Common interview mistakes.

On the interview day, it’s not unusual to feel nervous and sweaty. It goes to show that we are human and interviews make many of us feel uncomfortable. Having prepared ourselves for the interview, it’s of significance to realize some of the Common interview mistakes that we could possibly make. Here are some of them.

Not being punctual.
Punctuality for an interview shows respect. Respect to oneself and one’s time and respect to the person(s) interviewing you. Arriving late or too early is a mistake that people make. Arriving late portrays selfishness and rudeness. It’s impolite to keep people waiting for you. It goes on to taint your work ethic image because then it displays a possibility that you will presumably be late for appointments and even delivery of projects. Arriving too early may throw the interviewer(s) off balance because they may be engaged elsewhere. 10 to 15 minutes arrival before the meeting is good timing.

Appearing unpolished.
This includes dressing inappropriately and/or looking messy. Looking shabby and unprepared is a mistake. Looking unrested and sleep deprived is also a mistake. It shows a lack of balance and preparedness. Appearing unpolished is a reflection of how your work output may be. Further, it creates a bad picture on the eyes of your interviewer(s). Dressing unprofessionally displays the inability to rise up to occasions and expectations. It highlights that your ability to conform to different company ethics may be a problem in the future.

Vague answers.
The interview is full of questions. It’s bad when you haphazardly throw answers. Your answers should not be ambiguous, leaving the interviewer(s) to join the dots for themselves. They may make conclusions which are not favorable for you. When answering questions, it’s good to accompany them with concrete examples. For example, question; Have you had a leadership role? Answer should include an example showing a practical scenario(s) where you were a leader.

Not knowing details in your resume.
Not knowing your resume in an interview is like not knowing yourself. This is because your resume represents your career journey. Being unprepared and not going through the resume may put you in an awkward situation. Sometimes you may have tailored your resume to fit a particular job description, it’s good to go through it once more so you familiarize with what you may have included or eliminated.

Speaking badly about your previous employers.
There are ups and downs in many work places . There are challenges that we may encounter. Strengths and weaknesses coexist just like good and bad experiences. If you had a bad experience, it will not be wise to spill all the beans in an interview context displaying all the negative traits of your previous employer. This is because there is always two sides of a story. In this case , the previous employer is not there to tell their truth and the interview is not about them either, it’s about you. Moreover, if the company hires you and perhaps you have a bad experience with them, they also risk you bad mouthing them to other people. No one wants an ill-speaking person on their side.

Having no questions to ask.
In majority of the interviews, there is always a chance for you to ask questions. It’s important to have some ideas on questions you can ask. For example, What do you like most about working in this company? Questions show interest and prove that you want to know about the company too. Having no questions is like saying I don’t care about anything else. It shows an overconfidence or lack of it which are both extremes and not pleasant in interviews.

Poor mobile phone etiquette.
Mobile phones have become a part of our lives. We can’t deny that we move around often with them. Many people regularly check their phones. In an interview context, playing around with your phone shows poor etiquette. The phone can wait while you are interviewing. Put your phone on silent so that it will not be a cause of distraction. Additionally, don’t keep checking it a lot. Put it in your bag. Rather take your CV and be going through it.

Asking very personal questions.
Making people feel uncomfortable is a turn off. Personal questions include questions touching on race, gender, family and children. It displays impoliteness and insensitivity. Keep away from questions in this scope.

A job interview is not a test of your knowledge, but your ability to use it at the right time.