9 Ways To Crush It In Your Next Job Interview

Interviews are weird.

Put a bunch of strangers in a room (or a Zoom room),

So they can judge each other?

Awesome. And totally weird. 😅

Apparently, interviews are the least bad way for employers to figure out who they might want to hire.

That’s cool; let’s play. 🎲

The next time you go into an interview, here are 9 ways you can turn interview weirdness in your favor:

1) ✅ DO Be First or Last
When they offer you options about what day to interview
Choose the first one or the last
Because people tend to remember
The first thing (the Primary Effect)
Or the last thing (Recency Bias)
Stuff in the middle is easier to forget 😵‍💫
So, don’t put yourself in the middle

2) ⏰ DO Be An Early Bird
When they offer options about what time of day to interview
Choose mid-morning.
This is when most people are at their sharpest. 🧠✨
Avoid 2 pm at all costs
Because this is when most people (you and them) are likely cognitively weakest. 😴

3) DO Take Up Space
Before going into an interview
Listen to music that makes you feel inspired 🎶
Practice movements that make you take up more space 🕺
This will make you more assertive for the interview.

4) 🚫 DON’T Perform, Connect Instead
Take all the time and energy you might spend looking good
And divert that to connecting with the person you’re talking to 🤝
It’ll make you stand out; it’ll blow them away.

5) 🚫 DON’T Answer Their Questions
The only question
Anybody is really asking in a job interview is,
“Can I trust you?” 🧐
So, instead of focusing on their questions
Focus on your answers.
Specifically, answers that build trust 🤝

6) 🎤 DO Tell Stories
Humans make decisions based on emotions, not facts 💡
So, tell lots of stories in your interview 📖
Because stories are how we convey emotion
Help them remember how you made them feel 💫

7) 🗺️ DO Offer Context
When you do tell stories, be sure to give the context.
As in, actual time and place.
“Back in 2019 when I was at XYZ company…” 🏢
Context strengthens credibility.

8) DO Take Leadership
If/when they ask you a goofy question 🙃
Decline to answer it
And let them know
You’ll be answering another question
That will serve them more 💥
Be willing to offend in the name of service
(nod to the great Steve Chandler).

9) 🚫 DON’T Summarize
Let the power of your words speak for themselves. 🎯
Say what you’re going to say and let it stand.
When you do all this and they say,
“Jeez, nobody else we’ve interviewed has been like this.”
You can say,
“Thank you for noticing - I’m not like anybody else you’ve interviewed.” 😎
Take up space; show them what you can do.

🚀 Let's get your career stuff handled, find time to talk here. 📲