5 Interview Faux Pas
For the millions of college students out there, ’tis the season for interviews. Yes, the interview: that most uncomfortable of meetings between you and a prospective employer where you must dress the right way, say the right things, and avoid, at all costs, saying the wrong things. It is the last hoop to leap through before attaining your desired job. It could also end up being a flaming ring of doom and whirling blades that puts your career goals in intensive care.
We’ve all been tripped up in interviews. Interviewees have been known to screw up in pretty much every way possible. From bad breath to insulting the interviewer’s kids to completely forgetting what job you’re interviewing for to clogging their toilet, interviews tend to bring out everyone’s inner idiot. This phenomenon may be caused by nerves, over-confidence, lack of preparation, or just plain bad habits. Following are five of the most common faux pas people commit during job interviews:
1. Showing up late
As if the gods of chaos were suddenly unleashed to work mischief on
the mortal world, the darnedest things tend to happen on the day of
an interview to make you late. Cars have been known to break down.
Kids have been known to lose their Happy Meal all over
interviewee’s suits. Twenty-car pileups have been known to clog up
every known road and highway.
This does little to promote your image as a confident, capable professional, especially when you show up with your shirt untucked, mustard on your cheek, sweat drenching your suit, and a faint cloud of engine exhaust lingering around you.
2. Talking bad about previous
employers
Almost everyone has had an unpleasant experience with a past
employer. That’s usually why they’re looking for another job. When
you start up a new romantic relationship, it is common to tell them
how terrible and unfulfilling your last relationship was. This
makes your new friend feel good that you have completely detached
yourself from the last one. With employment relationships, however,
the opposite is true.
When you say, “Yeah, my last boss was a mindless drone, concerned only about profits and unable to loosen up and have fun,” the interviewing thinks you are unconcerned about profits, just out to party, unyielding, negative, and possibly toxic to organizational harmony. If you couldn’t get along with your last boss, why would you get along with your new one?
3. Dressing down
There is no one uniform that would suit every job interview. Shorts
and t-shirts may work in some. Crisp business suits may work in
others. It all depends on the type of company you’re interviewing
with.
Many individuals unfortunately make the mistake of dressing however best fits them, without considering the type of company they are interviewing with. Some self-absorbed hipsters have been known to wear mauve corduroy suits to interviews with investment banks. In any case, the I’m-too-sexy-for-this-firm approach really only sends one simple message: CLUELESS.
4. Responding that you are too perfect, brilliant,
or otherwise unchallengeable when asked what your biggest weakness
is
Nobody’s perfect. Nobody wants to work with someone who is
purportedly perfect. People who think they are too much of a
perfectionist, too brilliant, too incredibly gifted in tracking
general ledgers, etc., usually turn out to be: 1) not really that
good; 2) full of themselves; and, therefore, 3) impossible to train
or integrate into a team.
Besides, the “perfectionist” answer just feels like a cop-out. It shows that the interviewee hasn’t done enough introspection to identify a real weakness.
5. Not knowing anything about the company or the
position
After submitting applications and sending in resumes, some interviewees get to the
interview only to reveal that they really have no idea what the job
entails, what the company does, or if they are even remotely
qualified for the job. This is bad.
Depending on the interviewer, they may end the interview right there, make noticeably small talk for the remaining time, or take the time to educate the interviewee about the company and the position. Regardless, unless applying for an entry-level position with McDonalds, this usually spells certain doom for the interviewee’s chances of getting hired.
Don’t let these glaring mistakes ruin your career path. Plan ahead. Do some research beforehand and then approach them accordingly. This is your chance to strut your stuff. Don’t blow it!
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