Job interviews gone bad
Reprinted with permission from careersinmotion.co.za.
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If you want to make a good impression during a job interview, it is important to say the right things. Here are ten things you should avoid saying.
Job interviews can be an intimidating process. There are a number of good resources that will help you to learn what the right things to say are during a job interview. It is also important, however, to know what things you should not say during an interview. Here are ten things that you should absolutely avoid saying during an interview if you want to walk away with the job.
1. "I'm sorry I'm late."
If you want to start an interview off on the wrong foot, being late is a good way to do so. Make a good first impression by being on time. Being late tells the interviewer that you do not respect his time, that you are unorganized and that you do not manage your own time well. Most importantly, when you have to start off an interview by apologizing for being late, you have already established a dynamic where you are subordinate to the interviewer rather than being an equal. This will hurt you immensely during the negotiating process.
2. "I left my old job because my boss was a jerk."
A prospective employer does not want to hear you bad-mouthing your old boss. When she hears you complaining about what a jerk your old boss was, all that is going through her head is that, someday, this is what you will be saying about her. Even if your ex-boss was a jerk, your prospective boss does not want to hire someone who, it seems, cannot get along with others, cannot accept responsibility and who is not a team player. Stay away from the negative, and focus on the positive. For example, does this new position offer more opportunities for responsibility and advancement? These kinds of things are what your prospective boss wants to hear.
3. "I'm just looking to work here until something better comes along."
Sometimes in life, we do have to accept employment that is less than ideal in order to keep food on the table while we are looking for something more appropriate. Your prospective employer does not want to hear this, however. He believes in what his company does, whether it is flipping hamburgers or washing cars or constructing luxury high-rise apartments. Every company makes its own contribution to the whole of society, and when a prospective employer asks you why you want to work for his particular company, he wants to know that you understand, respect and value the significance of his company.
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