Destination: Hired. Your Flight Attendant Blueprint

Have you ever looked at the crew walking through the terminal and thought, "That’s going to be me one day"? Well, it’s time to stop dreaming and start packing. In this episode of Jumpseat Chronicles, Joshua, Michelle, and Darion are handing you the ultimate "boarding pass" to your new career. We’re pulling back the curtain on the high-stakes world of airline recruiting—from crafting a resume that screams "Safety Professional" to mastering the STAR method like a seasoned pro. Whether you’re nervous about the group interview or wondering if "I love to travel" is still a valid answer (spoiler: it’s not!), we’ve got the insider tips to help you land the job. Your journey to 35,000 feet starts right here. Clear for takeoff? Let's get you hired.

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:00

The views and opinions expressed on this podcast are entirely our own. We're speaking as private individuals and free thinkers, and nothing we say reflects the views, policies, or positions of our employer or any organization we're affiliated with. Nothing discussed on this podcast should be interpreted as professional, operational, or safety guidance, or as an official statement from any airline. This podcast is for informational and entertainment purposes only.

SPEAKER_04 0:35

And with that being said, welcome back, y'all. Jump C Chronicles. We are back. I'm Josh, JJ, Darien.

SPEAKER_02 0:47

Michelle.

SPEAKER_04 0:48

What's up, y'all? Well, um, we do want to address, yes, we were off and we missed our last episode. We do apologize. Life has been life and scheduling has been scheduling. Busy, busy, busy. Busy. Um, and as you all know, this is a flight attendant podcast. So all flight attendants know reroutes, reschedules happen just with our lives. And um, we're thankful to be back. I'm thankful to be back with you too. It's good to see y'all again. Yeah, yes.

SPEAKER_02 1:18

Always good to see my friends. Always.

SPEAKER_04 1:21

Definitely, definitely. And um, with that being said, two things, two housekeeping things that we want to do as far as our Brotherhood of Aviation. Um a few days ago before the recording of this podcast, we um lost some members of our aviation family. We want to take the time to honor those lost during the incident at LaGuardia's Airport, there in New York City, on March 23rd, Air Canada Express flight number 8656. Um, both the captain and the first officer um lost their lives because I am not going to butcher anyone's name. I am going to just leave it there and want uh the family, if anybody ever watches this, to know that here at Jumpsea Chronicles, we are mourning with you and our prayers go out to you during that incident. And uh on lighter notes, what's been going on? What's new? Give us an update. A lot has happened during the month of March. Yes.

SPEAKER_02 2:35

Well, what's new in my world is just work. I've been busy. Trips have been tripping. Mother Nature has been mother naturing. I have been rerouted. I've been stuck. Stuck is not bad. Stuck is actually good. Money bad because it means more money. Yes.

SPEAKER_03 2:56

That's stranded pay.

SPEAKER_02 2:57

Shout out to the stranded pay. Stranded pay.

SPEAKER_04 3:00

Stranded pay is so much good, so much great there within that avenue. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_02 3:08

But overall, life has been good. Um, pollen has been pollinating.

SPEAKER_03 3:14

Yeah, baby, this is in Atlanta. All the cars green.

SPEAKER_04 3:18

It's funny on social media I saw this meme of somebody with a picture of Atlanta, but they had a lemon uh pepper seasoning bottle hanging over it, and it was like, this is what's going on.

SPEAKER_02 3:29

Absolutely. But outside of that, um, I'm just happy for spring to finally be here. Hopefully, Mother Nature doesn't switch it on us again and give us some winter. Hello. Because we wake up to 30 and we about noon, we 80, and then about six o'clock, we back at 30. So you start with a sweater, you know, you end up in a sundress and you're back at a sweater. So, but life has been good. I'm happy for spring, I'm happy for you know, some changes, and hopefully, aviation is uh calming down. I know we're gonna talk a bit about what's going on with uh our brothers and sisters in TSA in just a moment, so I won't um touch on that because I know we will in just a moment.

SPEAKER_03 4:14

Yes, definitely.

SPEAKER_02 4:15

Darien, what you got, baby?

SPEAKER_03 4:16

Uh I started working at a funeral home. Yes, yes, so I am in the leadership of one of the best funeral homes, Mobile Bill Alabama. Shout out to CJ. And I'm excited, I'll be going there tomorrow to uh work a really big funeral, and I'm excited just getting back into the field of things and getting a hands-on experience, being able to help the community and serve the families and things like that. So I'm really excited about that. That's me keeping the music on the weekends, of course, all the other things I've been doing, but that to me I'm most excited about. Darion is the reason.

SPEAKER_04 4:48

No, I'm just playing he's the reason why we went. No, because this man is money magnet, but busy, busy, busy. Definitely enjoys traveling and getting his money's worth. But on top of that, like you got so many businesses in your hand in so many businesses. I applaud you, sir.

SPEAKER_03 5:08

Most strings and gone trying.

SPEAKER_04 5:10

Try to retire my mama. I'm ready to pull the hair that I have out. Listen, I feel you. You do it. You do it. So thank you.

SPEAKER_02 5:17

All right, Josh, what you been doing? What's been going?

SPEAKER_04 5:19

Well, uh, a lot has happened in the month of March. Month of March, I do get to celebrate my birthday. Yes. The international holiday, uh, March 10th. I got to celebrate that. Um, and March has brought transition in my life, uh, great transition. I am moving from here in Atlanta to Chicago. I'm originally from the Midwest, up near Chicago. Yeah. So I am going back home because I'm tired of commuting. That is something we deal with in this aviation industry. I have been doing it for the life of my career, and I am tired, uh, not to give away too much when it comes to airline um stuff, but it's not gonna work here for me in Atlanta uh when it comes to work and my age and me going to work. So I'd rather be closer to my base. And um Chicago is just gonna be it for me. And the good thing about it, I get to be closer to both my dad, mom. They're still up that way in um northwest Indiana, uh, that area where I'm originally from. So I'll be able to see them and some good eating too.

SPEAKER_03 6:35

Chicago got the best food, but the best food.

SPEAKER_04 6:38

Comfort food. Yes, but thank God for GLP one because that's regularly, regularly, because the way, baby. Chicago the way I have been eating and drinking, like I celebrated uh because of when my birthday failed, I've celebrated the following weekend and St. Patty's Day was everything in Chicago. And I loved every bit of it. Um, so yeah, that's what's going on in my world. And plus, I was thankfully, yesterday I went through recurrent. So I am recertified for another year flying, praise the Lord. Uh and yeah, that's it. That's all. That's all. Right. So I'm grateful. But as Michelle was pointing out, um, something that we have been dealing with for what now 60 days, maybe even longer. TSA um has been going through uh going through it. I can't even say going through something, but they've been going through it for sure. Um and dealing with the topic we're gonna get into today about um being a flight attendant or becoming a flight attendant, one thing you're gonna have to be aware of of what the government does because it will affect us. And our hearts go out to TSA specifically. Um and just last year we dealt with the um air traffic controllers along with TSA not getting paid. Thankfully, this time around, it was a partial government shutdown. Um but to go have to go to work, have to put on a smile. And not getting paid. And not getting paid.

SPEAKER_03 8:20

Couldn't do it. Because you imagine what we gotta do and we won't get paid, crashing out. No, not in the word crash, I'm sorry. But yeah, I that's no way. And have to deal with the crazy that they deal with people, it's just dealing with people.

SPEAKER_04 8:34

The general public and it works that don't listen, and you gotta tell the redundancy of telling them the same thing over and over again, and people and one of the crazy things that I saw, which and the reason why we also mentioned this because um, as of last night, we saw where the Senate passed a budget uh or funding budget for uh homeland security, excluding um ICE and um border patrol, but TSA would get funded. Um it still has to go to the House of Representatives, still has to go to the president to be signed. However, it's one step closer. One step in the right direction. One step in the right direction. However, one of the things I saw, which I don't even think um it ever dawned on me, but they were talking about if this doesn't get rectified and more people resign, airports will shut down. And it's not as easy where they think or it was thought that we could send another work group into help because they don't know what they do facility. Exactly, they're not qualified. That's again, like I am not a pilot, I cannot be a pilot. A pilot's not a flight attendant, they cannot come do our job. Right. Like we're trained and to do two different things.

SPEAKER_02 9:52

Yes. Um, so and think about the training they go through. They go through six months of training versus six weeks of training. Yeah. And what they're supposed to be looking for in terms of not just checking IDs to ensure you're going to the right place or you're supposed to be there. Yeah. You know, they have a lot of a myriad of things that they're checking for, not just IDs to make sure, oh, yeah, you're here on the right day. You're going, you know, your ID matches your face. There's a lot that goes into that. So our definitely go out to them, you know, in dealing with everything because as we all know, um, as adults, the bills don't stop.

SPEAKER_03 10:32

They don't they don't care what's going on, they don't care what j shut down happening.

SPEAKER_04 10:35

Yeah, so you know luckily you are in a situation where maybe your landown uh landlord, if you have a landlord, will be understanding. That's right. Or something like Aurora, or your car insurance company will be understanding, or your mortgage company may be understanding.

SPEAKER_02 10:54

So but that's not always the case. Absolutely. And depending on where you're at, you know, in the country, they may not be, you know, as understanding. So we're hoping that, you know, for any TSA, you know, workers or any family members for those CSA workers that are listening, please know us here at Gem C Chronicles, our hearts and our prayers are with you during this difficult time.

SPEAKER_03 11:18

And we appreciate y'all showing up. Yes, we do. That's why when I go through, I I let them know, hey, I appreciate you being here. Yeah, it's the small of the small things that matter, and people they appreciate that because they don't hear it enough.

SPEAKER_04 11:29

And the part that bothers me, they're some of the most overlooked employees. Yeah, definitely. And that the the to your point, the part that bothers me the most is that I can't do anything.

SPEAKER_02 11:38

Yes, I I would I would love to. I would love to. I would love to.

SPEAKER_04 11:41

Granted, my pocket can't cover everybody. 1,500 of y'all that might be working, but because I am having an interaction with you, I'd just be like, look, take this $20 out of my pocket, go get you something to eat. But we can't do that. And I don't think the broader public understands that too. Um, so yeah, that's that's our hearts definitely go out. Shout out to TSA. Yes, definitely. So, our topic of today, and this episode will be titled Destination Hired. Your flight attendant blueprint to becoming a flight attendant. Like, so many people ask, so many people hit our DMs when it comes to the interview, where to apply, all of those intricacies when it comes to becoming a flight attendant, and we're gonna step into it, we're gonna talk about it, we're gonna have our way, um and put it all on the table for I mean to a certain degree, granted, um this is not a end all be all. This is not um hiring tutorial. Yes, yeah, this is not all of that.

SPEAKER_02 13:00

Absolutely, and it's not a guarantee that you are going to get a job, yes, you know, with the company, but this is sort of a so you want to be a flight attendant, here are some steps that could lead you to the potential to become one of us.

SPEAKER_04 13:15

One of us, yes, definitely. So uh who wanna take it?

SPEAKER_02 13:19

I'll take it. So you want to become a flight attendant? Here's some things you need to know. You must be at least 21 years or older. We get this question a lot. I feel like I'm too old. There is no too old to become a flight attendant. If you are that mom who's put your kids all through school, they're now grown, you had that first career, that second career, you want to come. Come on. There's no max age for becoming a flight attendant. You must have a valid, unexpired passport. Yes, you need to have a clean criminal background uh check because that's gonna happen. You must be able to pass a drug screen. You need to have the physical ability to lift up to a certain amount. For most um carriers in the U.S., it is um at least 50 pounds. Now, the standards I have just mentioned, this applies for most US carriers, um, European carriers, and other carriers around the world. The standards may flex a bit depending on who you're applying to. So do make sure that you're checking the standards for your particular carrier, because again, these standards may flex. So, on to the resume. I know you want to talk about it.

SPEAKER_04 14:35

And before you go to the resume part, um also, yes, we just gave you some basic um requirements. Research. Do your research, especially if there's a company that you want to uh apply to, knowing that information, but also knowing the company will help you big time. So research, research, research.

SPEAKER_03 14:59

Yeah, and that's very I'm glad you mentioned that because so many people don't realize you gotta know where you're going. Yes. And interviewing for Spirit Airlines and interviewing for United is gonna be two different experiences. Correct. And they're looking for two different things. So make sure when you are choosing an airline, you're not just going and applying. Go look up the history of the airline, where they started, their mission statement, their morals and values, and what they are built upon. And that's gonna help you tailor your interview and your responses based upon that. Yes. But make sure you know where you're going and you're not just applying and going in there and blindsided, because then you're gonna gag.

SPEAKER_04 15:29

I'm telling you. Pretty much. I'm telling you. You gag. And then the reason why I was pointing that out and doing your research, because if you don't do your research, you are one limiting yourself from getting the job. And then on top of that, there are tens of thousands of people that apply to not just one company, all companies when it comes to aviation, because everybody says this is a dream job. I actually just found out the other day um while sitting with my mother, first time ever, I recommend doing this. Um, I was talking, I was like, mom, when you were in school or coming out of school, what did you desire to do? Never talked to my mother about this ever. She was like, I actually wanted to be a flight attendant. I was like, what? You never knew that. Ever knew that. Never knew. She was like, Yeah, but you know, because again, we didn't know anybody from that. And she was like, you know, my life didn't go that way. And she was like, when you became one, I I thought it was amazing. And I've suggested and tried to get my mother on um at my airline, giving her tips and trying to push her. Um, but again, life, she's older now, so perspectives are different. Um, but that blew my mind just sitting with my mom and her mention that because again, never, even when I became a flight attendant, it wasn't like she was oh, I wanted to be that, and I'm glad you are never. So I literally just found that out a few weeks ago. So that's awesome.

SPEAKER_02 17:05

That's awesome. Yeah. The things we learn about our parents, right?

SPEAKER_03 17:09

Hello? Always learning something new. Always.

SPEAKER_02 17:11

I love that. So now we're going to discuss the resume. Resume do's and don'ts. You should highlight the things that you are skilled in in life. CPR, first aid, lifeguard, and the big one, customer service.

SPEAKER_04 17:34

Customer service.

SPEAKER_02 17:35

We love customer service in aviation because it's what we are proficient in. Not to say if you're not proficient in these things, that you should run out and say, I have to get proficient in these things. You don't realize how much customer service that you have in your particular jobs. If you're a teacher, that's customer service. If you are working in a daycare, that's customer service. If you're a stay-at-home mom, that's still customer service, that's conflict resolution. If you are negotiating between your two toddlers, that is still conflict resolution. It's how you highlight it on your resume that's important. All right. So using those action verbs when you're writing your resume, you need to learn how to tailor your resume for the job that you're applying for. Don't just use regular vernacular when you're writing your resume. If it takes for you to sit down with someone that is proficient in skill writing or a skill set, Google's your friend.

SPEAKER_04 18:44

And I would even to that point, because we have advanced in technology because there were days when we wanted to find somebody that could write a good resume. Like, look, I'll throw you some money, just write this or look it over, rewrite it, or whatever. But thank God we have AI. AI. I don't want to shout out one of them, but you know, I'm just gonna put the AI chatbots out there are great at you can just maybe not even know what you want to say, but just put the few words in it that points it in the right direction and will lay out some great things. So again, research, research, do your research.

SPEAKER_03 19:24

I also tell people you have to be very careful with the words you use because what people don't realize is these companies use this technology to where when your resume comes in through their system, they're they're looking it over for key words. And if they're not in there, they shoot it out, and that's why you get a thanks but no thanks email so quickly because they're looking for certain words on that resume that will bring attention to the fact that you may be more qualified than others because we're getting so many resumes in, so they have to find a way to filter out and find the ones that they want to reach out to. Yes. So make sure that you're using the right keywords, and like you said, AI will help you do that. Safety, customer service, hospitality, those are the kind of words you should have in your resume because it's it's about the main things that we do within this job at any airline.

SPEAKER_02 20:10

Absolutely, and I'm so glad that you touched on keywords. What do we do at work? We de-escalate, we facilitate, we serve, absolutely, we uh are checking for compliance, compliance, yep, absolutely.

SPEAKER_04 20:27

Yep, hope y'all writing these down. Facilitate, absolutely, yeah, ensure compliance, like you just said, like there's so many other words that are out there. Um, and even we're talking about the resume, let's not forget the cover letter. Yes, let's not forget the cover letter, which is so important. And please, I love you all. And we know everyone loves to travel. But I'm telling you, United, the Southwest, Delta American does not care that you love to travel. Please, for your success in this, do not write that on a cover letter. Do not state that in an interview. I'm just saying. The quickest way to be like, no, we're the quickest way to be especially in the interview, because when they put that shit in the show. Just shown the door. That's pretty obvious. And we know you like to travel. It's very obvious, but it also, again, in this industry, just as much as we have um high um seekers of employment, the people that apply, there's also a high turnover rate because people come in with the wrong intent. They come in for the benefits, they want the pen of the flying benefits. I'm just telling you, not realizing even which one thing I also Found out. Um, with our job, we can have flexibility trying to go apply for like a hotel job as a part-time thing. They will majority of the time be turning us away because they look at us just wanting to come for the benefits of having a hotel. Right. And so they're like, oh, they won't be here long.

SPEAKER_03 22:20

Let's absolutely too crazy. Right. Um that's so true.

SPEAKER_04 22:25

Right. So, no, but in that industry, that's what they look for. In our industry, we I'm telling you, those recruiters, the first sign of hearing, I love to travel, they're just thinking like they're coming with the wrong intent. They're really not trying to come and make this a lifelong career. We probably gonna see them leave in less than a year. Absolutely. Put them either at the bottom of the pile or like you said, thank you. But no, thank you. But no, thank you.

SPEAKER_03 22:54

And it's so cliche they like be original. Yes. Be original. Absolutely. Come in and come in a room and give them a response they've never heard before. They're like, oh wow, he's really in, he's really wanting. You know, that's what they're looking for. Because if imagine being a recruiter, you know, and you are interviewing four, three, four hundred, five hundred people in a week, and you hear the I want to I love to travel. It's my dream job because I love to travel. You every time you hear that you can be like, Oh, here we go, and got another one. Here we go. No originality, no uniqueness. That's gonna get old real quick. Absolutely, you know what I mean?

SPEAKER_02 23:26

So absolutely it does. So the one thing that definitely does not belong on your flight attendant resume is colored paper. Leave that for the art projects for the children. It should be on white paper. White paper is still the standard or lighter colored paper.

SPEAKER_04 23:49

Times new Roman.

SPEAKER_02 23:51

Uh absolutely. Double space, the same plain resume. Just keep it plain. There's no need to feel like I have to stand out, so I'm gonna come in with this magenta-colored paper because I want them to remember. They will remember you by what you say, by what you said, or what you stated on your resume. You don't need to put any photos unless it's requested by that particular airline. Keep it simple.

SPEAKER_03 24:20

These four pages, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 24:24

Four page. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_03 24:30

Like they're reading a book.

SPEAKER_02 24:31

On your resume. There's no need to do that. You need to keep it, you know, as concise and job specific for your particular career. You're trying to get a job, you're not trying to write a novel.

SPEAKER_04 24:43

Correct.

SPEAKER_02 24:44

And keep it relevant.

SPEAKER_00 24:45

Tenure is what they need.

SPEAKER_02 24:47

And if you're not, you're 21, you might not have 10 years of job history. Now, if you do, that might be another conversation. You may need to get to those that are specific to the aviation career that you're applying to. Now, if you're 40 or 50, you may have had quite a few jobs. Keep it to 10 years because that's most companies are going only back 10 years to look at your job history. So you want to keep it concise to what you're applying to.

SPEAKER_03 25:15

And to piggyback off that, what's very important because it actually helps one of my friends, make sure that your timelines on your resume with the start date and end date of your different jobs lines up correctly. Because if you place on there that I worked at Best Buy from July 5th to December 20th, but then they go do your background check and they realize that those dates were not correct. Guess what happens? Your file goes in the trash because they're looking for accuracy. And it happened to my friend, and he didn't even realize that oh, the dates didn't, and he ended up losing the position. Oh wow. So be very careful with call your jobs, call those past jobs, they'll have it on file so you can get those exact dates because the accuracy is extremely important.

SPEAKER_02 25:57

I'm so glad that you mentioned that. And for those who don't know how to do that, Social Security office has all of your job history. Yes. Because we think about it when you are applied, you also have to do you have to put your social in. So if you don't know, here is a fight attendant tip of the day.

SPEAKER_03 26:14

Even Uber, even if you're doing Uber, that has to be the background. Everything, yes, everything needs to match.

SPEAKER_02 26:21

So fight attendant tip of the day. If y'all don't know, if you have never checked, go to the Social Security or you can check it online. Yes. Every single job you've had since you were 18. You just dropped a gym.

SPEAKER_03 26:35

You just dropped a gym. Because a lot of people don't know that.

SPEAKER_02 26:37

So a lot of people don't know. You need to check and make sure that everything is accurate because you never know when you may need to apply for a job. And the last thing you want to find out is that what's there is not matching here.

SPEAKER_03 26:50

And they're not gonna call you like, oh, okay, you can't do it.

SPEAKER_02 26:54

Do it now before you have to do it later.

SPEAKER_04 26:57

Especially with everything that's going on in the country right now. You do want to make sure your eyes are dotted and your T's are crossed. Yes. Even if you're not gonna be a flight attendant. Absolutely. I didn't know that uh that tip. So, yeah, that's really, really good. Thank you, Michelle.

SPEAKER_02 27:12

No problem. So now we're gonna go on to now you got the resume. Now you know what you need to know. How do we interview? So, what are we looking for in that interview? We've got two types of interviews. One that is relatively new to aviation, video interviews. How do we show up in a video interview? What should we look like? Should we have on t-shirt and jeans or or or have be half dressed? No, you want to make sure that you are fully dressed, professional, and have on full clothes.

SPEAKER_04 27:46

Please don't come up. And go ahead, go ahead, go ahead.

SPEAKER_02 27:49

Say it just.

SPEAKER_04 27:54

Yeah, yeah, the same. Look, stuff happens, and you would not want to be the one that, you know, the fighter broke out and you jump up and all your business out on the street because one majority of those interviews are recorded. Yes. And like, yes, the camera fall on and jumping up. You can jump up and knock the camera down. Like, literally, you want to be fully dressed for these interviews. Um make sure your your teeth are brushed. Like, because you're smiling and it's a close-up. Like this camera is gets close up on us and stuff like that. Like, certain things you kind of want to check out before going on camera, just because that person is not like literally sitting in the room with you, you are still being sized up and down because majority of the time they're recorded, so not only that per person you're speaking to uh can go back and reference, but other people will be going to look at that later, be seeing it and and looking at you up and down and picking out things that you might not saw. So it's always great to yes, you're going to interview instead of getting your car going to a place you're still at home, do it. And make sure look yourself over.

SPEAKER_03 29:18

Another big thing that I noticed I have that tell some of my friends, make sure your background is clear. Please make sure also that you try to be at home alone because if your kids running around in the background or you got a TV on in the other room or something going on, you got chicken frying on the on the stove. Please, if you can, make sure you have a clear background. You're someone with great lighting and there's no distractions because they will pick up on everything.

SPEAKER_04 29:46

Absolutely. And even from that standpoint, they're also looking at if you have a distracting background going on, you won't be able to fully give to the job. You will have so much distracting that you can't even narrow in on what you're applying for. So yeah.

SPEAKER_03 30:09

And smile away. Smile until your cheeks hurt. Yes, smile, smile, oh, smile. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_02 30:16

So now that we've done the video, how do we show up for a face-to-face? At a face-to-face, smiling, be engaging, and show up your absolute best self, and then add even more on top of that. They're interviewing you from the moment you leave your car.

SPEAKER_04 30:39

And a lot of a lot of airlines, um, they do like these, as I call it, cattle calls.

SPEAKER_05 30:47

Yes.

SPEAKER_04 30:48

Because you will go into a room of 200 people from around the world, and you might sometimes you think you're talking to somebody that is just a random somebody, but no. It's a recruiter, it's a recruiter or somebody out there mixing and mingling and seeing if you're going to shine, seeing if you're going to be a social butterfly and you can turn on. Because I will give you hands-on tip about Joshua. I am actually an introvert. I keep to myself, but when it comes to work, I know how to turn on, baby. Because you have to. This, this, this is my bread and butter. So I know when to turn on, turn on, but I know when to turn off. Because one one day we'll maybe talk about cold switching, but that's for another topic, another topic. But go ahead.

SPEAKER_03 31:34

And I also I noticed one thing, I know I interviewed years ago, but it still remains true. There's times where you're gonna be, like you said, in a group. Find ways to stand out, but stand out in the right way.

SPEAKER_05 31:46

Correct.

SPEAKER_03 31:46

Um, for me, when I was interviewing, it was like 14 of us in this room along this big old round table, and they were talking to us about what to expect for the day, and then they asked, said, Does anyone have any questions? Everybody walking around like, no. I was like, I asked the question because I want you to know that I am serious about this and I'm interested, and I I want to make sure that I find out everything I need to know about the job that I'm applying for. Yes. So that I'm well informed. And I was one of the only ones that asked a question. Do not be afraid to be the one to raise your hand and ask a question in the group because it shows that you are truly invested in what you are going for. Um, also, you don't have to be the loudest one, you know. Going around to be a social butterfly is fine, but you don't have to be loud and and you know, doing too much because they're paying attention to that. Because at the end of the day, these people are there to see would I want to work beside them on a plane for three or four days?

SPEAKER_05 32:33

Correct.

SPEAKER_03 32:34

Is this someone one I want to sit on the jump seat with?

SPEAKER_05 32:36

Correct.

SPEAKER_03 32:37

Will they get along with other flight attendants and captains and and other um co-workers within the company? So make sure that you're standing out in the right ways. Yeah. Because just I I think you can speak to this, Michelle.

SPEAKER_04 32:48

Um, not only recruiters, but flight attendants are a lot of times in the interview process. So yeah.

SPEAKER_02 32:58

And not only that, how are you presenting yourself with smiles, asking questions, and eye contact? Eye contact is so important. Are you the one that's shying away? Or are you the one giving eye contact and engaging in people? Because unfortunately, we have to be the ones that give that confidence in eye contact with the passengers. Can they instill that confidence in you that if a situation happens on board, are you the one that's gonna run to the fire or run away from the fire? Are you running to the emergency or running away from the emergency? We have to have confidence so that the recruiters know that this is the one that I can depend on. Or are you gonna be the one that's gonna be in the background that's not going to be able to assist? So we have to know that I can trust on that one to be the leader in the room. Because when the recruiters are away, who is who is gonna be the one that's going to be able to take charge of that? Sometimes over 200 people. Can you be the one that can potentially save everyone? It may, you know, come to the point when you are it, everyone else is, you know, hurt or injured. Can I depend on you?

SPEAKER_01 34:19

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 34:20

So your presence in that room, what what kind of energy do you give off? What kind of vibe do you give off? You don't need to be the loud loudest, like Darien said, but you have to be the one that I can go, there's something about this one that I want to speak to, that I want to have a conversation with.

SPEAKER_04 34:37

Yes. And one thing I will say whether you're male, female, gay, straight, be sweet.

SPEAKER_02 34:47

Absolutely. Be kind.

SPEAKER_04 34:49

Be kind. Yes. That will go so much further than you think. And it's it's noticeable. If you're not a a kind person, if something and to your point about the eye contact thing, there are a lot of times where we have passengers sitting on the plane and they are staring us down. But what we don't know sometimes, and we'll find out later via customers writing in. Um I was a nervous flyer, but I was looking to the flight attendant for that reassurance. That reassurance or making sure if they look cool, everything is if everything is fine. Yes. They're not looking at me nervous and stuff. Don't get me wrong. Because it's times. Getting getting stared down while you're sitting on a jump seat can't be annoying. But on the flip side, knowing that we are calming somebody and we ain't even saying a word. That, to your point, your vibe, what you exude, is important. That's why a lot of times the companies do set up where you're in a room with 200 people to see how you come off your flow, your movement in a room being around other people. Because our job is being around other people. Hundreds of people. This is not where oh, I'm about to be a flight attendant and go sit in the back. No. 99% of the time we are customer facing.

SPEAKER_02 36:27

Yes.

SPEAKER_04 36:28

Passenger facing. And and our customers are a lot of times, well, not a lot of times, majority are passengers, but we're also customer facing with each other, customer facing with our supervisors, uh operations, TSA, like we're customer-facing in all of those avenues, not just on the plane. So again, be sweet, be kind, because it goes a long way. Because when you put them wings on and you in that uniform, whether you know anything about bags, where gait is, where Uber picks up. They're gonna ask you. They're going to ask you. We're like walking information desks. And you can't just come off like facial expressions. Can't like you, you can't do that. You have to. I'm sorry. I first time at this airport, I I do apologize, but let me see if I can absolutely help you. Or bottle signs, like, yes.

SPEAKER_01 37:31

There are days where I just be like, no, I don't know.

SPEAKER_04 37:36

I'm not saying, but you know, there we have to still be kind. And in the interview process is where you have to shine in that. You have to get the job. So you have to, like you say it, do it, and then some. So yeah.

SPEAKER_02 37:55

Yeah. So so now we've gotten to, you know, we're in the interview, you've made it past the video interview, you've made it past the group interviews. So now you're in front of that recruiter. What questions are you expecting? Most of the time, they want to know about how you can handle certain situations. Yes, scenarios. And, you know, a lot of them are scenario-based questions, but then we get to the tell me about a time when questions. Those are the questions where you have to dig into yourself. Those are not answers that you're gonna find on Google, they're not answers that you know, AI is gonna give you because they're all canned answers. That's where you dig into yourself, and you have to be able to answer that question on the fly. Yes, so to speak. You know, and I love this question because it's going to be, you know, different for every single person. Tell me about a time where you went above and beyond for a customer. And I love that because everyone's answer is gonna be different. Whether you were with a customer at your job, whether, like I said, if you're stay-at-home mom, your customer is your child. So, what did you do to stop that toddler from screaming, having a meltdown in the store? That is still your customer, so to speak. What did you do, mom, to stop that? I mean, I know you hopefully didn't beat the child in the store, but what did you do to stop that screaming toddler? Yeah, you know, yeah, that is specific to your situation. Or if you were met with an angry customer at the restaurant, what did you do? How did you resolve that? So everyone's answer for that is different because every single person is different. Correct. So, how can you answer that question? And we're not gonna answer that question for now.

SPEAKER_03 39:48

It's gonna be a lot a lot of that because at the end of the day, most of your experiences in this field are gonna be with customers then de-escalating or figuring out and problem solving. Yeah, oh my god, my flight, I'm gonna miss my connection. Can you help me find it? And they're, you know, panicking. It's your job to let me calm you, everything's gonna be okay. We're gonna figure out we're gonna I can look in this device and see what time you have, how much time you have. And if not, the companies can reroute. But our job is handling different situations, people in different moods and different attitudes and different things. And so you're gonna have a lot of scenario-based questions because they need to know when we're in the thick of things and we're delayed or there's an issue, yeah, how are you gonna handle it based upon your experience in your other positions? And if even if you can't think of a time because you're nervous, think off the dome, make something up, make it sound good. Because sometimes you just you freeze up. But freestyle. But make sure it sounds good. And I tell people all the time when you're dealing with scenario-based questions, make sure that the very end of your um question or your answer, there's a resolve.

SPEAKER_04 40:50

Yes, that you don't leave them hanging.

SPEAKER_03 40:53

Yes, that you made the situation better, and the situation was resolved. Yeah, that's gonna help them know you know how to problem solve, which is the main thing that we do in this industry.

SPEAKER_02 41:02

And always before you answer, don't just start speaking. You take a moment, breathe, take a moment.

SPEAKER_04 41:08

Thank you.

SPEAKER_02 41:09

Think about what you're saying before you start talking, breathe, take a moment because it lets your recruiter know that you are actually thinking about an answer that you're not ready right there. Or rehearsed. Okay, and think about your answer and then answer it. Because there's no rush, they don't put you on the time and say, okay, go answer.

SPEAKER_04 41:33

Because even with the word I heard you uh you say about it's not rehearsed, because at the end of the day, they're also looking to know that you can in a moment's notice, you can be calm, cool, and collected in stressful situations. Absolutely. Interviews are stressful situations, period. But that you are able to because we deal with emergency situations, and you have to one think on the fly, but also be able to be calm enough. I just went through this, like I said, with recurrent yesterday, stressful situations, but you still have to be able to recall. And one thing I did continue to hear even in recurrent was slow down because a lot of times we be ready to rush and get our commands correct and everything and think about everything. But I kept hearing slow down, think about it. So you have to do that, especially in the interview process. Another question they ask you when it comes to problem solving is how to handle conflict with a co-worker.

SPEAKER_00 42:48

Yes.

SPEAKER_03 42:49

Because at the end of the day, you are on this plane and traveling around for three, four days with the same three, four, five global nine, twelve flight attendants. And there's a lot of different personalities, a lot of different attitudes, a lot of different work ethics, some lazy, some not. There's a lot of things, some bossy ones. You can have the ones who think they're the lead and they're really not. So you have to know how to deal with so many different personality traits and things like that, and know how to handle people professionally. And if there is an issue between coworkers, how to resolve it in the most professional way.

SPEAKER_04 43:22

Yes. And when those things happen in your current career, write them down. Because sometimes sitting and trying to remember what did I do at this job? What happened? It's hard to do. And then you are stuck in a situation where you're making something up on the fly. If you dealt with a difficult situation, write it down unless you know for a fact you're going to remember that. Right. We've all dealt with some type of difficult situation or something like that.

SPEAKER_02 43:52

And I love the word that I I don't think we've used this yet is the word diffuse. Yes. How can you diffuse the This situation, whether it's you know, diffusing it with a coworker, diffusing it on the plane, passenger situations happen all the time. Well, they're in my seat, they took my bag space, their arm is touching my arm for the middle arm rest. You know, the most trivial things that you think that you know is not a potential conflict. How can I diffuse this situation so that it doesn't escalate? We deal in that. That is almost 50 to 60 percent of our job is diffusing situations before they escalate into something bigger. Correct. Can you diffuse this situation? That is almost always what we're doing. Yes, most of the time. If we're not serving, we're diffusing.

SPEAKER_03 44:41

Yes, problem solving, and then you it takes a certain level of patience, absolutely. And I'm still working on that, but in and I'm yeah, it takes a certain level of patience, and you gotta know, which is important to show an interview, how to communicate the proper communication styles, it's all about the delivery. And I've I've experienced a flight attendant saying something to me and just the the worst level of delivery, and I'm like, excuse me. It's all about how you say things to people, which is either gonna cause a reaction in a positive way or a negative way. Yes. It's all about communicating the effectively with your co-workers, with the passengers, with everybody to make sure that people are always respected at the end of the day. Correct.

SPEAKER_02 45:20

So that's a cut one, Darren.

SPEAKER_03 45:22

Yeah, you gotta be able to show and reassure them in your interview that you have great communication skills.

SPEAKER_02 45:27

Yes, absolutely.

SPEAKER_03 45:28

And you know, also to take lead when it when you need to and and and communicate correctly when taking lead to make sure things happen because there's gonna be situations where you have to. I've I've been on a plane in a medical emergency, and the other flight attendants, they just froze up. It's like okay, y'all go you gotta take it, you gotta, yeah, hey, I need you to go up to the front. I need you to go get this to leadership and to but know how to communicate correctly and say things like, hey, I know you freeze back, hey, get us together. I need you to go do this. Yeah, because we gotta make this happen. This is what we're here to do. We've been trained for this. So communication is important. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_04 46:02

And and along with communication, body language. Yes, go on. Body language. Like I was talking about dealing being in uniform and passengers coming up with you, coming up to you about any and everything. You just can't like remain reproachable. I am one that has RBF. If you don't know what RBF is, research it or ask me if you see me. I have that. And so sometimes I have to be mindful because my thought and my my thoughts and my face sometimes are very in sync. And I have to be mindful to slow myself down because what I'm thinking sometimes comes off on this old face of mine. And for those that are not already flight attendants, you have to be mindful of that when interviewing.

SPEAKER_03 46:54

That's one thing I miss about COVID. When I can wear a mask, people are gonna see my face. Yes, I was you do this, you can look at any guy when they don't know what's going on. Oh my god, hated them beloved them. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 47:09

But yeah. So now that we've gotten past the interview, yay, you made it past that. What did I just sign up for? They sent you this big huge packet of information and it all looks like alphabet soup, and you're trying to go. Wait, they need me to go someplace for six weeks, and there is no paycheck. What am I supposed to do? First of all, start crying because now I got six weeks, no pay. What do you mean? How do I live? What does all this mean? I have to learn all this at one time. First of all, breathe. No, you don't. Most trainings are four to six weeks, depending on your particular airline. That's why it's important to research.

SPEAKER_03 47:55

Some eight weeks, some are eight weeks, too. Yeah. Research is important.

SPEAKER_02 47:59

Depending on your yep, that's why it's important to know your particular airline. Um, some airlines do uh provide a stipend for when you are in training, so that you're not completely without a paycheck. Most don't. Um, if you are successful in training, you get this cute little stipend or paycheck at the end of training, but you need to complete all four to eight weeks of training. Um, some provide you a stipend while you're in training for food amenities depending on who you're with. Um, you do get that.

SPEAKER_03 48:32

And free lodging too.

SPEAKER_02 48:33

And free lodging depending again on who you are training with. For those of you who think, oh, I must be based in XYZ City, you do not get a choice. If you go in and you say, I can only be based in Los Angeles because that is where I live, congratulations, you're not. You're gonna be based in Salt Lake City. Hello. So please go in with an open mind and be willing to go anywhere. If you go in and say there are only specific cities that I can be based in, they're going to show you the door quicker than you can realize. Because there's no flexibility. Yeah, you must be open to be flexible, to be um willing to be based anywhere. Anywhere means anywhere. If you have these stipulations about what you can do, can't do, no, no, no, no, no. You're not willing to be flexible. These airlines will show you the door.

SPEAKER_04 49:24

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 49:25

So please be willing to be flexible and open for that.

SPEAKER_04 49:28

As I forestated, I have been commuting for 10 years.

SPEAKER_02 49:35

Commuting is a part of the job. It's it completely changes the job. Yes, it does. It can't be done.

SPEAKER_03 49:44

I know people doing it their whole 20 year fight. It's been doing it their entire career. And they just it becomes second nature at some point. You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_04 49:50

It definitely can be done, but it it is taxing, it's expensive, it's expensive, and it can it can change the job.

SPEAKER_02 49:57

It turns into a job in itself. Trying to get to work. Um, the reality of reserve life, it is challenging. Very challenging, it is true. It is tough. Uh, there are some airlines where they have been on reserve for 20 plus years. Reserve life for every carrier is different. If you know somebody ask them about it. Yeah, please do your research.

SPEAKER_04 50:22

Yes. Make sure you're fit for that.

SPEAKER_02 50:24

We're not gonna be specific on any particular carrier. That is where doing your research as much as you can is important. There's so many more um, I will say, groups, group chats that exist than when any of us started because they did not exist. We kind of just kind of had to figure it out, you know, on our own. So please go out, do your research. Again, Google is free. There are so many Facebook groups that are out there that exist for these kind of particular um conversations. So do your research about reserve life, flight attendant life, um, not really flight attendant life, but reserve life, commuting, um, understanding their pay, those kind of things, and understanding your pay.

SPEAKER_03 51:10

Yes, because it's not it's it's totally different from like hourly or salary job.

SPEAKER_04 51:14

And you even after coming into the career, it's still going to be an ever-evolving situation.

SPEAKER_00 51:21

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 51:21

But un when it comes to pay, understand that. Um, one thing I do want to circle back to uh that we did not touch on that's very important. Social media. Make sure your social media pages are are clean and clear, free from certain derogatory statements and stuff like that. One, I shouldn't have to say this because of the day we live in, but companies do look at that. They look at that even when you think they're not looking at that. Um, to your point about the Facebook groups that are out there and other groups, WhatsApp, chats and stuff like that. When you think you might be safe in those groups, sometimes they have agents in those groups monitoring what is being said and done. So for those that want to interview, keep your nose clean, keep your nose clean and uh because I will even put it to you like this sometimes, even having your page locked and private helps. Helps, but it's not an end-of-minute be all because sometimes they can find ways around that, which I don't know how, but I've been told just be mindful of your activity and how you are carrying yourself on social media. Um, to the part about uh coming into this career and and going to training and stuff, talk it over with your family. Make sure you have a support system. One of the things when I went, I told my parents, I was like, look, y'all want these benefits later. I'm gonna need some money while I'm in training. And my parents did show up uh and helped me in that regard. Shout out to my mother and father. Thank you so much, um, for all that you've done. But it's important having the support if you're married, getting the support of your spouse, if you're not married but in a relationship, getting the support of your partner, cousins, because again, you need that support because those same people are gonna turn around. Y'all got any discounts, y'all got buddy passes? Like, can I get a flight? They're going to ask you. It's up to you how do you answer.

SPEAKER_03 53:36

But and the bring, I'm glad you mentioned the support thing because when you don't have that support at home with a spouse, let me be very clear. I witnessed it when I was in training. People outside on their lunch breaks, or when we got our five-minute breaks in training, arguing with their spouse because the spouse missed them or need them back home with the kids or mad that they've been gone so long. And that's a huge distraction while you're down in training. Yes. And you're dealing with so much people getting sent home because they're not studying, because they're up going back and forth with their spouses because of them being gone somewhere for five weeks and them not truly understanding what came with the job before they left. And now they're like, I don't like this, you need to get home, or your child's sick, or I need you here. These bills need to be paid, and things like that. So make sure that y'all sit down and have the conversation of what it's going to look like for the next three months with expenditures, with me being gone, if you have children, daycare, things like that, make sure that those things are talked about because if not, it will blow, it can it can get really bad. Yeah. And my main thing that I tell my friends that have become flight attendants, save your money. Save. But when you as soon as you start applying, start saving because what people don't realize is that first month after you get out of training, you're not getting no check because you haven't worked yet. So you got to spend a whole month of working before you then you get a check the very next month. People also don't know flight attendants get paid for the month prior. We don't get paid for the month we just worked. We don't get that pay until the very next month. So if you start training in February, yeah, you start training in February, you're not gonna see a check until April because you gotta work all of March first. So you gotta think about that when all those, like we said earlier, the bills don't stop. They don't. So try your best to save your coins because you're going to need them. Because that first year, it's the struggle bus.

SPEAKER_04 55:22

Yeah, I will also say take it as you want. I'm not saying you need to do this, but if you are working somewhere you have tenor tenure where you can take a month off or two, do that. Do that because also coming into training, you will either find out if you're going to sink or swim.

SPEAKER_00 55:47

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 55:48

You will find out because you didn't learn your um PAs in time or announcements buttons. Yeah, announcements, you yeah, I said PAs. Your announcements in time, you're getting sent home because you didn't learn the airport codes in time enough that you needed to, because they're quizzing you and testing you on those, you're getting sent home. Because you decided not to shave one day and you're they done said something to you and you didn't take it serious, you're getting sent home. So sometimes taking a month off from your job that you might currently have that you can possibly go back to would be a if things go left, would be a saving grace. Because until you are walking to get pinned your wings, you are still not safe.

SPEAKER_02 56:39

And even when you're walking to get your wings, you're not safe. You're not safe until after you receive those wings. Yep.

SPEAKER_03 56:44

You ain't saying so you're probation. Well, it's weird. That's what we're really talking about. But anyway, well, yeah, like it's it's important. And that's it goes also making sure that you have money aside for the clothes you're gonna need while you're in training because you have to be business casual every day that you're in training. Yeah, and if your airline doesn't provide clothes things for you to wear, because some do, you have to pay for that as well. So make sure that you have that you're coming to training with the right attire.

SPEAKER_02 57:11

Absolutely, and we'll touch on attire and uh we got because this is a great conversation in another episode. Um but just making sure um your appearance is as such, you know. If you're not used to certain things um in terms of your appearance or attire, um yeah, we're gonna talk about that.

SPEAKER_04 57:35

So that is going to happen in our next episode where we are going to address the newbies in the room. So uh definitely be on the lookout. We want to uh appreciate each and every one of you for um sitting on the jump seat with us, talking, um, engaging, coming back to engage. Don't forget to follow us on Jumpseat Chronicles Podcast on just about every social media platform there is Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, because they were adamant about getting us on TikTok.

SPEAKER_03 58:06

Yes, thank you.

SPEAKER_04 58:07

Thank y'all for all the support on TikTok because y'all have been blowing us up on TikTok. Yes. Um, YouTube, um, we're on Apple Music, we are on, I believe, Amazon. Uh, we're definitely on iHeart. Our official Buzz Sprout page is there. Make sure you reach out to us. When you see us out, we love the support that you all are giving. The love has been real. It's been real. I'm working at my airline, and so many people are like, oh my God, I didn't even know you worked here. Like, I just listened to you, I just saw your video. We love that. We it is very inspiring. It gives us encouragement to keep doing it and keep uh going on. Um, so y'all know I am Josh JJ, but you can find me specifically on I am JJ Boyd on Instagram, on uh Facebook, it's JJ Boyd. Uh and yeah, that's how you can locate me on social media.

SPEAKER_02 59:09

Uh, if you want to find me on Insta, it's Miss M Miss Mitchit. And if you want to find me on the clock app, uh it's me she marie. That's where you can find me. And uh Darren, where are you?

SPEAKER_03 59:26

Um, if you can find me on Instagram, that's the only one I'm giving y'all.

SPEAKER_00 59:29

Because maybe.

SPEAKER_03 59:31

Yeah. Um, if you find me on Instagram, it's Foy Boy Forever, F-O-Y-B-O-Y, the number four, E-V-E-R, Foy Boy Forever. So hit us up. Show us some love, inbox us with questions, but don't get too crazy. Yeah. Um, but yeah, reach out to us. Let us know how y'all liking the page and liking the podcast. And we appreciate all the love and support.

SPEAKER_04 59:51

As a reminder, the opinions shared on this podcast are our own and do not reflect those of our employer and any affiliate organization.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:04

It's not about the destination, it's about the perspective. We land in places only seen on television or read about in books. We recognize how big and small the world truly is at 35,000 feet. Thanks for riding the jumpsy with us. Until next time, we'll see y'all on the next fly. See y'all later.