Job Interview Blues? What to Do When the Interviews Don’t Go Well

You’ve brushed up your resume, practiced your interview answering skills, and put on your best power suit. The big day of your job interview is finally here and you are pumped up and ready to impress. But then, something doesn’t feel right, you start to falter, and gradually the interview starts to go very wrong. You walk out almost in tears, wondering what just happened and how you can redeem yourself in the eyes of the hiring manager.

It’s happened to just about everyone who’s ever interviewed for a job. Interviews don’t always go as planned because they are about people. And people are prone to making mistakes, saying the wrong things, and yes, sometimes looking ridiculous. Before you beat yourself up too much, turn things around.

Think about what happened from both sides.

Were you late to the interview or got lost trying to find the office? Did you stumble to come up with an answer to a tough interview question? Try to see things from both sides. It may not be as bad as you think. The hiring manager may have mentioned that the office is hard to find, and they may know that the interview question always stumps people. In other words, the whole scenario may not be as bad as you think.

Be prepared.

Are you ready to give examples demonstrating your accomplishments?  Can you give examples of various situations in your previous work experience, show examples of how you responded to these situations with the actions involved and what the results were that you were able to accomplish?  Remember SAR:  Situation, Action and Results when talking about your accomplishments.

Take the pressure off trying to be perfect.

You are a human being and this means you are not perfect, not even close. You can do your best to look perfect, behave perfect, and show off your perfect resume, but it’s not going to land you that dream job right away. Instead, you need to be a genuine person and let your personality shine so that others can see your value. The next time around, just be yourself.

The recruiter may have been challenging you on purpose.  

You may not have had a stellar interview, but then not many people do. In fact, a trick that recruiters will use to make you think you are not a good fit for the organization is to act like they aren’t interested in you at all. They may appear emotionless in an interview. They may even cut you off while you speak. They may challenge you. This is an attempt to see if you will fight for the opportunity or walk out.

Find a support and job networking group.

If you are having the blues after a poor interview, be kind to yourself and reach out to others for support. Don’t go it alone. A job search is a long and frustrating process, so find a support network as you go through this experience. Share your story and listen to others talk about their bad interviews. Learn from it and move on to the next one!

Casey Accounting & Finance Resources is a dedicated team of professionals that provides superior value. Contact our great team of recruiters today to help you in your career search for
finance careers in Chicago.

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