Sweaty hands, laboured breathing, increased heart rate and a shaky voice. We’ve all felt that pounding pressure when faced with an interview. Especially when the interview is with an organization that we truly see ourselves growing and thriving in.

How many of us have left an interview and then immediately started to self doubt some of, or if not all of your responses to their questions. “I should have said this!” or “I forgot to mention…” are all common phrases that we all have said at some point in time in one/some of our interviews.

Why do we do this to ourselves, why do we instill that pressure when we are already faced with the stresses of not being employed?

“I just don’t get it, my resume looks flawless and I answered every question they asked?”

Anyone can look great on paper, but in the end, its all about the interview.

Being unemployed for an extended period of time can cause an individual great stress and anxiety when it comes to applying towards certain employment opportunities. And with our lowered self esteem, built up by countless rejections, we become more calculated in the type of positions that we apply to. Self doubt starts to take over and before you know it, our active “job searches” turn into a single application to a position that we may not even want, but seems like a “safe application” because its what we “feel” our skill set will allow us to obtain.

Once an individual feels these stresses, their job seeking mentality now becomes that of desperation. This desperation will dictate your job search and your interview interactions. You will definitely see the differences when you approach an interview with the mindset of that you really “WANT” this job, as opposed to I really “NEED” this job. Having that desperation will make the interview process very difficult. You are not “yourself” and not feeling that confidence that you will need to deliver an epic interview. Confidence will play a major factor during your interview and if you’ve been rejected a few times, the confidence may not be exactly where we would like it to be.

“Small talk, it’s just a conversation”

There are two key things to keep in mind while preparing for that interview and by doing so, this will allow you to reframe your thoughts/ideas/perceptions towards the interview process. By “reframe”, I mean seeing the interview as a “POSITIVE” because in reality, you just beat out how many other candidates for an interview? That alone should be a confidence builder leading towards the interview and not only will it allow you to better prepare for future interviews, but it also allows for a more relaxed setting when faced with an interview.

• Its just a conversation, not an interrogation

Keeping in mind that an interview is “just a conversation”

The purpose of the interview, is for the employer to get a better sense or idea of who you are as a person and what that would translate into by you becoming an employee. They are already interested in your technical, which is what landed you the interview in the first place.

• Confident Communication is key, remain positive!

I cannot stress this enough. Especially if it’s a position with a prestigious company that sees countless applications daily. Take comfort and embrace the fact that you were awarded an interview to showcase your personality. You’ve made the shortlist with your resume (technical) beating out countless other candidates and now you have the opportunity to wow them with who you are (personality) Take pride in knowing that, feel confident knowing that you were selected out of possibly hundreds of other applicants. Your conversation will flow effortlessly if it’s with a company you truly want to become employed with because your passion will surface during the interview and they will “hear” it. Vocalize your passion and interests for the type of work you want to do.

“That’s it?! There’s got to be a trick to it”

Truth is, there really is no secret or special skills involved when it comes to displaying our personalities through conversation. You are either a people person or you’re not as this will become evident throughout the course of the interview. A people person will have no stresses when it comes to having conversations with complete strangers. Conversation tends to flow more fluidly when we are at ease and comfortable around others, whereas a person who isn’t as extroverted, may have difficulty answering questions and being open with a complete stranger, thusly having a negative impact during the interview by giving one word answers.

Keeping these two key steps in mind while preparing for an interview will help and alleviate some of the stresses associated with your job search. Not only is this an interview for employment, its also an “Internal Interview” meaning they are gauging to see if you would be a fit with their current staff.

Clearly there are countless tips and tricks all over the internet but I wholeheartedly believe that it’s the reframing of what you believe an interview to be, that will make the difference in future interviews.