There have been instances when I had all the qualifications necessary for jobs and some more. However, I didn’t get those jobs. When this started happening repeatedly with job interviews, I knew something needed to change with my job interview prep process.
Role of Confidence in Interviews:
When you are desperate to get a job, the interviewers can sense it. You never come off as confident or natural when you are desperate. Confidence can make the difference between getting a job that you aren’t fully qualified for and not getting a job that you ARE fully qualified for.
Confidence doesn’t just happen naturally. It has to originate from some competency factor. For example, you might feel confident if you know that you have all the qualifications necessary for the job. You may feel confident if you feel you have done all the preparation you possibly can before the job interview. Your confidence may be stemming from knowing that you have paid your dues and you completely deserve the job.
Note: As you read through this article, please keep in mind that I have been looking for a job on and off for about a year and a half. It did not happen right away, but when it did happen, it happened in a miraculous way. It was by no means just a lucky day, but all the preparation that I had been doing for over a year all of a sudden decided to pay off within a couple of days.
The Interview Experiences That Changed My Life
Let me tell you an interview story that literally changed my life and completely destroyed my fear of interviews. This was a job that I knew I was fully qualified for. It was the job that I always pictured myself doing when I was in college. This was my dream job. The stakes were so high for me.
I should have had all the confidence in the world to nail this job interview because of my qualifications. However, I had been burned before in very similar situations. I knew I had to prepare the hell out for this job interview if I wanted to hold it together during the interview.
I merely had 4 days to prepare. During these 4 days, I found everything that I could about the company and its products. I went through my entire resume and thoroughly explained each line on the resume. Next, I went over the explanations 2-3 times until the information started flowing naturally.
I scoured the internet to find the most commonly asked behavioral questions and wrote answers to all the questions in detail. I then went on glassdoor and found interview questions specifically asked by the company I was interviewing with. The 16 pages long interview question guide that I created was ironclad. I knew them inside out. There was nothing that could come my way that I wasn’t prepared for.
Most importantly, I made sure that there was nothing on my resume that I couldn’t demonstrate knowledge of.
Despite all the preparation, on my way to the interview, I was a gigantic ball of nerves. I missed my exits twice on the highway. The 30 minutes drive to the job interview location took me an hour to reach. (That should tell you exactly how nervous I was).
You might ask why were you nervous if you were so well prepared and if you knew you were qualified for the job. Well, that’s the effect multiple failures have on your self-confidence.
The Moment That Made The Difference
The single moment that made the difference between this interview being a total disaster or a complete success happened at a traffic light. I was about 1 minute away from reaching my location. While stopped at a red light, I had an epiphany. I actually took a moment to realize how much I deserved this job.
This was the time I actually knocked some sense into myself. Was I going to let 4 days of hard work (nay! literally over a year’s worth of hard work) go down the drain because I couldn’t calm down my nerves? How the hell is being nervous even helpful? Haven’t I been trying to find a job for one and a half years now? Why do I sabotage myself every single time? Don’t I owe it to myself to give this interview an honest chance?
For some reason, with all the stars aligning, this speech actually had some effect. It actually calmed me down. I actually felt extremely fierce. This felt like the first time when I told myself how useless my being nervous has been. I told myself that I will go in there and just be myself.
I reminded myself that I have done all I can and this is the time to let go and let my body go on autopilot. Let me tell you! I was filled with confidence. I felt like I was having an out-of-body experience during the interview. Never did I ever imagine myself being so myself during an interview. I truly saw the power of confidence.
So, What Happened During The Interview
My first round of interviews went so freakishly well that I was actually looking forward to the next round. Never did I ever feel so many positive vibes in an interview room. I could just feel the interviewers be so interested in everything that I was saying because I was speaking confidently.
Another thing that made a HUGE difference during this job interview was my being brutally honest. I did not exaggerate or underplay any aspects of my qualifications. The two jobs that I have gotten so far in my life have both had this aspect in common. When you are being 100% honest during your interview, it does get communicated to the interviewers. The interviewers can definitely sense when you are not being honest.
During my last interview round, I asked the interviewer if he had any reservations about my skills to do this job well. I asked if he had any doubts that I can clear up now. This question genuinely stunned him. He asked me if he can come back to the question. He did not have an answer for me at that time. Write after I was about to leave, I asked him the question again and he said he genuinely doesn’t have any reservations.
Keep In Mind…
Side note, I did prepare a list of questions I wanted to ask them, and I not only asked all of those questions throughout my four interview sessions but I also wrote down the answers for them. At least a portion of the job interview should be you interviewing them. Ask your questions confidently. Put them on the hot seat. This will make you feel equal to them. It will help tremendously with calming down your nerves and boosting your confidence.
Another thing to keep in mind during the interview is how YOU feel about the vibe of the company and the people. Can YOU imagine yourself there for the long term? Can YOU imagine yourself interacting with those people on a daily basis? How YOU feel in that environment is very important.
For my interview, the positive environment they created in the interview room merely through their presence told me a lot. I could just imagine myself being happy with the people and with the environment.
Finale
When I was leaving the job interview, I had a feeling that I might get the job. However, to my absolute surprise, they offered me the job the VERY NEXT DAY. I can’t believe this happened to me. This experience might change the entire trajectory of my career now that I know the power of confidence and how to embody it. Not only did this experience help me get this job but it eliminated my fear of interviews.
I have since accepted the offer. I can’t wait to start in two weeks. It’s such an exciting opportunity with so much room to grow.