Most Common Mistakes People Make in Job interviews And How You can Avoid These Mistakes

Here are some mistakes to avoid in your next job interview:

Not knowing how you’re going to answer the tough questions

Don’t just hope for the best and pray that the interviewer won’t ask you any tough questions.

Every good interviewer is going to ask you a bunch of tough questions to pull you outside of your comfort zone and to get a feel for:

How you think
How you make decisions
How you solve problems
How you deal with conflict
How you deal with difficult colleagues/clients/stakeholders
How you deal with pressure and stress
How easy you are to manage
How well you work with others
How quickly you adapt to change
What motivates you
Your weaknesses

It’s your best interests to anticipate as many of these questions ahead of time and to know which examples you’re going to use to best demonstrate your accomplishments and strengths:

What are you looking to do? What is your ideal role?
What are your career goals? Where do you want to be 12 months from now?
What do you know about our company? What made you apply for this position? Why do you want to work here?
What do you consider to be your greatest career accomplishments? What are you most proud of?
Tell me about the most difficult and/or complex project that you’ve ever been a part of?
What are the biggest challenges you’ve faced in your current/previous role?
Where do you rank yourself in your current team compared to your colleagues? Why?
What do you rate your skills from 1-10?
How would your manager describe you?
How would your colleagues describe you?
Tell me about a time when you’ve had to solve a difficult problem? Take me through your thinking process and the steps you used to solve it.
Tell me about a time when you’ve innovated?
Tell me about a time when you’ve showed initiative and taken the lead?
Tell me about a time when you’ve had to deal with a difficult stakeholder?
Tell me about a time when you’ve had to deal with a difficult co-worker?
Tell me about a time when you’ve had to deal with a difficult client or customer?
Tell me about a time you’ve gone above and beyond to help a client or customer?
Tell me about a time when you’ve had a client move the goalposts on you and how you handled it?
Tell me about a time when you’ve had a disagreement with your boss and how you handled it?
Tell me about a time when you were under a lot of pressure and stress at work and how you dealt with it?
Tell me about a time when you’ve had to sell an idea to your colleagues or manager?
Tell me about a time when you had to adapt to changes over which you had no control?
Tell me about a time when you’ve had to adapt to a major change to your role and how you’ve handled it?
What is your greatest weakness? What are your areas for improvement?
Why should I hire you and not someone else?

Know how you’re going to answer the hard questions if/when they arise. Be prepared to speak about career breaks, why you quit your previous job (or wish to leave), and/or why you might have been fired or made redundant.

Not listening to/answering the questions asked of you

It’s a funny one, but there are a surprisingly high number of candidates who talk round and round in circles and do everything but answer the question asked of them.

Sometimes this happens because a candidate is totally in his/her own head. Maybe they’re nervous. Maybe they don’t understand the question. Maybe they’re just not listening or paying attention to what the interviewer is asking them.

If you don’t understand the question being asked of you, don’t be afraid to ask questions for clarification or ask the interviewer to rephrase the question. And if you don’t have a certain type of experience – just be honest. Don’t try to talk your way around it.

Not reading the interviewer/s in real-time

Don’t just go off into your own world or allow yourself to get distracted during an interview.
Pay attention to how you’re being received and read the interviewer/s in real time.
Look at the interviewer/s body language and facial expressions and watch how they react and respond to your answers.
Do they seem to like the examples you’re providing?
Do they seem to be happy with the answers you’re giving?
Are they ready to move on? Do they want to hear more?
99% of the time if you really pay attention you can tell whether you’ve answered the question ‘correctly’ or not because most interviewers aren’t very good at hiding their approval/disapproval whenever they hear an answer they like/don’t like.
If you really pay attention you can almost always tell whether you’ve answered the question ‘correctly’ or not because most interviewers aren’t very good at hiding their approval/disapproval whenever they hear an answer they like/don’t like.
99% of the time you can literally see the happiness/disappointment on the interviewers face when they hear an answer they like/don’t like.
If I’m being interviewed for a job and I have even the slightest doubt that the interviewer isn’t happy with an answer I’ve given or if I sense the slightest break in rapport I will start asking questions immediately before letting the interview proceed:
“Did I answer your question?”
“Would you like me to clarify anything?”
“Can I provide any extra details?”
“Would you like another example?”
During the interview it’s important to kill any potential monsters whilst they’re small instead of letting them build up into something big in the interviewers mind. Remember: Any small leak can and will sink the ship, so plug those leaks immediately as soon as you sense a break in rapport and don’t turn a blind eye to them.

Not reading between the lines

Don’t take any questions at face value.
Every question the interviewer asks you is for a reason. They’re not just passing the time. There is something they want to know or understand in your background.
Learn to start reading between the lines and think about WHY the interviewer might be asking you that question.

Why is this question being asked?

What do they REALLY want to know?

What are they trying to find out?

What is the intent behind this question?

Not building rapport with the interviewer

If the interviewer doesn’t like you, if they don’t trust you, if they don’t feel a connection with you, they’re not going to hire you. Even if they know you are the best candidate and can easily do the job.

Every interviewer asks themselves the following questions when interviewing a candidate:

Do I like this person?
Do I trust this person?
Can I work with this person?
Can I manage this person?
Will they fit into the team?
Can they do the job?

Always make an effort to connect with the interviewer/s without trying to force it.

Criticizing your previous employer

Some bosses suck. I get it. I’ve had my share of bad bosses and I’m sure you have too.

But don’t criticize your previous employer or manager no matter how bad they were. Even if you’re just being honest and telling it like it is, criticizing your previous employer will make you seem negative, and no one wants to hire someone bitter or angry with a chip on their shoulder.

You don’t have to lie/BS/say how much you loved it, but focus on the future and what you do want – not on your previous bad bosses/jobs and what you hated.

Another reason not to criticize your previous employers is because your potential new employer may wonder: “What would he/she say about us?”

Believe it or not: Employers and recruiters can often tell when you didn’t like your previous employer. You don’t need to spell it out for them.

If you are asked why you wish to leave your current company, don’t talk about the negatives of your current boss/job/company, instead talk about what you are looking for in a new role and why the role you are being interviewed for is a perfect match:

Career progression
Company/job is dream job – explain why
Desire to work with latest technologies
Greater responsibilities
Projects you will be a part of
People you will be working with
Different industry
Career change

If you do wish to mention some negatives these are acceptable:

Changes in company
Company restructure
Excessive commute
Lack of challenge
No room for advancement in current company
Role isn’t what it was advertised/promised to be by the interviewer
Small company – you wish to be part of a larger company

Don’t say:

Didn’t get along with colleagues
Didn’t get along with manager
Hated the job
Job was too difficult
Job was too stressful
Too much overtime

10 questions to ask at your next job interview

Have I answered all of your questions? Is there anything else you would like to know?
Can you take me through a typical day in this job?
What are the biggest challenges you and your team are currently facing? (When the interviewer is answering this question if you can give specific suggestions as to how you would deal with these challenges, or how you have overcome similar challenges in the past, you are likely to stand out from other applicants)
What are the main challenges a new hire would face in this role?
Tell me about your top performers: What is it that sets them apart from the rest? (If you listen carefully this is an opportunity for you to demonstrate your own skills and abilities in these areas. For example: If the interviewers favourite employees are proactive and constantly innovating, you can talk about those qualities in yourself – if they haven’t already been mentioned in the interview).
How would you describe your ideal candidate? (Same as above)
What advice would you give me if I was successful in this role? What would be the first things you would do in the role if you were me?
How will you know if your new hire is successful in this role six months from now?
What do you like the most about working in this organisation? (This gives the employer a chance to sell the organisation to you which is what you want)
Do you think I’d be a good fit in your team? Do you have any concerns about me as a candidate? (This question is important because it allows you to kill any potential monsters whilst they’re still small and to remove any and all doubt from the interviewers mind)

Not treating a phone interview like a real interview

Phone and Skype interviews are just as important as face to face interviews and should be prepared for the same way:

Do your research about the company, the role and the interviewer
Dress for success (even if it’s a phone interview putting on a suit will get you into the right mindset and you will feel different)
Know how you’re going to answer the tough questions
Answer the questions asked of you citing specific examples
Ask questions about the role

Other tips:

Find a quiet room where you won’t be disturbed
Focus and cut out all distractions
Have a glass of water in case you need it
Have your CV in front of you
Stand instead of sitting because it will make you feel more confident
Take notes as you go

PS: The advantage of a phone interview is that you can bring cheat sheets and notes with you to the interview. So long as it doesn’t sound as if you are reading from a script no one will know!

Not learning from your interview mistakes

In every interview you will probably make at least one mistake.

There is always a better way to answer a question, a better example you could have used, or something else you could/should have said to demonstrate your skills.

It’s OK to make mistakes, the key is to learn from them so you don’t make the same mistake again in your next interview.

Ask yourself the following questions after every interview: