Coping With Job Interview Nerves
Most people are nervous before a job interview, after all, there is a great deal riding on it.
Your future, your finances and your whole way of life are determined to a large extent by your career.
So it's crucial that you overcome your nerves when being interviewed for a job, especially one which is an important step on the career ladder you want to climb.
The problem is, that if you don't get the right job at the right time you could end up on a totally different path from the one you really want.
Added to which competition for good jobs is stiff and you don't know who your opponents are, which makes it all the more difficult.
So, faced with such a potentially stressful situation, it's fine to be nervous, but what happens if you are so nervous that you become tongue-tied and ruin your chances? There are several steps you can take to ensure that your nerves don't get the better of you.
First of all, do plenty of preparation.
Make sure you have read your application and can talk about every part of it with confidence.
This means making the most of all of your experiences, good or bad.
What skills did you gain, what lessons did you learn? What did you learn about yourself and what did you change when things didn't work out as planned? Be sure to research the company online and learn as much as you can about them by reading any information they send out.
This will enable you to talk intelligently about your reasons for wanting to work for them.
Think about which skills or experience that you have which are particularly relevant to this company.
If you are asked to give a presentation, prepare it in detail and practise giving it in advance.
You don't need an audience, although you might be able to rehearse in front of friends or family.
If so, ask for constructive criticism.
And always keep to the time limit.
Use positive body language, following the lead of the panel of interviewers, for example, if they offer to shake hands, give them your hand.
Make appropriate eye contact with each interviewer when they speak to you.
Appropriate means suitable for a job interview - a professional situation with people you don't know.
therefore your eye contact should not be intense, but should show that Some nervousness is to be expected and interviewers know that candidates feel this way.
In fact, they are probably nervous themselves, especially if they haven't had much interviewing experience.
If you follow these interview tips, you should overcome your interview nerves well enough to make a good impression.
Your future, your finances and your whole way of life are determined to a large extent by your career.
So it's crucial that you overcome your nerves when being interviewed for a job, especially one which is an important step on the career ladder you want to climb.
The problem is, that if you don't get the right job at the right time you could end up on a totally different path from the one you really want.
Added to which competition for good jobs is stiff and you don't know who your opponents are, which makes it all the more difficult.
So, faced with such a potentially stressful situation, it's fine to be nervous, but what happens if you are so nervous that you become tongue-tied and ruin your chances? There are several steps you can take to ensure that your nerves don't get the better of you.
First of all, do plenty of preparation.
Make sure you have read your application and can talk about every part of it with confidence.
This means making the most of all of your experiences, good or bad.
What skills did you gain, what lessons did you learn? What did you learn about yourself and what did you change when things didn't work out as planned? Be sure to research the company online and learn as much as you can about them by reading any information they send out.
This will enable you to talk intelligently about your reasons for wanting to work for them.
Think about which skills or experience that you have which are particularly relevant to this company.
If you are asked to give a presentation, prepare it in detail and practise giving it in advance.
You don't need an audience, although you might be able to rehearse in front of friends or family.
If so, ask for constructive criticism.
And always keep to the time limit.
Use positive body language, following the lead of the panel of interviewers, for example, if they offer to shake hands, give them your hand.
Make appropriate eye contact with each interviewer when they speak to you.
Appropriate means suitable for a job interview - a professional situation with people you don't know.
therefore your eye contact should not be intense, but should show that Some nervousness is to be expected and interviewers know that candidates feel this way.
In fact, they are probably nervous themselves, especially if they haven't had much interviewing experience.
If you follow these interview tips, you should overcome your interview nerves well enough to make a good impression.
