Should You Accept Social Network Invites From Disastrous People?

We really don’t know the answer to this one but we’re gonna throw it out there.

Let’s say you go on a job interview that ends up being a disaster. The hiring manager’s a jerk or sexist or racist or abusive or desperate or whatever the situation is, you are like “okay, no way do I want this job.”

And in the course of this job interview let’s say you met another candidate in the lobby and that person ended up taking the job. They friend you on Facebook or Linkedin and say “Hey, the job didn’t work out but I want to keep in touch anyway.”

Or, situation two: let’s say the small media company where you worked goes belly-up due to managerial incompetence/fraud/or some other horrible thing and everyone loses their jobs. Months later, another laid-off employee says “hey, a couple of the old gang is starting this thing and you should be part of it, and things are a little crazy right now but I SWEAR we’re not as crazy as things used to be, heh-heh. so let’s be linkedin friends and stay in touch.”

Do you accept these requests?

We wonder because SIMILAR things have happened to us. When we think of these people, all we can associate with them is the disastrous company they worked for—whether or not it was their fault, you have to sort of think “well if they TOOK the job at the crazy place, maybe they’re a little crazy too.” Maybe “disastrous people” is the wrong word; maybe they’re “people always sort of hovering around the edges of disastrous situations.” But that’s way too long to fit in the title bar.

On the one hand, you never know who this person might know that could help you; on the other hand, you have to feel like you dodged a bullet once, and getting back in touch would be like another round of Russian roulette.

Does this only happen to us or is this a common situation?

If this hasn’t happened to you, answer the alternate question: is there any person/group of people you wouldn’t let on to your social networks?

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