The secret hacks to nailing a job interview

By Tom Haynes

It might be a weird flex to admit this but I am actually great at job interviews. Even when I have been rejected in the end I have been consistently told I “interview well”, which is nice because the 'writing cover letters and redrafting a CV' bit of job applications makes me want to put my head through a wall.

The secret, I find, is to convince myself ahead of time that I haven’t got a hope in hell of getting an offer. Pessimism gives way to zen, and as a result I rarely feel nervous when face-to-face with a hiring manager.

For some, interviews are anxiety inducing affairs, but I do think jobseekers can overthink them. When they come to consider your application, a hiring manager will already be aware of your key stats and what experience you bring to the role.?

Whether in person or over Zoom, an interview is mostly geared towards sussing out what you would actually be like to work with – a vibe check if you will.

Getting in your own head is therefore extremely detrimental to this. Yes, you should obviously do your research on the company you’re about to sit down with, stalk its employees on LinkedIn and think of a few intelligent questions to ask. But as for getting in the right headspace, there are a few tricks you can try out.

Rasa Urbonaite, of LA-based AI company Breezit, recommends the opposite approach to mine – by manifesting that you already have the job. “A job interview is quite a stressful event to me, not gonna lie,” she says. “I've been trained to speak with confidence, but at heart I'm an introvert.?

“To be honest, usually during interviews I just imagine that I'm not really there. I try to imagine that I am sitting at a coffee shop with my friend a few hours later and that I'm just telling her about the questions and the answers.”

Obviously interviewers can throw unexpected questions your way – ostensibly to test whether you can think critically on your feet, but mainly because they’re bored. But what do you do if you find yourself flummoxed by a curveball question?

Daniel Wolken, HR expert and Talent Acquisition Specialist at job board DailyRemote, says: “If an interviewer catches you off-guard, breathe and say, ‘That's an interesting point I hadn't considered. Let me think about that for a moment.’?

“This shows self-awareness and a willingness to learn. Hiring managers appreciate transparency – it's better than fumbling or avoiding the topic.”

Obviously not everyone can play it cool under pressure, so in some cases being open about your nerves can play well at interview. Josie Middleton, of marketing agency Bonded, recalls: “A candidate I have interviewed before has let me know they felt nervous, and this endeared me to them as it showed they cared about the interview.?

“It was a great way to break the ice and relax things, which, as a result, calmed their nerves down, and they went on to perform well for the rest of the interview.”

Ultimately an interview is not an interrogation. Remember that you have been invited here because the company is curious about you, not because they want to make you look stupid. So do your breathing exercises and have confidence in your own vibes.

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