Facts about job interviews: What are you doing wrong?
Everyone knows the feeling: Sweaty hands, racing thoughts, pounding heart, uneasy stomach and the sense that your feet will not bring you from one room to the other because your knees are too weak.
The majority of the world's population go through the exact same symptoms before a job-interview.
It often happens that even those who think they nailed the interview, find out that they didn't get the job due to little mistakes of which they were unaware.
In a survey of 2000 bosses, 33% claimed that they know within the first 90 seconds of an interview whether they will hire someone or not.
AOL Jobs brought an infographic to its readers, summarizing the most important statistics of the study.
The infographic firstly explains that the average length of an interview is approximately 40 minutes.
The most common nonverbal mistakes made by interviewees are the following, accompanied by the percentage of bosses who prioritized them:
- 67%: Failure to make eye-contact.
- 47%: Having little or no knowledge of the company is the most common mistake job seekers make during interviews.
- 38%: Lack of smile.
- 33%: Fidgeting too much.
- 33%: Bad posture.
- 26%: Handshake that is too weak.
- 21%: Crossing arms over chest.
- 21%: Playing with hair or touching face.
- 9%: Using too many hand gestures.
When talking about the impact we leave on people when we first meet them:
- 55%: The way we dress, act and walk through the door.
- 38%: The quality of our voice, grammar and overall confidence.
- 7%: What we actually say.
As for the clothes one should wear during the interviews, it has been agreed that bright colors are a turnoff and that 70% of employers do not want applicants to be fashionable or trendy. At the same time, 65% believe that clothes could be the deciding factor between similar candidates.
The top ten most common mistakes made at a job interview are:
10. Over-explaining why you lost your last job.
9. Conveying that you are not over it.
8. Lacking humor, warmth or personality.
7. Not showing enough interest or enthusiasm.
6. Inadequate research about potential employer.
5. Concentrating too much on what you want.
4. Trying to be all things to all people.
3. "Winging" the interview.
2. Failing to set yourself apart from other candidates.
1. Failing to ask for the job.
The infographic also tackles the five questions that you will most likely be asked:
1. Tell me about yourself.
2. Why did you leave your last job?
3. What do you know about our company?
4. Why do you want to work for us?
5. Tell me about your experience at ...
Lastly, there are four tips that a job-seeker should never disregard if he / she wants to be ready for the interview:
1. Be ready to briefly describe your experience.
2. Review your qualifications for the job.
3. Have a specific job in mind.
4. Learn about the organization.
Of course, no one owns the ultimate key to successful interviews, but every tip brings us a step further.
The majority of the world's population go through the exact same symptoms before a job-interview.
It often happens that even those who think they nailed the interview, find out that they didn't get the job due to little mistakes of which they were unaware.
In a survey of 2000 bosses, 33% claimed that they know within the first 90 seconds of an interview whether they will hire someone or not.
AOL Jobs brought an infographic to its readers, summarizing the most important statistics of the study.
The infographic firstly explains that the average length of an interview is approximately 40 minutes.
The most common nonverbal mistakes made by interviewees are the following, accompanied by the percentage of bosses who prioritized them:
- 67%: Failure to make eye-contact.
- 47%: Having little or no knowledge of the company is the most common mistake job seekers make during interviews.
- 38%: Lack of smile.
- 33%: Fidgeting too much.
- 33%: Bad posture.
- 26%: Handshake that is too weak.
- 21%: Crossing arms over chest.
- 21%: Playing with hair or touching face.
- 9%: Using too many hand gestures.
When talking about the impact we leave on people when we first meet them:
- 55%: The way we dress, act and walk through the door.
- 38%: The quality of our voice, grammar and overall confidence.
- 7%: What we actually say.
As for the clothes one should wear during the interviews, it has been agreed that bright colors are a turnoff and that 70% of employers do not want applicants to be fashionable or trendy. At the same time, 65% believe that clothes could be the deciding factor between similar candidates.
The top ten most common mistakes made at a job interview are:
10. Over-explaining why you lost your last job.
9. Conveying that you are not over it.
8. Lacking humor, warmth or personality.
7. Not showing enough interest or enthusiasm.
6. Inadequate research about potential employer.
5. Concentrating too much on what you want.
4. Trying to be all things to all people.
3. "Winging" the interview.
2. Failing to set yourself apart from other candidates.
1. Failing to ask for the job.
The infographic also tackles the five questions that you will most likely be asked:
1. Tell me about yourself.
2. Why did you leave your last job?
3. What do you know about our company?
4. Why do you want to work for us?
5. Tell me about your experience at ...
Lastly, there are four tips that a job-seeker should never disregard if he / she wants to be ready for the interview:
1. Be ready to briefly describe your experience.
2. Review your qualifications for the job.
3. Have a specific job in mind.
4. Learn about the organization.
Of course, no one owns the ultimate key to successful interviews, but every tip brings us a step further.