We've all heard the sweat-inducing theory that hiring managers make their decision within 15 seconds of someone walking into an interview. Regardless if this is true, it's crucial to make your first impression count if you want to land that dream job.
The former boss of an accounting software firm has revealed that he swore by a vital coffee rule during interviews - and he wouldn't hire anyone who failed his test. He used the simple 'coffee cup test' during every job interview as it shows a lot about a person's 'attitude'.
Trent Innes claims he wouldn't hire anyone who failed his 'coffee cup test' as he believes it's shows more about attitude than any question possibly could.
In fact, he says that anyone who failed under his watch was actually blacklisted from the company.
Trent, who formerly worked Xero Australia but left in September 2021, previously shared his little trick while speaking on the business podcast The Venture with entrepreneur Lambros Photios.
Speaking on the podcast in 2019, he explained: "I will always take you for a walk down to one of our kitchens and somehow you always end up walking away with a drink.
"Then we take that back, have our interview, and one of the things I'm always looking for at the end of the interview is, does the person doing the interview want to take that empty cup back to the kitchen?
"You can develop skills, you can gain knowledge and experience but it really does come down to attitude, and the attitude that we talk a lot about is the concept of 'wash your coffee cup'."
And he claims that this trick works, and the kitchens in their office are always very clean.
He goes on: "If you come into the office one day inside Xero, you'll see the kitchens are almost always clean and sparkling and it's very much off that concept of wash your coffee cup.
"It's really just making sure that they're actually going to fit into the culture inside Xero, and really take on everything that they should be doing."
Attitude seem to be a common factor during job interviews as one man was rejected instantly after he failed a test at reception.
His potential boss shared the mistake he made online, which meant he had no chance of getting the job.
The potential candidate blew the interview in the first five minutes of entering the building after being dismissive to the receptionist and barely making eye contact with her.
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