A gay man’s TikTok story went viral after he explained how he came to believe that straight men telling women they work as consultants is a dating red flag.
Josh (@joshkhantsis) posted the video on Thursday and said that while he had heard concerns from women to avoid dating men who say they are consultants, he had never understood it until he worked with them himself.
Josh, who said he works at a marketing analytics firm and called his job “consulting-esque,” recounted a recent instance when his company held an event for employees at a karaoke bar.
He said while he and the other employees were standing near the bar, one of his co-workers told the other patrons that they were consultants.
Josh said he later questioned this co-worker about why he falsely identified them as consultants.
“I wish I was joking when I say this, but this man looks me dead in the eyeballs, and goes, ‘You have to tell people that we’re consultants because it gets you mad puss,’” Josh said, adding that he was “in absolute disbelief” at the response.
“First of all, I know that anyone using that kind of vernacular has never been intimate with a woman in their life,” Josh said. “Second of all, look at me. Does it look like I want to engage in those activities?”
Josh also added a warning to single women who encounter “consultants.”
“So ladies, if a man walks up to you and he is slightly balding and looks like he voices claymation movies and says that he works in consulting, run,” Josh said.
According to the job listing site WayUp, consulting is a general term that varies in definition based on the industry. However, according to the site, consulting typically means “helping companies increase their efficiency and profits by addressing the major operational or strategic challenges they’re facing.”
The video, which received more than 320,000 views by Monday, led to viewers sharing their reactions in comments.
“We know. We know,” one woman said.
“This goes to show they really do have the audacity all day long,” another wrote.
Others shared their own experiences working in consulting.
“This is why I REFUSE to describe myself as a consultant,” one person wrote.
“As a woman who is actually in consulting, 100%. The culture is so toxic it’s a biohazard,” another said.
The Daily Dot reached out to Josh via TikTok comment and Instagram message.
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