To Crack any Interview, the secret mantra is to be Confident in the Interview and showing your positive side with energy and enthusiasm.
No matter how hard you try, if you feel nervous about a job interview, it’s virtually impossible to conceal your anxiety, your compulsive face-touching is a dead giveaway.
If you can tell a story or a joke around the kitchen table then you can do it in a job interview. However, often the nerves and pressure of an interview situation can make us act differently. Our body seems to behave in weird ways and the sound coming out of our mouth doesn’t seem to be our usual one.
In an interview, it’s important to come across as likable. So, to maximize confidence, your energy should be focused on building a rapport with your interviewer rather than impressing him or her.
We often get the idea that confidence is about holding court whereas it’s more to do with putting people at ease. It helps to focus on connecting with people rather than focusing on the performance.
The key to conveying confidence when you’re in the hot seat, then, is to keep calm and carry on. To stop nerves getting the better of you, here are some tips and exercises to help you nail those interviews:
- Confidence Boosting through Breathing Techniques:
Staying present by focusing on your breathing just before an interview should help calm nerves. When we are anxious our blood flows away from our brains as we are in fight or flight mode, and our cognitive functions can suffer. So slow, deep breathing will bring the oxygen back to your brains and help you to think clearly. Breathing and mindfulness exercises are helpful. - Prepare for the worst:
The best defense is a good offense, and knowing in advance how you’d handle an awkward interview scenario can mean the difference between letting your nerves get the best of you and handling the pressure with grace. When we force ourselves to face the worst and accept it mentally, we then eliminate all these vague imaginings and put ourselves in a position in which we are able to concentrate on our problem. You want to be authentic, but you also need to sell yourself. - Not speaking too quickly:
Nerves tend to make us speed up, so while you’re waiting for your interview, breathe in through your nose very slowly for a count of three. Then breathe out through your nose for a count of three. In that time you will have significantly lowered your heart rate and when you speak, you’ll find you won’t rush. - Preparation and Rehearsing:
If you go into an interview with prepared answers for most questions, it takes the pressure off and you walk in confident you’ll know your stuff. To make sure you’re well-equipped, rehearse potential interview answers with a friend. Look at the skills, experience, knowledge and personal qualities you have and think of examples showing how you developed these. It’ll make all the difference to your confidence. - Listen to the other:
When we’re crippled with fear and in full flight or fight mode, we find it hard to listen and often answer the wrong question. So try to slow down your body’s natural responses and listen, it will also help to make the other person feel special and show you value their question. - Lastly, be yourself:
If we are being ourselves when meeting other people, we will come across as relaxed, authentic, and confident. Try to use words you usually use.
So, enjoy the interview and be proud of your achievements, you’re already on the shortlist so they must think pretty highly of you already. Remember to slow down, listen and be yourself. If you do that, you’ll come across as relaxed, authentic, and confident.
