In the "Work for us" section of the website of the company I'm applying to, there is a mention about "Demonstrating willingness to meet challenging deadlines". This made me think that I should show them I can work hard by telling how I pulled all-nighters to finish some projects during my previous job.
However, shortly after it also made me think that they could interpret it as a possible liability, considering laws about work-hours and such.
In my experience, "pulling all nighters" isn't perceived as someone dedicated as one would hope. It's typically perceived as someone who has poor planning skills.
I wouldn't mention all-nighters except in context of there being an unforeseen emergency that needed to be dealt with. Otherwise you'll likely have your ability to manage your time questioned. Basically, you want to tell them that you'll do whatever it takes but find a way to imply that it's always been because something that you couldn't predict happened to screw things up and by working all night in those rare cases it was necessary, you were the team-player everybody loves and saved the day.
It's a fine line actually. You did it, but you did it because of someone else's mistake and you were a hero to clean up after it.
No, I wouldn't mention it, as it's nothing to be proud of.
You may as well put a post-it on your back that reads, "Kick Me!", like kids on a playground. Given the wrong supervision, you're going to get run into the ground. As the other responses have mentioned, it's a symptom of a lot of poor planning. But it's also a symptom of poor boundaries on your part. There is no shortage of posts here from people who deeply regret, after ten or fifteen years, doing exactly what you're doing, for not much more than lousy health, empty promises, and a deplorable work-life balance.
People need sleep. But they also require time to get a good meal and digest it while not under stress. There's also time with friends and family, or time to do nothing whatsoever. You may be in a situation where you don't have anyone else to take care of, so all-nighters don't have much discernible impact on your health. But over time, this behavior will take its toll. You have to allow your body to de-stress, or the longer you go at this, the more pronounced the effects will be.
Love yourself. Work doesn't love you back.
I would not mention it without context. Responding for this position demonstrates willingness already, as you have read it and still responded to it.
Sure, it might make them think "Wow, this person will be there when we need him!", but they might also think "Nice, someone who we can give the extra work too, he'll do it." or "Wow, social life much?"
Yes, it might be pesimistic and the other end of the spectrum, but without context it can easily give off the 'pushover' vibe, instead of the intended dedication.
If you get into an interview (or got the job and your boss/manager asks you about it), you can say that though you don't prefer it to be a habit, you are willing to pull it some extra hours when the need is high.
I would not mention pulling all nighters. I would probably also avoid this company altogether.
Firstly, it needs convincing context in that is was outside your range of influence to prevent that the situation even occurred. First of all, this requires it to be actually the case. At the same time, I would avoid mentioning poor planning by other people in your company or among your partners, to not talk poorly about them (which in itself would be a bad sign).
Secondly, it puts your ability to differentiate between work and personal time in danger. It may appear as if you have trouble keeping a healthy balance. In other words, you seem to not know your limits and may burn out soon - thus, makes you appear a risky candidate.
Thirdly, is working for a company like this even a goal? You probably would not want to work in an environment where overtime before deadlines were so frequent that they were even referred to in the job description. (It was not mentioned explicitly, this is a stretch remark interpreting their advertisement.)
In the above, I've focused on some negative aspects, because I consider them more weighty in this case. There are definitely good ones, too, and it is a judgement call you have to make.
In my experience, in start up culture, all nighters or staying late happens. Things come up and they need to be dealt with. It is nothing special. That's why I wouldn't put it on my resume; it is nothing special.
This made me think that I should show them I can work hard by telling how I pulled all-nighters to finish some projects during my previous job.
I would be very hesitant to set this precedent before you even interview for the job. I don't know about you, but I do not want to go into a job with the expectation that I can be relied on to pull an all-nighter to cover someone else's mistake, be it a co-worker's or the client's. If it so happens that, yes, the sky is falling and someone absolutely has to stay at work until the issue is fixed, I want it understood that I am making a personal sacrifice of my time to do so, not that this is my typical modus operandi.
So, no, I would not mention it on the application. If it comes up during an interview, spin it to the effect that you pulled the all-nighter to cover a mistake made by someone else or to support some business-critical application that saved the client $XXX,XXX. I would also mention that I would hope that this sort of thing is not commonplace at the company you're interviewing at (I would not want to work at a company that abuses employee overtime in this manner). I might even ask if something like this were to happen, would I be able to take off the next day (with pay) as compensation.
I'm assuming you're applying for a salaried position, which many people here will argue means that you don't necessarily have a set amount of hours per day/week but that you have a job to do in a certain timeframe. Most salaried people do not get overtime pay. As far as I'm concerned, a salary is based on a 40-hour workweek*. If I was expected to pull an all-nighter, I would make it known that those hours would count against my next day's work, and I would shorten my next day commensurately.
*I know I'm going to get some downvotes for this one, but a company has to base your pay on some sort of metric. The 40-hour workweek is pretty standard (at least in the US). Any hours you work over the 40 are basically free for the company and reduce your effective hourly rate. There are plenty of studies that show that working more than 40 hours in a week does not make you more productive.
