Common Interview Mistakes

Most Common Interview Mistakes

All of us have made mistakes during interviews, and most of us hvae walked out of interviews thinking of all the great things we forgot to mention and all the things we shouldnt have said. But the most important thing about mistakes is learning from them-and not repeating them. Here are some common interview mistakes:Failing to express oneself clearly. Often, because of anxiety and wanting to say things perfectly, we try too hard and turn what shoul be simple sentences into convoluted nonsense. Simple language is always the most effective. Avoid trying to sound knowledgeable by using jargon or complex sentences.Not being aware of one's body language.

Many interviewees succeed in alienating the interviewer because they pay little or no attention to their body language. Body language is an extremely powerful comunicator, and failing to use it effectively will almost certainly put you at a significant disadvantage.Eye contact, sitting position and facial expressions are all very important aspects of interviewing, and need to be thought through before the interview.Failing to control those nerves. Sometimes people allow their nerves to get so out of control that they fails to establish a rapport and even forget their answers.

Feeling anxious before and during an interview is common. In fact, a touch of nerves can be good thing. But there is no need to be the victim of debilitating nerves. As you read through this, you'll gradually learn how to lessen your anxiety.Failing to give appropriate examples. Failing to give examples, or giving inappropriate examples, will speel disaster. Before the interview, it is important to think of relevant examples of what you've achieved nad how you went about realizing those achievements. Saying that you achieved something without being able to back it up with specific examples will only get you a rejection letter. Your examples need to be easy to understand, follow a logical sequence and be relevant to the needs of the employer. None of this happens without preparation.Trying to hard to please the interviewer. Whilst building rapport and trust during the interview is critical, few interviewers appreciate interviews interviewwees going overboard with their behaviour.Obsequious behaviours are generally seen as for of deceit and carry little weight-infact, they can undermine your efforts to create trust.

There's nothing wrong with you.

You've probably commited at least some of the mistakes listed above. Its very important to realise that the making such mistakes is common. In other words, there's nothing wrong with you. In the vast majority of cases, performing poorly at an interview happens because of very nature of interviews-its the interview process that is the culprit. So an awareness of the basic nature of interviews is the first strp in a step-by-step process by which you can significantly improve your performance. A great place to start is to ask: 'what does it take to convince the interviewer that you are the best person for the job?'The answer to this question can be summarised in four parts:

1.Correct Preparation;

2.Knowing things that are important to interviewers;

3.Practising your answers;

4.Perseverance;

Correct Preparation:

How well you perform at an interview will largely depend on how well you have prepared for it. Failure to correctly prepare almost certainly means you will not perform at your best. In some cases, it will mean performing quite badly, which may contribute to the erosion of your confidence.Even if you're lucky enough to be the favoured candidate, and are almost certain to win the position by just turning up, you should still take the time to prepare because the better you perform, the greater the likelihood that you will negotiate a better salary-and often the difference in money can be substantial.We've all heard people boast that they've never prepared for an interviewer in their lives and have done all right.

Whilst this boast may not be an idle one, closer inspection will usually reveal that these people were:Lucky-that is, in the right place at the right time;well connected; working in favourable labour market where there was a huge demand for employyes coupled with low supply;applying for jobs well within their comfort zone- that is, not stretching themselves to improve their position; orapplying for jobs internally and competing mainly against external candidates.

The argument for interview preparation becomes compelling when you give some thought to basic nature of interviews. Not only are you expected to sell yourself in a competetive environment, but you're also expected to compress large and often complex pieces of information into neat and highly articulate answers that avoid any negative connotations and contain the information the interviewer wants to hear. Its no wonder people's stress levels increase.

But it does not end there. There are three additional reasons that make the case for interview preparation even more compelling:Interviews are rare events, thus making them unfamiliar and awkward.Many people find it very difficult to sell themselves at interviews they have been conditioned by family and society not to blow their own trumpet. Making simple statements such as I'm very good at selling xyz' can be quite an obstacle to overcome.In most interviews, coming second isnt good enough. Its not just the matter of performing well; its also a matter of beating everyone else.It is unimaginable that you would fails to prepare for an event that is frequent, competetive and requires behaviours not normally used. yet that is what exactly what people do when they walk into an interview without preparation.

What is incorrect preparatiopn ?Incorrect preparatipn is any preparation that will not optimise your performance at an interview. Rote-learning generic answers that someone else has prepared has limited value. At best, they can give you an insight into what may constitute a good answer; at worst, they simply lead you astray. It is important to understand that, in the vast majority of cases, there's no such thing as a single answer to a question. What may constitute a great answer for one employer may be viewed as quite ordinary by another. One of the worst things you can do is learn other peoples responses off by heart and repeat them at an interview. Repeating other peoples so called great answers can make you sound disingenious and make you look a bit ridiculous when asked a probing follow up question. It makes a lot more sense to prepare your own answers.

Advantages of preparation: Taking the time to correctly prepare for an interview will:improve your confidence levels;assist you in answering questions succinctly, as opposed to taking forever to make a simple point;help you know what to say and how to say it; assist you in handling difficult questions;help you avoid saying things that will make a negative impression;improve your rapport-building skills.

Knowing the things that are important to interviewers:

One of the keys to knowing what to prepare lies in inderstanding the needs of the interviewer. Once you know the things that are important to interviewers, interview preparation suddenly becomes a lot clear and a lot more manageable.The vast majority of interviewers- whether or not they realise it-want to hear three things from you.Can you do the job? In other words, do you have the skills, knowledge, experience or potential to perform well in job?Most interviews will spend the majority of interview probing you on this question. They will want to know what you've done, how you did it and what the outcomes were.

Practising your answers:

Mock Interviews: If you cant get yourself to as many interviews as you would like, its a good idea to set up mock interviews with someone you can work with. The more closely you can simulate a real-life situation, more benefit you will derive. An effective way to conduct mock interviews is to get into role an stay in it for the entire interview. No distractions, no small talk and especially no starting again. If possible, avoid providing the questions to your helpers- let them come up with their own. If your helpers are not in a position to do this, give them lots of questions and ask them to choose thye ones they want.

The important thing for you is to get yourself used to answering unexpected questions. Furthermore, if you feel your helper can provide you with honest feedback on your performance, do not shy away from asking. You never know what you may learn. Often its the small things that make a big difference, But be on you guard for overly positive feedback.

Perseverance:

The worst thing you can do when setting out to improve your interview performance is give up because it all seems too hard. Quitters invariably get nowhere. They certainly dont land great jobs and build great careers. On the other hand, people who persevere very often gain valuable insights simply because they have the stamina to stick it out.The people we admire most are often those who face seemingly insurmountable obstacles yet instead of quitting, quietly resolve to overcome them. On the other side of the coin, the people we generally least respect are forever starting things without finishing them.They tend to be same people who make grandiose claims but end up delivering little or nothing.

One common characterstic that chronic quitters tend to have is low self esteem- they dont really have believe in themselves. And if you dont believe in yourself, others usually dont believe in you either- not a great place to be when you are trying to convince interviewers to believe in you either-not a great place to be when you are trying to convince interviewers to believe in you either-not a great place to be when you are trying to convince interviewers to believe in your abilities. These are people who are often heard saying things such as: 'Thats too hard', 'I cant learn that', 'What will others think', etc. they also tend to be the people who are always complaining about things but never seem to take any action to correct them because there is always an excuse.