How does one not turn in a gibbering eejit?

I’ve had a few interviews lately for a variety of roles, including one earlier this week and I just can’t seem to hold it together. Most of the questions are standard fair, what qualities can you bring to the role/strengths/weaknesses etc but my mind just goes blank, I panic and end up talking shite.

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwDmg74rhCw[/video]

Despite the user name i’m not thick I just can’t seem to verbalize my abilities, if you were across the table interviewing me…you’d think I’d just got off the special bus. My self confidence is taking a pummeling.

advice?

Weaknesses = Mince pies and bacon
But not together.

A good interviewer will calm you down, at least to start off with.
It’s actually OK to say “I don’t know” if you don’t and far better than bullshitting.

A common interview technique is to drill down from the first answer. The interviewer asks “what’s you favourite car?”. Whatever you answer, they’ll keep on asking until you can’t go any further. You say “Ferrari”, they ask “Why?”, you say “It’s beautiful, well made and fast”, they go down each branch of the tree until you can’t answer. This means you will always end up saying “I don’t know”. Don’t get hassled, that’s the way the questions are structured.

Alternatively, if you always end up talking shite start applying for jobs in PR 😉

You have won or lost the interview in the first 15 seconds of walking into the room ..
A big confident smile walking towards your interrogater always helps ..thereafter just imagine them sitting there with no clothes on ( but not in a lecherous way if it’s a woman)
Always always ..ask just as many questions as you are asked ..its a two way process..finally huge breath before you go in and relax !

practice at home with your partner and try to think of the most difficult question you can think of.

Tip from my wife: if you are scheduled after the disabled person, you are just there to satisfy some EO requirements anyway (in her case, being female).

The strength/ weakness / give me an example of where you did X are creative writing exercises. Don’t bother with anything real. Just make sure you have a good bullshit storey. These types of question are the sign of a poor interviewer so just go prepared with stock answers.

My observation of the last 20 years in working life is that bullshit trumps all, so crack on down that road.

These types of question are the sign of a poor interviewer so just go prepared with stock answers.

I’m pretty sure I’ve seen you say this on her before and it’s still rubbish. Care to share what qualifies you to make that statement?

OP try and remember that the interviewer actually wants you to do well. No one wants to spend all day interviewing so it’s in their interests that you’re good and they don’t have to interview anyone else. Preparation is the key – spend some time and make some notes about what makes you suitable, take those notes with you into the interview if you want. If it’s competency based, prepare your examples in advance – you can usually guess roughly what will be asked from the job spec. The more you practice those examples/answers the easier they will become to access under pressure.

Are you confident that you can do the things in the job description?

If not, you’re probably in the wrong place.

If so, the interview really isn’t trying to trip you up – it’s trying to get you to talk about the one thing you know more than anyone else in the world about – yourself!

I find that if I frame it that way – it’s telling them about me – it’s much easier than trying to prep for silly questions that are just a way of finding out more about you as a person.

Some terrible advice on here

You have won or lost the interview in the first 15 seconds of walking into the room ..

Then just count to 15 and leave then

If it’s competency based, prepare your examples in advance – you can usually guess roughly what will be asked from the job spec. The more you practice those examples/answers the easier they will become to access under pressure.

+1

And don’t be afraid to ask: “Does that answer your question, or did I get the wrong end of the stick?”

Been doing a few myself this year, some have been stressful others I’ve almost enjoyed (when I’ve been well prepared).

Remember to flop your old chap out on to the table. It shows the interviewer you trust them, and that you too are to be trusted.

Are you confident that you can do the things in the job description?

If not, you’re probably in the wrong place.

Absolutely!!,….in fact the interview this week also involved a practical assessment which I actually enjoyed doing and completed with relative ease.

I guess I’m just better at actually doing things, rather that talking about doing things or trying explain my thought process about why I’m doing these things. Gah,

OK, so tell the interviewer that!

One of that Jedi blokes tricks is picking up on the way a person learns best. I need to understand why I’m doing something before I can do it. I like theory so I need to realise that I need to keep the front wheel up off a drop because it’s already started falling when the rest of the bike’s on the ground. Someone else would be better off visualising it. Someone else might get the feel of the push through the bars.

If you’re good at doing but not good at introspectively talking about doing in the abstract you may be the best person for the job.

I’ve recently got involved in interviews. Most of them have been for internships although a few grad level positions too. Most people are nervous, everyone brings something to the job though and you need to see beyond the nerves. Depends what they are looking for though. I’m looking for someone to work in a lab where people soon feel comfortable. If you are nervous meeting people and your job is to go meet people and sell things you might struggle.

By the time people get to interview they are probably capable. Looking for team fit/personality and a bit of a spark that sets them apart from all the others.

Remember to flop your old chap out on to the table. It shows the interviewer you trust them, and that you too are to be trusted.

Won’t they see their name(s) written on there? That’d be weird

Junkyard ..Im blinded by your ignorance 😆
Some sort of expert are we ?
You are correct though on this occasion I did get it wrong ..not that you got it right 😀
It actually takes less than half that time to create a first impression…thanks for your input though ..have you anything helpful to add ?

Screenshot_20171215-182626 by Neil Hodgson – Flickr2BBcode LITE

Won’t they see their name(s) written on there? That’d be weird

Only if you haven’t crossed out the previous dozen or so names.

Keep STAR in your mind when telling stories of what you’ve done:

S situation, give some context
T task. What did YOU do get asked to do
A action. What you did.
R result. What happened

It’s really effective and helps the interviewer out.

S situation, give some context
T task. What did YOU do get asked to do
A action. What you did.
R result. What happened

Oh no,no,no,no…. appreciate the input fella but that’s the sort of flannel I can’t get me head around, never mind under duress.

STAR

Situation
Task
Action
Results

It’s BS, like everything else but helps you to structure your answer.

eg: Can you give us an example where you helped someone.

Me: Yes. There was one time a friend was really crap at interviews (situation). I realised that i could help him out by giving him some interview tips (task). I told him all about the STAR technique and how it helps to structure your answers (actions). Consequently, he aced his next interview and now he runs Singletrack (result)

Also – remember that you are interviewing them; in many cases (and within reason) if they appoint the wrong person it can **** their business up and make them (the appointing manager) look crap whereas if you realise you’ve made a mistake you can hand you notice in and walk away. And also you have to make sure you want to work there, so it’s also seeing if you think you can get on with the company culture and your prospective boss.

[but what do I know…… 5 second interviews this year, 5 rejections – although one is still open, the boss was a bit of a nob so I’ve got mixed feelings about that if they do offer]

Junkyard ..Im blinded by your ignorance
Some sort of expert are we ?
You are correct though on this occasion I did get it wrong ..not that you got it right
It actually takes less than half that time to create a first impression…thanks for your input though ..have you anything helpful to add ?

Hodgymydyfdy…

Junkyard is right actually and you finding a Google hit that says otherwise doesn’t change that. And yes I am some sort of expert, if you want qualifications will 12 years of recruitment experience and a masters in Occupational Psychology do?

i saw your post come in and cross with mine while I was writing

If that doesn’t come naturally, then rehearse a few stock answers. Most times you can twist the question back to the same answer.

eg: Can you give an example where you mentored someone? Same answer with a few different key words to the answer before

Honestly – google STAR or competency based interview and you’ll see there are actually relatively few questions, yet umpteen ways of asking each one, and to have an answer to each one helps to stop you doing the goldfish mouth thing.

You can also if you aren’t sure it’s exactly the right answer to their question ask them if they want you to expand on anything (the ferrari type scenario above) – they might then say – can you explain a little more exactly how you told him about STAR techniques, to which you say that you gave him a brief rundown of the approach and then a series of weblinks so he can read about it at his own pace and assimilate the info under his own steam.

Competency-based interviews: What you need to know

Spin ..yeah just in terms of confirming what I already knew ..anything wrong with that?
Oh ..I also liked to rub it in too 8)

Unknown …12 years experience?
I was almost trained to death with some rather large companies for 20 years ..managed my own companies over the last 20 years employing my own staff along the way..so in terms of my own experience I would trust my own judgement long before yours ..
I would however like to see you pick holes in what I have provided as evidence ..
You also seem to have got an awful long way with your dyslexia ..well done !

Swoon. I presume all of those interviews you did lasted 15 seconds then?

I’m more than happy to help people like the OP who are genuine but to be honest I’ve better things to do with my Friday night than argue with with some closed minded old man on the internet. If you’re actually interested you can do your own research, it’s all out there.

And by the way, the team I manage has made over 500 hires for a FTSE 250 business this year so I’d stack up my (real world and academic) experience against yours any day.

😆
Well you started the argument friend ..I was just trying to help the OP..perhaps before you poke your nose in the next time you might stop and think for seven seconds as to what kind of impression you are making ..
The way I read it ..full of your own self importance with your head stuck up your own arse ..
Oh ..and you don’t come close 😉

I just try and enjoy interviews.
It’s a chance to talk about yourself, and I’m always interested in how other companies work and what they do.
I spend as much time researching the company and job, and wouldn’t apply for something I couldn’t do, so go into it feeling reasonably confident (maybe misplaced but so what).
All this helps, I think, with overcoming nerves and gets me past the first few minutes.

full of your own self importance with your head stuck up your own arse

Yeah, you’ve got to watch that…

Im blinded by your ignorance
Some sort of expert are we ?

Well dumbbot, if it’s any consolation at least you’re getting the interviews.
I quit my job 4 months ago as it was driving me round the bend from boredom. Way too repetitive and my sanity was being called into question. Problem is it was a very specialised role and I’ve not been given any training in accredited qualifications or professional either.
So, my CV’s just a pile of crappy jobs and transferable skills. I’ve had two interviews out of almost fifty applications, neither of which I got, and I’m close to parking up somewhere, strapping some hose pipe to the exhaust, feed it through the window and sit there smoking away if I’m to be honest.
Basically enjoy the fact you’re getting the interviews there’s many that aren’t.

I find an aid memoir quite a useful prompt.

Ended up not needing to use mine this week and that I got it! 😀

I even left 20mins later thinking that I could have added so much more for the better.
I also found my mind went blank straight after and now it’s all a lovely bizarre haze in a good way.

All I can say is, that I feel for you having experienced the same and that when it’s right, your vibes and language will flow positively.

All the best.

Why are you interviewing? Is there a reason, like recent redundancy, which has dented confidence in your own skills? If so, try to address that first. I would agree with hodgynd’s example, don’t come across like a cock in the first 15 seconds and then you can build from there.

Unknown
Whoops a diddle ..are you back again?..I thought you had better things to do ( than argue )..
Why have you got involved? ..
I have given you an opportunity to disprove my fact ..which you have chosen to ignore or basically cant and all you seem to want to do is argue..either prove me wrong or stfu..
Thanks..

Why am I interviewing? I want new job! My ‘career’ is a bit of a car crash having been derailed by my own illness and that of my immediate family. I’m currently self employed(not entirely through choice) and want to get back to something more suited to my skills(whatever they are).

As you can probably guess by the self deprecating user-name confidence is something I’ve always struggled with, i’m not shy, just rather introverted with my abilities which is not really helpful in an interview situation.

@Raggatip,..

Well mate, it’s not much of a consolation when i keep getting to interview stage it appears they like me on paper…but not in real life 😕
Chin up fella, i hope things improve.

I wish you luck ..when you go into that room ..relax,head up,smile and above all maintain eye contact ..after that it’s up to you

If you’re getting interviews then, not that I’m an expert as you now know, but I get the impression your skills and job expectations match. If you need to improve your interview technique then it might be worth doing some reading.

“Smart answers to tricky interview questions” Dr Rob Young
“Answering Tough Interview Questions for Dummies”

are two books I got from the local library. I think if you read those you may not necessarily have the answer for the question they throw at you in the interview but you’ll go in with more confidence.

You’re at the interview so they saw something on your CV that they like so just tell your story.

This coming from somebody that really seems to have no clue.

Having been in the same firm for ten years I’ve been isolated from the ruthlessness that is today’s jobs market. Seeing the number of jobs available, thinking I’d be alright and quitting with nothing to go to I’m finding it seriously tough. Can’t claim benefits because of my savings so at least I’m guilt free in that respect but I do feel foolish.

I’m pretty sure I’ve seen you say this on her before and it’s still rubbish. Care to share what qualifies you to make that statement?

I don’t think there are any qualifiers for this subject other than having taken and given interviews.

These type of questions are so standard and formulaic that they only highlight good bullshiters with a story. They don’t show any thought process of how a problem or task is to be solved.

I am sorry if this challenges your formula that you have run for a period of time. You may however want to hire bullshiters

The mistake most people make with interviews is that they think the interviewer cares what you want. They don’t, all they care about is their ‘problem’ and they are looking for someone who can solve it so I suggest presenting yourself in that way and steering clear of telling them that this will be good career development, or that you’ll find the job interesting because they don’t care.

You need to simplify the whole thing. There are only 2 types of questions, why should I give you the job (tell me about yourself, what can you bring to this role etc) and why shouldn’t I give you the job (what’s your biggest weakness etc) If you get the former sell sell sell, if you get the latter say the least damaging thing and shut up as quickly as possible.

Interviews are sales pitches At the end of the day if the buyer (interviewer) doesn’t want to buy what you have to sell then it’s not a slight on you personally. It’s about being the right solution for someone’s problem.