5 Weird Things Nerves Make You Do in Job Interviews
1. Talking too much
Some people don’t seem to take a breath in interview. This is fine if
you have an engaging story and you can remember the question you are
answering a few minutes into your answer. However many people keep
talking and forget to keep checking to see if their interviewer is
listening.
The tricky thing here is to know whether your interviewer is a person
who likes detail or who likes bullet points. It’s also difficult to
know if interviewers are actually listening. Some interviewers,
particularly experienced interviewers, are professional at looking like
they’re listening.
2. Injecting odd phrases
“Like,” “like you know,” “do you get what I mean?” This verbal
stuffing can completely detract from your appearance as a competent
professional. The public speaking group, Toastmasters, is good for
eliminating this kind of thing, as is recording yourself in an interview
practice session.
3. Not answering the question
Sometimes interview questions are too long. Sometimes an interview
question has too much preamble. Sometimes interview questions are too
confusing. So as an interviewer I don’t mind repeating a question, but
when I need to rephrase and simplify a question three or so times, I
give up and move on to the next question.
4. Answering the question before an interviewer finishes asking it
I list this first as I honestly loathe this behaviour. I’m not sure
why people do this, but my take on this is that the person has poor
listening skills. Interrupting someone before they finish asking you a
question is like a verbal kneecapping – unexpected and painful.
5. Shutting down
Often people switch into “interview mode.” They’re engaging in
reception. They’re lovely over the phone. But when they get into
interview they talk in a completely different way. As an interviewer I
think “whatever happened to?”
