To wonder whether it’s just me who turns in to an absolute bumbling idiot when it comes to interviews?!

[BumblingidiotstrikesagainNC]

Had an interview today for a big opportunity in the city and I was cringing inside as I stumbled over my words and generally failed to effectively articulate my responses. I had a total mind blank following on from one of the questions and couldn’t provide an answer. Towards the end of the interview I really excelled myself by forgetting what the original question was half way through providing a response! All of this coupled with a terrible and very noticeable red blotchy rash I seem to end up with all over my chest because I’m so embarrassed by my inability to sell myself, ugh.

I have no excuse either; I work within a very niche specialism at a senior level. I’m highly qualified and have years of experience in the field. I have no trouble at all day to day at work, it’s just something about interviews that makes me fall apart. I know all of the answers except during the interview it’s like my brain has been emptied. Recruiters certainly don’t expect this type of interview from somebody at my level and I can almost hear them thinking “wtf ”as they interview me. I imagine from reading my very well written CV they must wonder if I’ve sent along a substitute! It’s only after the interview I think of all the errors and things I should have said at the time. I run over and over in my head the awkward responses in my mind, ugh it’s just terrible!

Has anyone got any tips on how to get over this? I feel like I’ve tried everything.

Oh, and if anyone is would like to share their similarly cringeworthy interview experiences, it might cheer me up just a little!

Good luck Wrecktangled!

my interview tip is to have a small drink such as a white wine spritzer before it worked for the last interview I had as it took the edge off my nerves and relaxed me a bit! not sure this is the best advice but..it works

cheezy 😆 I'll try that next time maybe. I considered taking a phenergan but I didn't want to be all slurry and fabulous. Still waiting... 😭

No, it's me as well. I come out and just think 'what the hell just happened??? Who was that person?'

I find temping/contracting much better as interviews often brief and more of a formality and you just have to convince them you have some idea of what to do for the next few months rather than trying to persuade them you want their job for the next X years.

Worst interview moment, had done well over a two day interview and coming to the end of everything. I was asked ' what issues could you see arising within this role' now this role is social care based and would have been arranging family group conferences. My answer was ' none whatsoever' and to top it off I gave a big self satisfied grin. It all seemed to happen in slow motion and for the life of me I couldn't open my mouth again
Clearly didn't get the job

An hour and forty minutes later! Fingers crossed!

I’m normally shit at interviews but last one I decided on a different approach. The approach been to not answer the first question.

So they asked me something and I went into full politician mode and told the panel that before I answered the question I wanted to tell them a bit about myself. I then spent 25 mins going through my employment history, what skills my experience had given me, why these skills meant I’d be good at the job, chucked some examples in and finished off by telling them why I wanted the job! Then answered the question.

It meant I got a lot of stuff in in my own time, at my own pace. I’d been able to practice beforehand.

I’m not saying it would work every time but I got the job and they said they loved me in the interview!

How did it go Wrecktangled?

SleepyKat that sounds great! I wish I'd gone in with similar... I have so much great experience and love for my role and I would have loved to shoehorn some more in and not been so nervous and twatty.

Still waiting and a bundle of nerves now. Sucks that this post means so much to me 😰

Absolutely hate them too. The last one I had was for a role in another team in the same company and I bumbled through that. Although now that team might be at a redundacy risk unfortunately so I'm glad I had to stay put now. Because then I'd have to find a new job and go for loads of horrible horrible interviews.

Competency ones are the worst in my opinion, all you are doing is learning an answer to the standard "tell me about a time" questions and parroting it back to them. What good is that? Although that last interview was one and I STILL floundered.

"Why do you want this job" makes me . How I'd love to answer honestly that "Well, you pay money. I need money for bills and shit and I can do the thing you're asking for. Next!"

Hard to tell. I think it was ok but I know I'm a bit under qualified

I am exactly the same. I am good at my job and know what I'm doing, but can't speak about it off the cuff. That's why I have never applied for any other jobs and am stuck.

I wish people would realise that it's more important to hire somebody who is good at a job, not good about talking about it.

We have a staff member who is brilliant at interviews and got offered 2 jobs in the same day. However she is absolutely useless at actually doing the job and now we're stuck with her

I withdrew my application last night. I just can’t face the humiliation.

I have the opposite problem....It's not so good as it sounds! I have no nerves , I'm enthusiastic, charming and knowledgeable. I tend to lead them towards questions I know the answers to. Honestly I'd sound so good. I'd walk out knowing I'd got the job ....then oh shit ! I don't have a clue how to do this bloody role , I'd spend the next 3 months wracked with insomnia and anxiety- I once spent every night for 3 months crying in a new job because I struggled so much . I'm now in a job i really like and will not be tempted away by anyone- my nerves can't take it !

I had an interview, for a promotion with in my work place this week. How they knew what I was saying I don’t know as I just rabbeted on so fast! I started going off on a tangent at times and felt like I completely missed the point, and most amazingly of all, miss heard one of the questions and started answering it completely wrongly.

I still got the job! When I got my feed back, I was told they thought I structured my answers well, I don’t think we were in the same interview!! They didn’t seem well structured to me!

But maybe they weren’t as bad as they sounded in my head. Perhaps it seems worse to us looking back than it actually was.

Catapillarsruletheworld maybe everyone else's answers were even worse that's what I'm banking on! I do think that most people probably feel the same pressure and have the same issues

@crosser62 so sorry you felt you had to do that.

I do understand. I wish I had done the same for the last internal job I applied for and didn't get, but I have decided I am only "humiliated" if I let myself be.

I remind myself that I am good at my job but they have to give the job to the person that comes over best on the day as otherwise it's not fair on the other candidates. How many times do you hear of people who really want a job, prepare superbly, know they absolutely aced the interview then don't get it because all along there was someone internal. Now THAT is unfair. It's not personal! (I keep telling myself!)

for you xx