Nervous about Your Next Interview? Know the Don’ts

Whether you are actively looking for your next career move or not, it pays to know and share the Do’s and Don’ts of job interviews to be prepared just in case.

We have rounded up our best advice from our recruiters to give you a head start.

Interview DON’Ts

• Don’t make negative comments about previous employers or professors (or others).
• Don’t make excuses. Take responsibility for your decisions and your actions.
• Don’t falsify application materials or answers to interview questions.
• Don’t treat the interview casually, as if you are shopping around or doing the interview for practice. It is an insult to the interviewer and the organisation.
• Don’t give the impression that you are only interested in an organisation because of its geographic location.
• Don’t give the impression you are only interested in salary; don’t ask about salary and benefits issues until the subject is brought up by your interviewer.
• Don’t act as though you would take any job or are desperate for employment.
• Don’t make the interviewer guess what type of work you are interested in; it is not the interviewer’s job to act as a career advisor to you.
• Don’t be unprepared for typical interview questions. You may not be asked all of them in every interview, but being unprepared will not help you.
• A job search can be hard work and involve frustrations; don’t exhibit frustrations or a negative attitude in an interview.
• Don’t go to extremes with your posture; don’t slouch, and don’t sit rigidly on the edge of your chair.
• Don’t assume that a female interviewer is “Mrs” or “Miss.” Address her as “Ms” unless told otherwise. (If she has a PhD or other doctoral degree or medical degree, use “Dir. [last name]” just as you would with a male interviewer. Marital status of anyone, male or female, is irrelevant to the purpose of the interview.
• Don’t chew gum or smell like smoke.
• Don’t allow your cell phone to sound during the interview. (If it does, apologise quickly and ignore it.) Don’t take a cell phone call. Don’t look at a text message.
• Don’t take your parents, your pet (an assistance animal is not a pet in this circumstance), spouse, fiancé, friends or enemies to an interview. If you are not grown up and independent enough to attend an interview alone, you are insufficiently grown up and independent for a job. (They can certainly visit your new city, at their own expense, but cannot attend your interview.)Continue with our interview Do’s.

All the best for your next interview!

Professional Sourcing is a top-tier South African-based recruitment agency operating internationally, IPM accredited, LEVEL 2 BEE RATED and 51% Black Owned.