These job interview mistakes are mistakes most employees had to learn to avoid by experience or they probably would not have been hired. Here is a review of our top ten job interview mistakes you need to avoid.
1. Arriving late: Arriving late to interviews accounts for one of the top five mistakes job seekers make. It is important that you get to your interview location at least thirty minutes before your appointment. When you are punctual to an interview, your interviewer notices it and that is one point in favour for you.
2. Inability to talk adequately about what is written in your resume: This puzzles most interviewers because they don’t understand why you are unable to talk about the feats you carried out when you can be detailed about them in your resume. Most times on the part of the job seeker, their nerves and the height of tension they feel are responsible for this. A sure way to overcome this is to get so familiar with your resume that when you are asked any questions from it, you are ready with an answer.
3. Long answers that go off track: A friend told me about an interview she had some years ago. She wanted to impress the interviewer, so to the questions he asked of her, she gave long answers that unfortunately ended way off the point. To give short precise answers that would say exactly what you have in mind to say, take a deep breath while thinking the questions through. In that short time, you can craft out a short and straight to the point answer to each of the questions asked of you. Don’t feel pressured to answer the minute the questions are thrown at you or you might get lost mid-sentence.
4. Fear: A moderate amount of fear and nervousness happens to everyone when we feel like we are on the hot seat. Being interviewed is definitely being on a hot seat as the job you hope to get is what is at stake and the light at the end of the tunnel. You can channel that moderate fear and nervousness to work for you in an interview. Take occasional deep breaths, try and be calm when it feels like your fears might skyrocket.
5. Not planning ahead for an interview: A job seeker going for an interview he/she hasn’t planned for may be disappointed at the end of the interview because of the lack of preparation. At job interviews, there are questions that will come across to you as general and familiar if you have prepared for the interview before the day and there are questions that would be asked of you which are unexpected. By preparing ahead, you would have gotten some points in your favour and would have built your confidence and morale for the unexpected questions.
6. Having little or no knowledge about the company: Most times, you will be asked details about the company you want to be a part of. This is why you need to do your research before you go for the interview. Learn about their core values, their products and services, their mission and vision statement. If you are asked about the company you want to be a part of and you have no answers to give, you have just indirectly told the company that you really don’t want to be a part of them.
7. Not dressing the part: As a job seeker, you would not be expected to go overboard in dressing the part but you must at least put in the effort to achieve a corporate look. Let your look be smart, corporate and clean. Avoid any style that would draw away your interviewer’s attention from what you are saying. Go for cool, solid colours that would complement your dedication to getting the job.
8. Not enough eye contact: Avoiding eye contact will tell the interviewer that you might be untruthful or not interested. You also don’t want too much eye contact because it is uncomfortable. You can practice eye-contact balance with a friend in an interview practice session.
9. Bad-mouthing a previous employer: If asked why you left your previous employer, it is not an avenue for you to express all you went through at your previous company but an opportunity for you to broaden your horizons about your future.
10. Not following up: If you feel you did a good job at an interview and you have not been contacted about the job, keep your impression retained on your employer’s mind by sending a follow-up email of about three paragraphs that summarizes your skills and reiterates your eagerness to be hired.
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This article was first published on 18th November 2014
Comments (1)
These job interview mistakes are mistakes most employees had to learn to avoid by experience or they probably would not have been hired. Here is a review of our top ten job interview mistakes you need to avoid.
1. Arriving late: Arriving late to interviews accounts for one of the top five mistakes job seekers make. It is important that you get to your interview location at least thirty minutes before your appointment. When you are punctual to an interview, your interviewer notices it and that is one point in favour for you.
2. Inability to talk adequately about what is written in your resume: This puzzles most interviewers because they don’t understand why you are unable to talk about the feats you carried out when you can be detailed about them in your resume. Most times on the part of the job seeker, their nerves and the height of tension they feel are responsible for this. A sure way to overcome this is to get so familiar with your resume that when you are asked any questions from it, you are ready with an answer.
3. Long answers that go off track: A friend told me about an interview she had some years ago. She wanted to impress the interviewer, so to the questions he asked of her, she gave long answers that unfortunately ended way off the point. To give short precise answers that would say exactly what you have in mind to say, take a deep breath while thinking the questions through. In that short time, you can craft out a short and straight to the point answer to each of the questions asked of you. Don’t feel pressured to answer the minute the questions are thrown at you or you might get lost mid-sentence.
4. Fear: A moderate amount of fear and nervousness happens to everyone when we feel like we are on the hot seat. Being interviewed is definitely being on a hot seat as the job you hope to get is what is at stake and the light at the end of the tunnel. You can channel that moderate fear and nervousness to work for you in an interview. Take occasional deep breaths, try and be calm when it feels like your fears might skyrocket.
5. Not planning ahead for an interview: A job seeker going for an interview he/she hasn’t planned for may be disappointed at the end of the interview because of the lack of preparation. At job interviews, there are questions that will come across to you as general and familiar if you have prepared for the interview before the day and there are questions that would be asked of you which are unexpected. By preparing ahead, you would have gotten some points in your favour and would have built your confidence and morale for the unexpected questions.
6. Having little or no knowledge about the company: Most times, you will be asked details about the company you want to be a part of. This is why you need to do your research before you go for the interview. Learn about their core values, their products and services, their mission and vision statement. If you are asked about the company you want to be a part of and you have no answers to give, you have just indirectly told the company that you really don’t want to be a part of them.
7. Not dressing the part: As a job seeker, you would not be expected to go overboard in dressing the part but you must at least put in the effort to achieve a corporate look. Let your look be smart, corporate and clean. Avoid any style that would draw away your interviewer’s attention from what you are saying. Go for cool, solid colours that would complement your dedication to getting the job.
8. Not enough eye contact: Avoiding eye contact will tell the interviewer that you might be untruthful or not interested. You also don’t want too much eye contact because it is uncomfortable. You can practice eye-contact balance with a friend in an interview practice session.
9. Bad-mouthing a previous employer: If asked why you left your previous employer, it is not an avenue for you to express all you went through at your previous company but an opportunity for you to broaden your horizons about your future.
10. Not following up: If you feel you did a good job at an interview and you have not been contacted about the job, keep your impression retained on your employer’s mind by sending a follow-up email of about three paragraphs that summarizes your skills and reiterates your eagerness to be hired.
Nice Post, I must say its really helpful.
You can also check this link for what you should do. These are all helpful. http://todaybase.com/10-rules-to-nail-an-interview/