Confidence in Interviews

Interviewing at any stage in your career can be a daunting experience for some. No matter how many times you’ve been in a formal or informal interview, sometimes you can’t shake the pre-interview nerves! We've laid out some tips below to help you prepare for any upcoming job interviews you have.

Here are Clarity’s TOP 5 TIPS to beat those interview nerves:

First Impressions, Feel Confident

“You never get another chance to make a first impression”

The first few moments of your interview can really impact how the rest of the conversation is going to go. So, what can give you the confidence to make a good first impression? Wear that nice top you have been saving, go get your hair done beforehand, pop on those new shoes! A lot of simple things can lift your mood which in turn will give you that extra confidence boost on entering the interview.

Eye contact & body language

“Eye contact beats any conversation”

Simple niceties go a long way - be ready to smile, look the interviewer or panel in the eye, put out your hand for a handshake (Covid-19 dependant), sit up straight and use your eyes and hands to convey passion and enthusiasm for the role! Don’t cross your arms and slouch. Although this seems very simple to say, we tend to get relaxed and forget about these important steps. Make a conscious effort to ‘check in’ on yourself during the interview. Showing off the right body language screams confidence to your interviewer, even if you don’t necessarily feel it at the time!

Prepare yourself

“Fail to prepare, Prepare to fail”

Take some time to investigate the company and people who will be conducting the interview. Look into the culture and vision of the organisation. Investigate their LinkedIn profile. The interviewer will see that you have taken the time.
Have questions prepared on the role or organisation before the interview, you will always get asked ‘Have you got any questions for me?” This is your chance to turn the interview around so the interviewer or panel have to talk for a while and this certainly helps to put you at ease and compose yourself.

Believe in yourself

“What you believe, you receive”

During your preparation you also get the chance to reflect on your accomplishments in your previous roles, use these as examples for answers and ensure to be proud of what you have achieved and above all believe in yourself!
Belief is a strong tool to have up your sleeve! And the best thing you can do for confidence is to believe you are confident.

Practice, Practice, Practice

“Practice Makes Perfect!”

We would strongly suggest a few hours to practise your answers to normal interview questions. A lot of good interview questions can be found through a simple google search or if applying through an agency they might have sample questions from previously interviewed candidates. We certainly do here in Clarity!
Take some time to not just think but say your answers out loud, notice where you pause, where you have to think about the situation or where you can’t answer the question. Try to resolve these pauses/moments before the planned interview as much as you can.
Ask a friend to ask you the questions and listen to your answer (even if they don’t know your sector they can still give feedback!)

At Clarity we can offer a number of options to help you feel prepared before your interview!

• We have sample questions that have been asked in previous interviews.
• We offer video or face to face interview preparations meetings.
• We can coach you through the best answers to give - Offering hints and tips along the way!

So if the thoughts of interviewing are the reason you are not applying for that dream new role today - get in touch! We are here to help!

Contact us today