<prompt> Human: Remember folks, unless youre some sort of high flyer, if the hiring process is more like a sales pitch to you than a trial to prove your value to the organization, its probably not something you want to do.Red flag 1: Yesterday I got an email and then a phone call about a job opportunity. Either I had clicked on an apply now thing on Indeed.com for a vague posting or they found my resume, but the short description about the job on the phone was that Id be assisting members of labor unions, credit unions, and professional associations learn about their benefits. The interview was to be today. I figured this is probably nothing Im interested in, but on the face of it so far, it seems like it could be legit.Red flag 2: Form letter confirmation email sent immediately after phone call. It states Attire: Business Professional, Business Suit.Red flag 3: Arrive to location, find two people waiting outside the entrance to the suite inside the building for the same interview time.Red flag 4: Wrong entrance other entrance I had seen had different company name on it. We are escorted to another entrance where several others are in line to check in. A lady in pleather pants and gaudy heels is escorting folks to the back as they sign in.Red flag 5 I should really have left by now, right?: I am given a personality profile multiple choice question sheet to complete. I am also asked if I have something to write with, as though it is a deep and urgent concern.Red flag 6: Upon completing check-in, I am ushered into a presentation room with maybe 40 total people in the audience. These, I realize, are my fellow applicants, but I really feel rube is a better description.Red flag 7: Observing the other applicants, its clear they are a broad mix of ages and backgrounds. Some are are clearly folks that can at least present themselves professionally, but others are clearly not able to do so, either because they lack the means or social mores. From their chit-chat with one another, it doesnt seem like many of them are the kind of people I have a lot in common with other than the need employment.Red flag 8:The presenters enter, four men and one woman. Man 1 has spiked, gelled hair buzzed on the sides, but it isnt artfully done. He is wearing a loudly patterned suit. Man 2 looks much better dressed and groomed, but has two rings on his right hand, including a pinkie ring with some large emblem on it. Man 3 is reasonably dressed, but Man 4 is wearing a shiny, patterned suit; a pique shirt that is monogrammed; ostentatious cuff links; and a shiny, chain bracelet. His hair is also spiked with gel and buzzed on the sides, though its better done and fits his build better than with Man 1. Man 1 looked like someone who just didnt know any better, but on Man 4 is was straight up bruh. Upon standing it becomes obvious that Man 4s suit is tailored to his body but still bunches at the shoulder oddly, indicating that he probably ordered it from a made-to-measure website rather than a bespoke clothier in person. Man 4 is also not wearing a tie. Upon removing his jacket while speaking, it is clear that Man 4s shirt is actually too small for his bulging biceps.Red flag 9: I never get a chance to assess how the woman was dressed, because she never presented. If she did interact with the audience, it would have been after Man 4 finished speaking, but I left when it was clear he was winding down and was asking each person in the audience what they liked best about he presentation. So it looks like the entire leadership team of the org are somewhat douchey-looking guys.Red flag 10: We are all asked again if we all have something to write with.Red flag 11: Multiple company names are thrown around. I was recruited by the Hartwig Agency, but the job is for Surace-Smith, an agent of American Income Life Insurance Company, which is also owned by Torchmark Corporation edit: all of this is legit, but it was not clear from the beginning who the employer actually was.Red flag 12: The companys business model is to sell expensive insurance benefits to members of labor unions, credit unions, and professional associations. In their sample material the full annual premium of the benefits package they market is 1,600, but they pitch is as only costing 30 a week. There is lots of think about your family children these benefits can be passed on to them when youre gone talk, but its stuff like funeral insurance, supplementary health insurance, and mortgage pay-off insurance. In other words, stuff that is expensive and should be taken care of with a simple term-life policy thats way, way cheaper for the consumer. In short: this business model is somewhat unethical.Red flag 13: During the presentation the companys success is hyped up. A lot. Lots of talk about their growth and about their revenue and stock price. An impressive chart showing 1996 to now is shown. They talk about how Warren Buffet owns a lot of it. No mention is made about the plummet in value the companys stock price experienced in 2014, only about half of which is accounted for by a stock split, or of how growth has been significantly slower since then.Red flag 14: A description of who they are looking for is given in the form of the Seven Cs. We are urged to write down the Cs and to contemplate which is most important to us. Later, the five Ps are also brought up in terms of how to get clients to purchase their product.Red flag 15: They claim to be rated in the best placed to work by a Cleveland newspaper. A search shows they are not, or at least not in the top 75 of the most current ranking.Red flag 16: Man 3, the presenter on technology, extols the virtue of their system in which representatives those hired use laptops to show what is essentially an interactive video as the primary pitch to potential customers rather than have to make the pitch or explain anything themselves. Later is it implied we will need our personal laptops for this.Red flag 17: Compensation is entirely commissions based, and it is further revealed that its a pyramid scheme. After the first 3 months, representatives can train other reps and get a match on their commission. As you age into the company, these matches increase in size and become tiered. Were told that as the folks we once trained have trained other folks and they start making sales, we earn a match on that commission too.Red flag 18: When they talk about the charities they support as a company, I only recognize one FCA, and they all appear to be faith-based.Red flag 19: Man 4 removes his jacket during his presentation, revealing a shirt that was too tight. He hands his jacket to the one woman, who hasnt spoken to us at all. She places it lightly on his chair back. Man 4 proceeds to sip on a large can of energy drink during his presentation.Red flag 20, and perhaps the biggest: Man 4 encourages audience members to pay 250 for the various online training courses and license application fees to be legally able to perform this job in the state of Ohio with a credit card. He had strong recommendations for which online training site to use - to the point that I suspect the company owns that site. He makes it clear that this isnt for us, this is for the state. We dont pay for this because this is a licence that you keep and will put on your resume.Red flag 21: At the conclusion of Man 4s presentation by which time Men 1-3 have left, he asks each audience member to say their name what they liked best about what weve all just heard. At this point I simply leave, uninterested and feeling dirty all over.Red flag 22: As I exit the office, the lady at reception is very concerned about getting my name before I leave.Edit: OMG, GUYS, THEY HAVE A HYPE VIDEO!!!Edit 2: Minor typo fixes and some small changes for clarity of reading.  <response>: We had an spot with the American income people through my partners work. Wanted a discount on eyeglasses, which was promised but sat through a 2hr sales pitch to get it. Brutal. 