Interviews are one of the most universally dreaded experiences. During interviews, people are made to feel like they are at trial and have to explain away each claim on their resume. On top of that, the corporate world is very secretive about the interview rules that they actually expect all candidates to adhere to.
Interviews are nerve-wracking! But, they don’t have to be, especially if you can change your perspective of what corporate interviews are supposed to be for and what are some winning strategies to always succeed in them. That’s exactly what we are going to discuss today. There are some unspoken rules of corporate interviews that are not discussed often enough. These are helpful interview rules many interviewees aren’t even aware of.
I landed my dream job using some of these interview rules just a year ago. I have also hired some excellent candidates for my tutoring company. Having been on both sides of the table, here’s everything that goes unspoken during corporate interviews, but shouldn’t.
1. The Most Qualified Person Doesn’t Get the Job, Most Confident Person Does
Interviews are really about how confidently you present yourself and your skills. Companies will almost always pick the candidate that is sure of him/herself over someone who isn’t confident about their abilities (regardless of how well qualified their resume might be).
As described in great detail in the book “Quiet”, this world is made for extroverts to thrive. One of the qualities most extroverted people possess is confidence. Many extroverts can come off as very skilled regardless of their actual abilities. Other people are more likely to trust the opinions of confident people and their views. Even in roles that don’t require big decision-making or interactions with other people, confidence is one of the key skill sets. For example, even if you are a software engineer and work by yourself for the most part, you will need to confidently present the solutions that you come up with and rationalize your implementations.
When you lack confidence, people tend to underestimate your skills and qualifications.
If you aren’t naturally a confident person, it doesn’t mean you can’t fool the interviewers into thinking that you are. Here are some quick tips for looking confident (If you would like a detailed post on this, leave a comment below):
- Communicate clearly and concisely. Don’t rush through any answers.
- Treat your interview like a conversation.
- Visualize that you already got the job. This is just a formality.
- When you prepare for interviews, actually do a mock session.
- Research your interviewers ahead of time to find out what their background is and gauge what they will be interested in asking you
Confidence might not be required by the job description but is an absolute must according to the unspoken interview rules.
2. Being Likable is Key
What does being likable have to do with getting a job? Shouldn’t your qualifications speak louder than your personality? It definitely should. However, as quoted by John Maxwell, “Disappointment is the gap that exists between expectation and reality.”
Remember, the people that are interviewing you are the same people that you will be working with on a daily basis. People want to work with people they like. It’s a very natural human tendency. Most people working corporate jobs spend one-third of their day with their colleagues. It’s important to them that they like the people they surround themselves with every day.
Likability isn’t an exact science, but generally, finding commonalities between you and other people is a great start to forming a connection. If an interviewer mentions a fact about themselves that resonates with you, express it. When they ask a question about a topic that excites you, compliment them on the question and thank them for asking that question before answering. “That is such a good question. I am glad you asked. I actually have some experience with…”
At my current job, there was an opening for a position recently. During the screenings, the hiring manager really liked a candidate who wasn’t qualified for this job. However, he ended up getting the next interview because the hiring manager wanted to get to know him better for future opportunities.
Being likable is definitely an unspoken interview rule.
3. Fakeness is the Ugliest Color
When you are disingenuous during interviews, it shows. This doesn’t mean you can’t hide some of your weaknesses and highlight your strengths. It just means don’t go overboard.
This is especially true when showing your enthusiasm about certain topics. It is essential to demonstrate genuine passion, but definitely don’t overdo it. People can spot fake enthusiasm from miles away.
When discussing your values, make sure you subtly highlight those that align with the company. However, they definitely shouldn’t match word for word to the company motto.
If you don’t know the answer to a question, be truthful about it while mentioning your abilities to learn new skills/topics quickly. If you need some time to answer a question, ask the interviewer if you can take a minute instead of rambling. Definitely don’t say you can do something when you can’t (unless it’s easy to learn before you start the job).
You might have heard the phrase “Fake it till you make it”, but actually doing it is very stressful and anxiety-causing. I have been at a job before that I wasn’t qualified for. The feeling of inadequacy on a daily basis at work is something I would never put myself through again.
4. Bring Up Money is Off Putting
Generally, the recruiter or HR person will ask you about your salary expectations during the phone screening. Mention a range that includes how much you would realistically want to be paid. The lower end of the range should be your minimum ask and the higher end of the range should be the number that would truly make you happy. Always give a range instead of giving an actual number.
After the initial screening, it is not in good taste to bring up the topic of money during the subsequent interviews. Personally, I think the pay range for any job should be advertised along with the job description. Sadly, it isn’t. Keeping the topic of money such a taboo is just designed to be advantageous to the groups in our societies that are already fortunate and privileged. However, the way the current corporate world works, discussing money before you have been extended an offer will not give the best impression.
I would say it would be more acceptable to ask the recruiter during the screening what the pay range for this job is before you give them the range that you are expecting.
Avoiding the topic of money during interviews is definitely one of the unspoken interview rules.
5. Don’t Disclose Your Current Salary
If at any point in the recruiting or interviewing process, you are asked to reveal your current salary, you don’t have to give this information. Feel free to politely say “I don’t feel comfortable revealing that information.”
If you mention your current salary, it really takes away your negotiating power. You want to be able to negotiate the salary for the job based on your skills and the demands of the job. Your salary potential shouldn’t be locked by how much you currently make.
Just remember that you have no obligation to tell them your actual salary, the same way that there is no legal obligation for them to tell you the real pay range.
6. They will Go the Extra Mile For the Right Candidate
Finding the right candidate for a job (especially a highly specialized job) is extremely hard. Now that job applications have become extremely accessible for everyone, weeding out unqualified people is difficult. So when the company finds a candidate that fits the job description perfectly, they are vulnerable during negotiations. Trust me, they do not want to start their search again. They will make room to accommodate your needs.
This only applies to specialized jobs that require specialized skills. It’s much harder to negotiate as someone just starting out with their first or second job.
In my team, we had an opening for a job that required two sets of skills. We could only find people that had either one of the two skills, but not both. We found a candidate whose asking salary was 30% higher than the maximum allowed salary for that position. The manager was able to get approval to change the job title of the position (for corporate ladder reasons) to accommodate the higher salary.
Here are some unspoken interview rules I embodied when I got a job offer for my dream job.
7. An Interview is a Two Way Street
If you have been in the corporate world long enough, you know how important it is to scope out the company culture and the manager before taking a job. Most people quit jobs because of the corporate culture or the manager.
Your needs are just as important as the employer’s needs. Before the interview, write a list of questions that you want to ask the interviewers about the culture of the team and the company. Have a separate list of questions for the manager about his/her management style. This is important because you will never thrive working under the wrong manager.
During the interview for the job I currently have, I actually pulled out my list of questions and asked them one by one. I was later informed by the manager that he really liked my approach. It showed that I was organized and really cared about this job. It helped them understand where my priorities were and assured them that I would be a good cultural fit for the team.
If you would like to know the list of questions that I had prepared to ask them, let me know in the comments. I would love to share the list.
8. General Etiquette is a Must
I think we are all aware of the general etiquette of interviews. It’s not optional, it gives people a very bad impression if you don’t embody these etiquette interview rules. In the corporate world, this is the least they will expect from you.
I’m sure you already know all these if you have gotten at least one job offer in your life. However, I will mention the interview rules anyways for the sake of making this article cohesive and complete.
- Arrive AT LEST 15 minutes early. Arriving ON TIME is equivalent to arriving late.
- Dress Business professional! Just one search on google should tell you what does or doesn’t fall under this category.
- Be polite and respectful of others’ time Even when you don’t agree on something or decide mid-interview that this job is definitely not for you.
- Come prepared. At the least, you should know every detail of the job description and what the company does.
- Have printed copies of your resume with you.
9. Sharpen Your Storytelling Skills
As long as you treat interviews like conversations, there is no need for any nervousness or anxiety. More importantly, treat them as a conversation in which you are telling stories about your professional life. Regardless of what your answer is to an interview question, how you lay out the answer and deliver it is more important.
Methods such as “STAR” are great for telling stories in a manner that provides the most impact. The great thing is that this method works for all interview questions that require lengthy answers. A method like the “STAR” method keeps your answers organized and concise. When using the method, you are less likely to miss any details or use a lot of filler words like “like”, “umm”, or “Ahh”.
Great storytelling also requires practice. Practice your stories and then practice some more. Mock interviews help you find your weaknesses and correct them before your real interview.
Great storytelling is a must for successfully nailing an interview. Unspoken corporate Interview Rules!
10. Trace Your Answers to the Job Description
The easier you make it for the interviewers to find the information they need from you, the better impression you will leave as a well-rounded candidate. The interviews really just want to make sure you have experiences that gave you the skills required by the job description. Increase your chances of getting a job offer by serving your interviewer this information on a silver platter. Interviewers on the panel are just the regular employees on the team that have to do these interviews on top of their daily job duties. The easier you make this interview for them, the better their evaluation of you will be.
How exactly can you do this? Before the interview, make a spreadsheet with three columns: Job Description Item, What Question The Interviewer Can Ask, and What Experience I have Related to The Job Description Item. Now, your third column has all the talking points for the interview. Find ways to present them in a storytelling form.
No matter what question the interviewer asks, you will find a way to describe how you have an experience that relates to some portion of the job description. Politicians use the same method for answering interview questions. They memorize some talking points and find a way to answer any question by relating it to the talking point.
11. It’s Probably Not You
Have you ever gone for an interview that you believed you absolutely nailed? However, you didn’t end up getting the job offer. The corporate world is very political. The reason you don’t end up getting a job is no fault of your own a lot of the time.
When internal employees apply for the jobs, they get preference over all external candidates. When a candidate comes with a referral from an internal employee, they already are a step ahead of you. There could be a multitude of reasons why you don’t get the jobs you are perfect for.
Never let the politics of today’s corporate world get you disheartened. Assume that you were not hired because of reasons beyond your control and move on.
I hope this list of unspoken corporate interview rules creates more awareness and help you land your dream job.