Would you mention that you are a skydiver?

[Superman32 0]

If you had a really important interview, for a great new job/parternship, or a postgrad professional school, or whatever, would you mention that you are a skydiver?

I'm debating, because it can be seen as positive or negative thing.

Negative perceptions: You're crazy, have a death wish, immature, may die or become incapacitated and therefore not worth the investiment, etc

Positive perceptions: Meticulous, pays attention to detail, energetic, etc

P.S. What are your hobbies or what you do for fun is a possible question and likely to be asked.

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[javip82 0]

Your hobbies are a personal thing and should not be told if not ask about.

____________________________________
You know what's out there.
Take it, it's your's INMORTALITY!!!

[billvon 2,991]

> If you had a really important interview, for a great new job/parternship. . .

I wouldn't mention it unless it were germane i.e. if the interviewer mentioned he was a skydiver or pilot, or if the job had something to do with aviation. Just like I wouldn't mention patents I've gotten if I was interviewing for a job as an AFF-I at a DZ.

[Superman32 0]

What if they ask about your hobbies or things you do for fun? (Likely question)

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[BillyVance 34]

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What if they ask about your hobbies or things you do for fun? (Likely question)

Sure, why not? Although it depends on the deposition of the interviewer. If he/she looks very serious and straightforward without a hint of a sense of humor, I'd tread carefully.

"Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban

[deltablue 0]

points to taking smart calculated risks and personal responsibly.

It's up to you to articulate it as such.

~He who looks outside his own heart dreams, he who looks inside his own heart awakens - Carl Jung~

My Space

[tdog 0]

I have used it on a bio before for a lighting design contract... Setting up a convention general session and running a show can be more stressful than skydiving. I often have $3000 per hour of labor I am managing and an audience of 10,000 knocking on the door to come in.

For the right customer, I used it to tie it together...

Something like (3rd person, this was a bio), "When not designing events, Travis is passionate about his skydiving hobby, where he has learned many valuable skills he brings to the table as a designer, such as to be detail oriented, work on a team, follow a plan, and keep a level head and clear mind when faced with stress and pressure."

It has worked, because a lot of my competition tend to run around like chickens with their heads cut off when faced with what I have to deal with... Customers remember the last guy who did that, and the skydiving gets them to start reading, the close gets me the job. "If he can think in freefall, he can solve my problems when the band shows up late..."

But, I am not asking to be the bank president either... Being a designer, we are allowed to be a little left field.

[bodypilot1 0]

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Positive perceptions: Meticulous, pays attention to detail, energetic, etc

This is you definition of a skydiver?

Why lie?
You have 85 jumps and you think your Superman.... Your bound to break your silence when they bring out the Kryptonite, so tell them before of your hiring.


Be safe
Ed

www.WestCoastWingsuits.com
www.PrecisionSkydiving.com

[Orange1 0]

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Although it depends on the deposition of the interviewer. If he/she looks very serious and straightforward without a hint of a sense of humor, I'd tread carefully.

You've never found someone like that around a DZ??

If they ask you what you do for fun and (assuming you jump regularly) you don't mention it... isn't that a bit like lying to the interviewer? btw i have been surprised by the number of people i work with who have done a jump... remember that while regular skydivers may be a small part of the population, lots of people have done a tandem or FJC!

Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

[Beverly 1]

Most skydivers I know hate authority and are delinquents.
Not necessarily traits I want in an employee.

My one boss sat down for the interview, said hello and in the same breathe :So I hear you are a skydiver!" We spent the next hour talking about jumping, no talk about my skills. I got the job and took him skydiving.

My main issue is leave. I take leave for camps, nationals and world meets. It is normally more than is allowed. I build this into the negotiation. (National champ and representing country normally gets you an extra 2 weeks leave per year)

Now I work for myself and my new contract has "days off for personal stuff" built in. So sponsor days and skydiving falls into that.

They are pretty cool with that.

Some companies may not want a high risk person. You need to consider if you can still do your job if you get hurt. On crutches, in a wheel chair etc. Can you take long weeks off for recovery and will they support you through this.
What is your disability cover like.

Just cover the bases. I am not trying to be macabre, it has happened to me and friends.

I think true friendship is under-rated

Twitter: @Dreamskygirlsa

[tombuch 0]

Sure. It's a big part of who I am. I'm always ready to talk about skydiving in terms of risk management, goal attainment, customer satisfaction (instructing), or any number of other skills/experiences related to the job I'm interested in.

Many years ago I was working as a newspaper photographer. There were a couple of freefall photos in my portfolio that I used when seeking a job. Those photos always started a short conversation about my life away from the camera, and some tech talk about shooting in freefall.

At one point I was hired by the Gannett Utica Newspapers (New York). One of the managing editors later told me the thing he remembered about my job interview was the freefall photos, and how I shot them by using my tongue. He thought that was enterprising and creative and it sealed the interview.
.

Tom Buchanan
Instructor Emeritus
Comm Pilot MSEL,G
Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

[woodpecker 0]

Hell yes I would, but only if asked about my hobbies. Let them know who you are...

SONIC WOODY #146

There is a fine line between cockiness and confidence -- which side of the line are you on?

[jakee 1,489]

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If you had a really important interview, for a great new job/parternship, or a postgrad professional school, or whatever, would you mention that you are a skydiver?

I would certainly mention it on a CV but mostly in relation to running my Uni skydiving club. Lots of cool stuff in there like representation at national comps, probable turnover of £10/15k a year. I'm hoping that'll go down well.

Do you want to have an ideagasm?

[Andy9o8 2]

Depends. In the right environment, maybe, but only if I was certain it would be perceived as a positive.
Employers, especially in the corporate world, can be ultra conservative, intrusive into their employees personal lives, risk-averse and loathing of "free spirits". This is the same crowd that regularly gives its employees random drug tests, even if their mundane desk jobs have zero to do with safety. Tell them you're a skydiver, and they may fear you're wild & immature, you're prone to recklessness, you won't be able to be "molded in their image", or that you'll injure yourself and cost them lots of money in lost productivity and health care costs. To that kind of potential employer, I might not mention it.
So as I said, it depends.

[FrEaK_aCcIdEnT 0]

i told my team lead and mu bunisness unit manager that i was jumping. My team lead always asks me if i jumped lately and wants to know how it went. So i think its a plus in my situation.

in an interview situation, i wouldnt mention it unless i was asked about my hobbies. then id be like a little school kid talking the interviewer's ear off about the sport. i might loose the chance at the job. But if they aren't going to tolerate my hobbies and what makes me happy then that tells me that they probably dont care to much for thier employees interests. just my .02 but im still very green when it comes to experience. good luck with the interview

ExPeCt ThE uNeXpEcTeD!
DoNt MiNd ThE tYpOs, Im LaZy On CoRrEcTiOnS!

[Andy_Copland 0]

I've got an interview coming up and i just mentioned it in my CV that i enjoy most sports and try to keep physically fit, but my passion is skydiving. Enough said i think, if they ask about it in interview i'll just keep it simple

1338

People aint made of nothin' but water and shit.

Until morale improves, the beatings will continue.

[AggieDave 6]

I really wouldn't if I was you, I had to in my last interview since that what I did as a living for 3 years, but they understood my job as it was explained and throught it was good or atleast not bad, since I did get that job.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[sky-pimp 0]

Yes i would as it would make no differance to my employment even if i had a accident.

BUT last year a i went on a stag do with a close friend , he works for a bit telecomunicastions company ... i came up with the idea of him and the rest of the gang doing tandems , so it would be some thing we could talk about for years.
His company told him that he could not do it as if he had a brake , he would not be payed and if he was of to long he would just have to be replaced . so on that not it was dropped ..

---

YeHaaaaaaaaaaa

[Superman32 0]

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You have 85 jumps and you think your Superman.... Your bound to break your silence when they bring out the Kryptonite, so tell them before of your hiring.

Bwwaaahahahahaha

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[ntrprnr 0]

It's on my bio that gets shown when I speak at events, trade shows, etc. It always gets the most questions. Also, the big yellow "SKYDIVE" sticker on my laptop might have something to do with it, also.

Finally, I work in an industry where the most creative guy wins. Skydivers are quite creative, I've found...

_______________
"Why'd you track away at 7,000 feet?"
"Even in freefall, I have commitment issues."

[riggerrob 643]

It really depends where you are applying to work.
For example, mentioning to an army recruiter that you skydive will earn you points (aggressive, brave, etc.), but saying the same thing to an Air Force recruiter will label you as "weird."

[NWFlyer 2]

It's on my resume under "interests" ... near the bottom, buried below all the "important" stuff (experience, education, etc.). When I'm interviewing people I often look at their interests and if there's something that catches my eye I'll bring it up if there's time. It's something else to talk about to get to know them as a whole person, not just their specific job skills.

I just got through a job search and in all the different interviews I did, it didn't come up at all. Then again, none of my other interests were mentioned either, leading me to believe that the folks who were interviewing me weren't the type to bother with what they consider the "fluff."

I'm pretty sure my new boss knows that I skydive; I know for sure a lot of the folks at my new job know, but then again, I worked with them for several months at my old job and had lots of opportunities to get to know them on a more casual basis where stuff like this comes up.

I don't consider it to be either a pro or a con... it really has very little direct bearing on how well I can do my chosen profession, but I think the intangibles I get from skydiving make me a better employee.

"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

[jas8472 0]

I would put it on my CV but not bring it up unless they did first.

[Raefordite 0]

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because it can be seen as positive or negative thing.

You are absolutely right. Consider what you have accomplished in the sport.

I have a number of jumps and a few skydiving credentials to go behind it. So if I were to add my skydiving experience, licensing and credentials - no matter how unrelated to the position I am seeking, it shows diversification, individualism, goal oriented, the list can go on. Positive attributes.

However, if I just started jumping, limited experience, perhaps that stereo-typing of "immature, death-wish" thing you referred to may pop up. Or the employer may think I will be too preoccupied with my newly found skydiving hobby and simply be too distracting while at work to either myself or my work mates.

Something to consider.

[Canuck 0]

The principal at the the school I got my first teaching job at told me later that he had shortlisted my resume because of the skydiving listed on it.

I showed up for the interview at the second school I taught at limping from a bad landing - which I was very up front about. Apparently it didn't count against me.

I beleive having it on my resume has done me more good than harm.

Canuck