Mel Kleiman offers the $10 test: Give your applicant a $10 bill and tell him to buy something in the store—a sandwich, a fountain drink, anything of his choosing—and ask him to return the next day with an assessment of the experience. The applicant will do one of three things:

• Take the $10 and run. You’ll never see him again, but it’s the cheapest $10 you’ll ever spend and you save more in the long term.
• Return the next day with a great shopping report.  That’s probably a good candidate for employment.
• Return the next day with a receipt and change from his purchases and a detailed assessment of the experience.  That’s the employee you’re looking for.