By Dyllan Cook, Career Jack
**The following blog post is based on true events and contains explicit interview horror stories. Viewer discretion is advised.**
Halloween is quickly approaching and NAU Career Development is getting into spirit. Balance is key to doing great during an interview. Did you know you could actually make too much eye contact? NAU Career Development has created a list of horrifying, yet true, things people have done during an interview to help you in not repeating their mistakes.
- When you are meeting an employer for the first time in person, it is important to make the right impression. The outfit you choose can either make or break you, never dress too casual or too done up.
TRUE STORY: A fellow Career Development team member once interviewed a person who showed up in their soccer uniform… terrifying, I know.
- You want to make appropriate eye contact with all of the interviewers in the room. Too much eye contact and you’ll scare the employer, too little eye contact and you’ll come off nervous and insecure.
TRUE STORY: An interviewee wore sunglasses throughout an entire interview. How can a potential employer reciprocate appropriate eye contact if they can’t even see your eyes?
- Everyone knows that an interview means answering questions that they employer has for you, but did you know that you’re interviewing them just as much as they’re interviewing you? Always prepare 3-5 appropriate questions that aren’t in regards to pay rate or vacation days.
TRUE STORY: The interviewer can also be guilty of asking inappropriate questions. A fellow team member was once asked about her social life and whether or not it would interfere with her work. All of these are prime examples of what NOT to ask during an interview.
- A firm handshake is an important part of any first impression. There has to be a happy medium between too hard and too soft. You don’t want a death grip but you also don’t want to be too gentle to where your arm is so limp it resembles that of a dead fish.
TRUE STORY: A team member once interviewed someone who spent the entire time biting their finger nails… needless to say, we never did find out what kind of handshake style they possessed.
- When sitting in an interview it is important to remain calm, poised, and have good posture. When you’re nervous it is common for people to begin shaking their legs or fidgeting. You want to remain still without sitting extremely stiff with no movement at all.
TRUE STORY: A team member admits to interviewing a lot of people who suffer from chronic fidgeting during an interview. They said that when a person is moving around and fidgeting, it takes away from what you are saying and they end up missing key points of your story because they are distracted.
These may not seem horrifying to you, but they can keep you from landing a job. Are you scared to see what your interview habits are? Schedule a mock interview on Handshake with a Career Development staff member today and reveal your spooky habits.