Most people suck at job interviews. Here’s why and what you can do about it.
Take a second to answer the below questions.
- Are you human?
- Do you have a heartbeat?
If you answered ‘yes’ to both questions, chances are you suck at interviewing.
The reason is that interviewing is unnatural, plain and simple.
Marc Cendella, Founder of Ladders, a popular job board site, explains interviews well in his book, “Ladders 2018 Interviews Guide.”
Interviews aren’t normal for humans. They’re not normal for human physiology. They’re not normal for humans’ social expectations. They weren’t a normal feature of any human society, anywhere on the planet, prior to about 100 years ago. They are deeply strange experiences for a wide variety of reasons.
As a result, we all stress out about interviews.
It’s no wonder that 92% of U.S adults suffer from job interview anxiety! Interviews are so unnatural, we stress about every part of the interview — wearing the right outfit, being late, the firmness of the handshake, being underqualified, being overqualified, not being prepared enough, answering questions ineffectively, and whether the interviewer’s lack of eye contact meant we’re not getting the job.
That’s a lot to handle.
Here’s how to overcome interview troubles.
1. The first step is to recognize that having anxiety is perfectly normal.
Cendella continues.
Your anxiety is normal… expected, even. Even the most successful, most powerful people I’ve helped over the years feel nervous and selfconscious about interviews, especially when they’re out of practice.
2. Another thing that can help is recognizing you aren’t the only one who feels this way. In the 2018 McGraw-Hill Education Future Workforce Survey, only 34% of college students felt they knew how to conduct themselves in a job interview.
Fortunately, there is good news.
3. The next step is to learn tried and true interview skills.
Interview skills can be learned and once learned will set you apart.
One story we love is that of Heather Hund. While a Stanford MBA student, she was rejected for 25 internships before learning a secret to interviewing that increased her offer rate from 4% to 71% — receiving five job offers out of 7 job interviews!
4. The last step is to perform a mock interview and get feedback!
Yeah, we know mock interviews are uncomfortable, but it’s one of the best ways you can learn what you could be doing better! The hardest part is finding someone to perform your mock interview with you. We suggest using Peervuu! On Peervuu you will find dozens of professionals in your industry and role willing to do a mock interview with you and who start as low as $10 per session, that’s less than a value meal!
Once you perform those steps, we know you will be able to confidently stroll into that office and nail your interview!
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