Don’t Do THIS in an Interview!

Have you ever wondered what goes through the interviewers mind when you walk through the door?  What is their first impression of you?  I hear those first impressions everyday from my clients and  thought I should share a few with you.

The following are true stories of what NOT to do!

Case 1– I received a call from my client indicating that the interview was scheduled for a young college graduate.  He showed up to the interview on time, paper in hand as well as his girlfriend!  He actually took the girlfriend into the interview with him.  He did not get the job.

Tip: Do not take your girlfriend/boyfriend to an interview.  Leave them in the car.

Case 2– I interviewed a very nice person with a qualified resume who I would have hired.  She showed to the interview in bright purple summer capris and a tank top.  To top it off  she had on so much perfume I could taste it.   The perfume is what stopped her from getting hired.

Tip: Dress professionally and leave the perfume/cologne at home.

Case 3– My customer interviewed a great candidate for a sales position.  He was excellent!  He had the job…almost.   The interviewer said he was going to hire him but decided to go with the other candidate simply because his shoes were not polished and it reflected on how organized and polished he would be in front of the customer.

Tip: Polish your shoes and wear professional, well pressed clothing.  Pay attention to detail!  Polish your shoes 2 nights before the interview as you know you won’t have time in the morning.

Case 4– Client invites person into the reception area.  Candidate is not prepared with resume, paper or pen.  Candidate does not get the job.   A pet peeve of the interviewer is when people don’t bring paper and pen to an interview.

Tip:  Think ahead! Two days before your interview, print at least 2 copies of your resume. Take at least the number of resumes as people you will be interviewing with.  Invariably your printer will not work the day before, you will run out of ink.  Put  together a folder with your resumes, paper and a pen and place in your car the night before.

Extra Tip:  Prepare in advance for the interview.  Think of 3 positive stories and 3 negative situations (that turned out well).  If you have thought of these ahead of time, you will not have dead space when asked a question.  You will not feel as nervous in the interview.  Do not ever bring up a story that ended badly for you.  Once you start on that story, it will be hard to recover! We have all had situations that haven’t been positive in our lives, those are learning experiences.