{"id":32760,"date":"2014-10-28T08:55:22","date_gmt":"2014-10-28T08:55:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.joblife.co.za\/?p=32760"},"modified":"2020-12-24T07:04:20","modified_gmt":"2020-12-24T07:04:20","slug":"overcoming-interview-anxiety","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.joblife.co.za\/blog\/overcoming-interview-anxiety\/","title":{"rendered":"Overcoming Your Interview Anxiety"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nobody would pretend that being interviewed by a prospective employer isn\u2019t nerve wracking<\/a>. After all, the stakes are high: being turned down means financial insecurity, more job hunting<\/a> and the not-so-little issue of your self esteem. But anxiety before and during a crucial interview can quickly become a self fulfilling prophecy. Managing your nerves on the big day and confidently presenting yourself lets your employer know you are secure and able to manage stress. Here\u2019s how.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Practice<\/strong><\/p>\n

Deal with the scary unknowns of the interview room by rehearsing an interview. Brainstorm questions you may be asked<\/a> (including those awkward ones you\u2019d rather not answer) and practice with a friend. Pay attention to your breathing, voice, posture and facial expression. You\u2019ll feel more calm about doing the interview if you feel like you\u2019ve done a few dry runs beforehand.<\/p>\n

Take care of the practical things<\/strong><\/p>\n

On the day, you\u2019ll need all your energy and focus for the interview. Don\u2019t sabotage yourself by getting stuck in traffic, forgetting to prepare a good outfit or waiting till the last minute to find out where the interview actually is. Prepare a few days in advance so that you\u2019re well slept and have had a good breakfast. Then, arrive early and gather your thoughts.<\/p>\n

Be your (best) self<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sure, employers want to see someone who is going to be a real asset to them, but don\u2019t be afraid to show your genuine, human side. Think of the interview as a conversation rather than an interrogation, and show them everything that makes you special – including a few little quirks. If you don\u2019t feel like you\u2019re play-acting the perfect employee, you can relax and let them see how awesome you actually are.<\/p>\n

Do your homework<\/strong><\/p>\n

Be a boy scout and be prepared. Don\u2019t just brush up on your skills and history – do some research on the company, their vision, their staff, recent news and the general tone of their business. This will prevent awkward moments and give you the opportunity to pitch more directly to them.<\/p>\n

Be open and warm<\/strong><\/p>\n

Nervous people are communicating the fact that they feel under threat. Change your mindset: your employer is not an enemy, only a new person who you\u2019re getting to know. Nervousness often comes from having a shaky self esteem or feeling overly-invested, so combat this by meditating beforehand on all your great qualities, staying positive and curious, and presenting a warm, receptive attitude during the interview.<\/p>\n

Lower the stakes<\/strong><\/p>\n

You\u2019re nervous because you\u2019ve weighed the interview very heavily. Trick your brain by making yourself think of the interview as less important than it is, at least temporarily. Remind yourself that there are other jobs out there<\/a> and that it\u2019s OK to fail. This way, you can relax and let go of being perfect – ironically allowing you to probably have a better interview!<\/p>\n

It\u2019s natural to be nervous during something as important as a job interview, but don\u2019t let nerves derail all your efforts. Try to channel stress before the big day into preparing yourself well<\/a>, pumping up your confidence and practicing portraying the best, most confident parts of yourself.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Nobody would pretend that being interviewed by a prospective employer isn\u2019t nerve wracking. After all, the stakes are high: being turned down means financial insecurity, more job hunting and the not-so-little issue of your self esteem. But anxiety before and during a crucial interview can quickly become a self fulfilling prophecy. Managing your nerves on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":32761,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[19],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.joblife.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32760"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.joblife.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.joblife.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.joblife.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.joblife.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32760"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.joblife.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32760\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":171920,"href":"https:\/\/www.joblife.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32760\/revisions\/171920"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.joblife.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.joblife.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32760"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.joblife.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32760"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.joblife.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32760"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}