First job interview in years and I choked.

[polm]

Had a technical interview today for an IT support position. I haven't interviewed in a very long time and I was nervous from the start.

I found myself fumbling over answers to questions and in some cases I flat out failed to deliver any sort of quality response.

Once I started choking it went downhill very very fast. By the end the interviewer was quick to thank me for my time and to assure me that I was NOT the right guy for the job.

Any advice on not letting my nerves get the better of me next time?

 

[BassBomb]

postulate typical questions and your answers to them ahead of time. This helps for those questions like

how do you handle _______?

 

[miri]

Just relax and don't be to hard on yourself.

Last fall I had a job interview for the first time in over a year and was nervous and it showed.

By the second interview though I was relaxed and did much better. Just relax during the interviews and don't overthink.

 

[HaiBiss]

Take your time, remember most of the time you are speaking faster than you think, form the answer, don't ramble. Easier said than done I know.

I always used the trick that it was one of my friends was the one doing the interview, what would I say to him.

 

[Nitemare]

just relax before you go into the interview. I prefer a little reggae to calm me down. Think before you answer the questions.

 

[brandonb]

Interviews are hard, but with practice you can become confident and you won't be as nervous.

Like BassBomb says, the best thing to do is think of those grey area questions:

Q) If given a problem, and you and your team are having trouble finding a solution, and the deadline was fast approaching, what would you do?

That is a grey area question that may or may not have a right answer. Some of them are trick questions.

A) I'd tell my boss about the situation and let them know it might not be done in time, and if there was anything I could do to help find an alternate plan as a workaround until we can get it done, I will help in those effortst. I will try to get the project done in time, but at this point because of x,y, and z it seems we are falling behind, and we are dependant on this or that before we can proceed, and I'll let you know any new developments as they come up.

Things like that. Some employers don't care if you are falling behind as long as they get enough notice to find something else to do. Some employers might expect you to work 24/7 until its done. The worst case scenario would be wait for the deadline to pass, and when the boss comes by tell them of it not being done then and especially don't point fingers then because it makes you look like a bumbling idiot.

Accountability is important in grey area matters, its ok to admit you are wrong or failing at a task provided you give your employer some notice so they can get more help or another plan/workaround in place...

Things like that.

 

[MotF Bane]

On the questions that you have an easy answer that you can give quickly, take your time. Set your pace as a little slower, and then if you get a question you haven't already considered beforehand, taking a few extra moments won't seem so out of place.

 

[Ramma2]

More interviews, and care less. Once I got some interviews under my belt, and realized that I wasn't going to die if I didn't get the job I was interviewing for, things came much easier.

Of course not caring about the interview was easy for me since I was still employed when I was looking. Your situation might be different.

 

[dawnbug]

Give yourself time to stop and think about what you want to say in response to a question before you start speaking. Better to wait a second and have a more fully formed answer than to just start rambling right away.

Difficult as it sounds, try to relax and be yourself. Go into the interview thinking that you're a qualified candidate and be prepared to tell them why!

I understand where you're coming from, though. I've got two job interviews next week (one for a job that right now I don't think I want) and I'm already nervous about them, thinking about what they might ask and what I want to say.

 

[brandonb]

Oh another thing.

I lost a job because it was a technical position for programming against an oracle db. I didn't have oracle db experience but I had Microsoft SQL server experience.

The lady on the phone was a human resources chick who didn't know the difference. So she just followed the script. I told her I had Microsoft SQL server experience when she asked if I had Oracle experience. She was like "Um. Ok so you have no oracle experience." I told her "Most database uses SQL to program against it, which both of those use, so if I know how to program for one, I basically know how to program against the other." So she was like "Um. Ok so you have no oracle experience"...

So another thing to try to remember is those who interview you might not know exactly what you are talking about, so think of ways to explain things well. If I had better communication skills I probably could have passed her question. But I failed and didnt get the job.

I should have told her "I have experience programming against databases, if you guys use Oracle, I can buy a book and quickly learn what I need to know to be productive in a week or less, so I'm confident it won't be an issue for the position. I can learn any minor differences very quickily."

Things like that. She might have just wrote down "Yes" if I knew oracle if I just found a better way to word it.

 

[clamum]

Take your time when answering questions. Don't be afraid to take a few moments to think before answering.

Come prepared. I think this is the biggest one, at least for myself. Write down some questions you think they would ask and the answers to them, both technical questions and personality-type questions. If you're not sure what sorts of questions could come up, do some searching on the Internet.

 

[Juked07]

A few drinks to loosen up?

 

[FeuerFrei]

Take the perspective that you are there to see if the company is right for you. Ignore the fact that they are scrutinizing you. Don't pressure yourself to match your answers with what you imagine they are wanting to hear.
I suck at job interviews too. If asked what my weaknesses are, I say "job interviews." I'm always extra nervous and stress about getting answers right. It's only the job hunting interviews that are nervewracking. If interviewing as part of my job, no sweat.

 

[markgm]

Fart loudly and not apologize as soon as you walk in to the interview.

 

[S Freud]

Show up to the interview in your underwear, I hear that helps people relax when speaking.

 

[huberm]

go into it realizing that your interviewers are just people too. The worst they could do is not pick you for the job.

Also, you are supposed to be interviewing the company as well. The interviewers should also be on their best behavior, trying to impress you. With that being said, your interviewer may be more nervous than you are!

Don't sweat it. If you've got the skills, realize going into it you have what they want. Everything else will fall into place if its the right match.

 

[andy04]

I gave a telephonic earlier this week... 1st one after 4.5 years, aced it... have been called for personal...
I googled interview Qs of my field... studies them and noted down the ones which i was uncomfortable answering...

 

[AstroManLuca]

Take some liquid courage beforehand.

 

[amdhunter]

Damn, every single interview I have ever had -- I've been hired.

Dunno if it's just luck of draw or not.

 

[Atomic Playboy]

Whip it out.

 

[imported_Imp]

Prepare, think about what they'll ask you, think up the answer beforehand.

When it comes to the interview, go in expecting not to get the job. Tell yourself you don't even want the job. The only interview where I was successful was when I went in with an "I don't give a shit" attitude. However, this attitude probably gave me a lot more confidence, which showed.

 

[Vehemence]

Answer your cell phone in the middle of the interview and talk loudly about some "bangin ass kegger" comin up with your friend, then hang up and continue the interview.

 

[Descartes]

I'm going to go against the common opinion here and say don't try to think about all the questions that you're likely to get. Unless you're interviewing for cashier at Starbucks, there's just not going to be any way to really prepare for the questions you'll get in a professional interview. How can you possibly anticipate what someone is going to ask you? Almost no one will ask you those same canned questions that we've all been coached to answer, and even if they do ask those questions it's worse if you regurgitate a canned response. IT interviews are often especially tough in this regard.

I've interviewed probably a few hundred people at this point. You can always tell the person that tries to can their responses, and you can literally see the hamster running in their head trying to find the answers they memorized. This is likely to make you more nervous, imo.

The best advice you'll ever get is to literally just be yourself. It's just a job. They're just normal people. If you interview with Bill Gates, then you might have something to be nervous about. People will appreciate confidence over correct answers, so find a way to relax and don't worry about being "right."

 

[randay]

bring a couple of hookers with you to the interview. and a gold cup studded with diamonds.

 

[lokiju]

Practice makes perfect.

I remember the job before the job I have now it was months of interview after interview before I finally landed something.

In time I felt like I had become a professional interviewer.

You just become more comfortable and don't like the questions throw you off.