5 Things you should never say in a job interview

Sometimes it feels as though I’m stuck in Groundhog Day where everyday, or an event, is a repeat of a previous one. Earlier this week I overheard a colleague having to explain a few basic interviews techniques to a candidate who has changed jobs several times before but who plainly felt the need for guidance and reassurance.

We all know that job interviews are never easy and they’re especially stressful when opportunities are so few and far between, as they are at the moment with the European economy going through its travails.

When you have at last secured an interview, the single most important thing you can do is prepare and practice, by doing both a run-through with a savvy friend, and then doing a self-review. This practice should help settle your nerves and help you work on weaknesses. So, on the back of some surreptitious eavesdropping here are 5 things never to say to the line or recruiting manager:

1. Something they’ve heard a million times before
Some people just love interviewing others and spurring them to be creative and compelling in their answers. Others ask the same dull questions they’ve been asking for years. Whether your interviewer is inspiring or barely conscious, you’ll need to come up with new answers to what are likely old questions. Never be cliché. For instance, don’t tell the interviewer you are a people person. Prepare and practice your talking points prior, and you’ll be less likely to rely on stock answers.

2. A request for any kind of concessions
You can’t do overtime because your children’s day care finishes at 5. You’d like to work from home part-time because you have a new puppy. You need an ergonomically-sound mouse and phone set-up. You’re not so into working on weekends, holidays, or your birthday. Especially in a first interview, you want them to want you — badly. Once they do, you can then ask for what you want, which includes specific questions about salary, benefits, or holiday time.

3. Anything that shows you’re over or under ambitious
Inevitably you will be asked the question “Where do you see yourself in 5 years?” A question which can make certain candidates answer too honestly (”I have no idea!”) or show their true colours (”Hopefully, in your job…haha…”). Helping you find your true passion isn’t really their problem, and the fact that you want to advance ASAP can also raise concerns that you’ll jump ship quickly.

4. Anything negative
You probably know better than to criticise your former boss. But you should be positive throughout the interview process. Don’t be negative about anything including your previous office, your old company’s personnel policies, traffic on the way to the interview, or the weather. That said, there are certain times to be constructively critical of your former corporation as well as the company with which you’re interviewing. The key is constructive input. What can you do to improve their situation with your skills and experience, instead of merely mocking it?

5. That you have no weaknesses
Yes, the question “What is your biggest weakness?” is incredibly annoying, boring, and irritating (see “Something they’ve heard a million times before,” above). But asserting that you are a perfect human being isn’t the answer either. That way you certainly won’t come across as credible if you say that you have no weaknesses. Ideally you should talk about a real weakness that is not central to the position that you are seeking and show how you have overcome that weakness. This will help the employer see you as a three-dimensional potential employee, instead of as a two-dimensional resume.

I truly don’t believe that any of the above is ground breaking news to the majority of job seekers, but equally it never does any harm to refresh one’s knowledge before you find yourself in the one interview situation that you didn’t want to be in.

As ever, thoughts and input more than welcome.
www.chestertongray.com