I've got a job interview...I feel sick with nerves!

[LazyDaisy10]

I've got a job interview, its a video one due to covid at the end of the month. I'm absolutely dreading it. I've been a sahm for 7 years and I've lost all my confidence if I'm honest. I'm quite shy too which doesn't help.
The thought of having to speak to a panel of people makes me feel sick. I haven't done an interview in years and its in an area I have no experience in. I'm not great at thinking on the spot so all in all I'm not looking forward it.
Any tips or words of wisdom? I'm seriously thinking about not doing the interview because I'm so nervous and shy which is absolutely ridiculous.
Ugh I wish I was more confident!

[lljkk]

You can do this.
Do you have a friend who could do a mock interview with you, using the same video conf software?

I was SAHM for 7+ yrs & started back at work as a dinner lady, I had so lost my confidence, so sympathies, but you can do this, honest. I had a professional job (again) 6m later.

Expect standard questions: why do you want this job, why would you be good at it, what would you do in situation, have you ever had to actually do that kind of thing before.

[MumTumLovesPuns]

Top tips:

Make sure there's enough light that they can see your face, get a lamp behind the camera (I'm assuming laptop, if phone make sure it's on something stable so you're not trying to talk and hold it!)

Wear shoes that make you feel confident. It helps out you in the right frame of mind.

It's video so they can't see your notes have separate pieces of paper so you're not shuffling and have on them the key reasons why they should hire you :

Your skills
Your knowledge
Your enthusiasm/experience
How all of the above will make their team better when you're in it

These notes will mean you won't go blank when asked!

ALWAYS breathe in before you answer a question. It makes your voice sound more confident and means your brain has oxygen-lots of people forget to inhale when being interviewed.

Have a glass of water available and if you need to take a longer pause, take a drink.

Don't be scared of pauses, long silences are awkward but video necessarily often has longer pauses because of the tech.

Remember they are interviewing you because they liked your application so you're already almost there!

Go for it and good luck!

[Houseplantmad]

That's great - you've obviously impressed them with your application.

Good idea from pp to prep with a friend in a mock interview.

Don't forget that when you're asked a question you don't have to answer immediately. Have a pause to think before responding. It may feel like you're taking ages but you won't be and it's better than just blurting something out.

Given it's an area you've no experience in, think of some scenarios where you've had to function in an unfamiliar situation e.g. have you been involved in school fundraising or similar, volunteered at school etc? Don't underestimate how many new skills you've picked up in the past seven years!

Also, most men wouldn't see any of what you've said as a barrier to getting the job. Try and channel that. Good luck and let us know how you get on.

[Shakepineapple]

Definitely don't back out. Even if you don't get the job, it's great experience.

Prepare examples - have you heard of the STAR technique? Google it, I found it most useful in just really thinking through my examples properly. You could even have yours near your laptop screen.

[MumTumLovesPuns]

@LazyDaisy10 did you get the job?