How to Maintain Your Composure During a Job Interview

Job interviews can be stressful. Candidates can feel stressed simply because they are afraid of failure. They can be anxious that they will not have the right answers to the interviewer’s questions. They might fear embarrassing themselves by saying or doing something that looks foolish. It can take everything they have to maintain composure.

Stress and anxiety self-induced by a job candidate is one thing. But when an interviewer creates a stressful environment purposely to see how the candidate responds, you are dealing with a whole different atmosphere. Now the ability to maintain one’s composure could mean the difference between getting the job and walking away empty-handed.

Have you ever sat through a stressful interview? And if so, were you able to maintain your composure? Below are some tips for doing just that. They are offered compliments of the Pharma Diversity job board, a board that specializes in job listings for the biotech and pharma sectors.

1. Maintain Your Focus

Maintaining focus is particularly important during a job interview. Why? Because there are all sorts of distractions that can pull you off topic. Maybe the interviewer’s phone rings. Perhaps it’s yours because you forgot to turn it off. Whatever the case might be, distractions can get you off your game pretty quickly.

It is important to maintain focus when you are asked questions you weren’t expecting. Do not allow them to start you down the path of wondering why such questions were asked. You can worry about that stuff later. In the moment, focus on the immediate question and giving an appropriate answer.

Finally, move through the interview one topic at a time. Focus your thoughts on whatever is being discussed in the moment. You will stay on track and impress the interviewer.

2. Avoid Making Assumptions

Candidates can get themselves into trouble by making assumptions during job interviews. For instance, you may not fully understand a question you are being asked. Do not assume the interviewer’s intent. If you don’t know, ask for clarification.

Never assume anything in an interview. Do not assume you know how the company works. Don’t assume you’re a good fit for company culture. Anything you don’t know can be cleared up with questions. If you do not want to ask, let it go. Just don’t make assumptions.

3. Steer Toward a Conversation

Did you know that you can control the direction of an interview by steering it toward a conversation? You don’t have to let the interviewer be in control. In fact, when job candidates do that, interviews become little more than Q&A sessions. That helps neither you nor the interviewer.

When you get your first question, do not supply a quick answer and then clam up. Answer the question in a conversational tone. Use language and a conversational attitude that encourages the interviewer to respond in kind. If you can establish a conversation, the interview is less likely to become stressful.

4. Believe in Yourself

A final tip for maintaining your composure is to believe in yourself. Whether the interviewer sees it or not, you have something to offer. You wouldn’t be in that interview otherwise. Furthermore, not getting the job just means that what you have to offer can be offered to someone else.

It is a fact of life that job interviews can be stressful. It’s also understandable that candidates sometimes lose their composure during stressful interviews. But if the tips offered in this post help you maintain your composure during future interviews, you are a step ahead. Maintaining your composure could make all the difference in the world when that perfect job is within your grasp.