When I was working as an intern the company was into a group called PSI Seminars.
They are also into Tony Robbins.
When I didn’t finish PSI Basic everything changed. I had no future there.
How can I explain to a future potential employer that my last employer was in a cult without looking unprofessional?
I highly think they are going to throw me under the bus if used as a reference.
Did you attend any. meetings? What makes them worse than standard fare?
I’m not negating you, the website just doesn’t shed much light on what makes them different.
I attempted to attend PSI Basic which is on the weekend. Three 10 hour days. On the second day I was feeling really fatigued so I just went home and slept nine hours. Two days later I came down with a cold or flu. I think they wanted me to persevere and will my mind to continue on.
You worked there as an intern? In your field, do people expect to move from intern to full-time employee? If not, “the internship ended.”
I am going to go against the grain of conventional advice and say you should just outline it like you did here. I have been in the position of hiring people before. I much prefer to know the real reason why someone left a company. Granted, if someone says “my boss was an asshole”, I would probably just see that as likely making excuses. But, if someone says “I left because I was subjected to verbal and emotional harassment by my boss, and if you want me to provide specific examples I can do so”, that’s actually information I would prefer to know. I think your situation falls into that later example for sure.
The idea that you should never speak ill of a former employer regardless of the circumstances IMO is bad advice.
In general it really does depend on the interviewer. I was honest and open about how my new manager at my last job fucked over the team and myself, with specific details, and it led to good conversations during the interview process for the place I’m at now.
Yes, I think my advice applies more to an interview than something you would put down on paper on a questionnaire.
Maybe for small time employers, but I feel like big companies don’t care because there’s too many applicants. As in, between two equal candidates, they’ll take the one that sounds “unproblematic.”
That is refreshing to hear. Thanks.
You can just check yourself if they are going to throw you under the bus. Call up and pretend to be some other business doing a reference check on you. If they tell you anything defaming, sue. If you are somewhere with one-party consent, record the call.
Had a similar situation happen at one of my old workplaces. Super culty. You’ll survive.
In addition to what others said (namely, that companies tend not to give “references” anymore, but instead give “verification”, which is where they confirm the dates of employment), if you need references, I recommend getting coworkers who liked you to write a letter of recommendation and send it directly to you for you to include with your job applications.
You can whip up a “letter of recommendation” template to send to your work friends, then just ask them not to include a date on their letter. I’ve been reusing some old letters of recommendation for years and future employers seem to appreciate that I include them in my app.
