People would congratulate us for being invited to a job interview, but it is our job to ace it and making us more likely to get hired. To achieve this, we should try to avoid common job interview mistakes:
1- Criticizing previous or current employer: We shouldn’t put down previous employers or the company we are currently trying to leave. This would give off the impression we are a negative individual who can’t easily let go of the bad past. It also makes the hiring staff wonder whether we will think similarly about future employers. This surely won’t make us look good.
2- Missing opportunities to prove ourselves: Interviewers would try to give us an opportunity to prove ourselves by giving specific questions. We should answer questions using the “Example, Specific, Results” (ESR) responses. This allows us to make the most of an interview session. We should identify questions that offer us the opportunity to answer using these responses. In essence, we could give interviewers examples of previous achievements, specifics on how we achieve them and the kind of measurable results that may also benefit future employers. We could make these responses by doing our homework ahead of time to portray what happened accurately. We should be aware that the hiring staff might verify our story with previous employers to match what we said.
3- Offering wrong recommendations: When we first hit the highly competitive job market, we may not have any strong connections who serve as our professional recommendations. Obviously, we couldn’t use our mom, uncle or best friend as a reference. Young people who just graduated from college could find it difficult to identify proper references that they can safely use. Employers are generally aware that fresh graduates lack proper professional references. However, we shouldn’t make mistake by bringing a letter from our parents stating how wonderful child we are. This won’t go over well with future employers and they won’t take us seriously.
4- Expressing ourselves poorly on social media: Social media websites allow companies to vet prospective employers. Before we walk into any job interview, there is a possibility the hiring staff have looked at our Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Tumblr or LinkedIn pages. Our interview could be doomed if they dislike what they see. College students tend to post bad or even indecent things on the social media sites. Months before the graduation, students should start removing improper posts on their social media account, if there is any. It is a good idea to post positive, professional topics that relate to our expected careers. Our photos in wild parties aren’t what future employers want to see and they won’t do us any favor.
5- Bringing kids along: Although this sounds a very obvious requirement, some people still bring their children along during interviews. This is a sign that future employees can’t meet the company requirements. If we have children in tow, improperly dressed and don’t do enough research; we are showing that we are not prepared to work productively without interruptions.