question and had consequently screwed up the interview.

Lucky for me, I hadn't.

Mike said the car was his. He immediately told me I was hired just because I liked his car. I didn't know whether to take him seriously or not, but his offer was genuine.

In reality, I later found out, he knew that I would mesh well with the current employees based on my taste in (and appreciation of) that particular car. It also showed him that I actually knew some things about cars, unlike some of the other interview candidates.

Now I don't think this is a common approach – to inadvertently compliment your interviewer – but in my case it worked!