In the job market experienced interviewers become very good at determining the quality of candidates. Depending on the job an interviewer can usually determine within 5mins if a candidate looks promising, or if they do not. There are many things that a candidate can do right to ace an interview, but likewise there are many things that a candidate can do wrong to completely screw up their chances. Below is a list of the top 10 ways you can mess up an interview:
Arrive Late
This is perhaps the biggest “no-no” in the book. Punctuality is absolutely crucial in every single job out there. If you arrive late then the interviewer will immediately think this guy is a “slacker”. Of course there could have been a good reason, like you saved a bus full of school children, but chances are you just slept in.
Arrive Disheveled or worse.. smelly!
Looking good for the first interview is important. Some folks think that you should be hired for your brain and not for you looks. That's fair, except your fellow employees won't be looking at your brain all day. If you look like a slob then you'll be treated like a slob. Even worse is if you smell during the interview (bad breath, bad bo), then it'll immediately give a bad impression. You don't need to smell like roses… but a little deoderant helps ;)
Do not prepare
Not preparing for the interview is a perfect way to screw it up. Forgetting the company name (I've heard of this happening), or not knowing the companies products will put a frown on any interviewers face.
Argue with the interviewer
Some folks take stress in different ways, if you find that you are getting angry at the interviewer then chances are you not getting that job. Often interviewers will “egg on” the interviewee to see if they can get emotions out of them. If you frown, yell, or say something rude like, “you're the biggest idiot I've ever met”, you might as well leave the building.
Act too Needy
If you act desparate or/and too nervous then this will cause all sorts of alarm bells to go off in the interviewers head. Even if you do well with the questions the interviewer will think, “what is wrong with this person? Why are they so nervous?”. Some of the better interviewers will cut through the nervous layer and get to your qualifications, but if the job requires confidence then chances are you won't get it.
Act too Egotistical
Folks who have big egos are either (1) inexperienced, and have never been properly challenged or (2) experienced and hiding their inadequaties. Either way if you come across as being egotistical the interviewer is not going to be amused. They may try to break you down to understand your full qualifications… or chances are just write you off as a jerk and quietly end the interview.
Look impatient
You want to give the interviewer the impression that this is the most important interview you've ever had. When they say something nod, if they start rambling on about some boring TSP sheets then smile and ask the right questions. On the other hand, if you really want to destroy your chances of getting hired then look at your watch, daze off in the distance, or yawn when the interviewer is talking.
Act Dumb
There are many ways to act dumb, you could ask irrelevant questions or as above in (7) daze off into the distance. Probaly the worst thing you could do is answer all the interviewers questions incoherently. This is a perfect way to get an X on the interviewers scoreboard.
Do the opposite of your interviewer
If the interviewer looks at you then stare away. If he crosses his arms then open yours. When he talks make sure you frown. These are pefect ways to make sure there is no connection between you and the interviewer.
Puke
At the end of the interviewer make sure you take your wet, smelly hand and shake the interviewers hand. Then look him in the eye, say thanks for giving me the time, and proceed to projectile vomit all over his nice suit. If steps 1-9 didn't mess up your interview this one certainly will.
This completes the top 10 mistkaes you can make during an interview. Hopefully some of them are useful… of couse many of them are not because they were in jest ;). If you have any additional interview please respond with your comments.
