In job interviews, no one can guarantee that they will not make mistakes. Smart job seekers constantly correct their mistakes and move towards maturity. However, there are some errors that even quite intelligent job seekers may repeatedly commit in interviews, which we might call "advanced" mistakes. Based on nearly 10 years of experience in human resources management at multinational companies, I have summarized the following twelve common "advanced" mistakes for readers to consider.
1. Being Unskilled at Breaking the Silence
At the start of an interview, candidates who are unskilled at "breaking the ice" (the English translation of this phrase means breaking the silence) wait for the interviewer to start the conversation. During the interview, candidates may also refrain from speaking due to various concerns, resulting in awkward silences. Even if they manage to break the silence, their tone of voice may be extremely rigid, making the situation more uncomfortable. In fact, whether before or during the interview, a candidate's initiative to greet and converse with the interviewer leaves a positive impression of enthusiasm and good communication skills.
2. Trying to Flatter the Interviewer
Interviewers with certain professional competence avoid flattery from candidates, as overly casual or overly tense relationships during interviews can affect the interviewer's judgment. Excessive flattery can also objectively hinder candidates from effectively presenting their professional experience and skills within the short interview time. Smart candidates can mention one or two well-founded facts to praise the recruiting company, demonstrating their interest in the company.
3. Being Influenced by Prejudices or Stereotypes
Sometimes, prior knowledge about the interviewer or negative evaluations of the recruiting company can influence a candidate’s thinking during the interview. Candidates may mistakenly believe that an apparently cold interviewer is either strict or dissatisfied with them, causing nervousness. At other times, when the interviewer is a much younger woman, the candidate may start wondering, "How can she qualify to interview me?" In reality, in the special procurement relationship of recruitment interviews, candidates, as suppliers, need to positively face interviewers of different styles, just like a true salesperson who cannot choose their attitude when facing customers.
4. Making Grand Statements Without Examples
Candidates often talk extensively about personal achievements, specialties, and skills. When clever interviewers ask, "Can you give one or two examples?" the candidates are left speechless. Interviewers generally believe that actions speak louder than words. In interviews, candidates must provide examples to substantiate claims about their communication abilities, problem-solving skills, teamwork, and leadership.
5. Lacking Positive Posture
Interviewers often raise or touch upon embarrassing topics. Many candidates blush, evade, or lie instead of providing honest answers and straightforward explanations. For example, when asked, "Why have you changed jobs three times in five years?" some people may talk about how difficult the work was or lack of support from superiors, rather than telling the interviewer: although the work was challenging, they learned a lot and matured through the process.
6. Losing Professional Demeanor
Some candidates perform well in all aspects of the interview until they are asked about their current or previous company, whereupon they angrily criticize their boss or the company, or even use abusive language. This behavior is highly frowned upon in many international large enterprises or in front of professionally competent interviewers.
7. Being Inadequate at Asking Questions
Some people ask questions at inappropriate times, such as interrupting the interviewer mid-conversation. Others fail to prepare questions beforehand and, when given the opportunity, do not know what to say. In reality, a good question can surpass countless written details on a resume and leave a lasting impression on the interviewer.
8. Vague Career Development Plans
Many people only have goals but lack clear plans for their career development. For instance, when asked, "What are your career development plans for the next five years?" many would answer, "I hope to become the national sales director within five years." If the interviewer then asks, "Why?" the candidate often feels confused. In fact, any specific career goal requires an assessment of current skills and a rough plan for skill development needed to achieve the goal.
9. Pretending to Be Perfect
Interviewers often ask, "What are your personality weaknesses? Have you experienced setbacks in your career?" Some people would immediately answer, "No." In fact, such answers are often irresponsible. No one is without weakness, and no one has not experienced setbacks. Only by fully recognizing one's own weaknesses and correctly understanding the setbacks one has faced can truly mature personalities be formed.
10. Falling Into Traps
Interviewers sometimes assess a candidate's business judgment and ethical standards. For example, after introducing the company's culture of honesty and integrity or not introducing anything at all, the interviewer asks, "If I (as general manager) require you to evade 10 million yuan in taxes within a year, what would you do?" If you scratch your head thinking up tax evasion strategies or immediately list out numerous solutions, it shows you've fallen into their trap. In fact, in almost all international large enterprises, abiding by laws and regulations is the most basic requirement for employee behavior.
11. Proactively Inquiring About Compensation and Benefits
Some candidates inquire about the position's compensation and benefits near the end of the interview, which can backfire. Professionally trained interviewers disapprove of such behavior. In reality, if the recruiting company is interested in a particular candidate, they will naturally inquire about their salary expectations.
12. Not Knowing How to Conclude Properly
At the end of many interviews, candidates, either excited by potential success or fearful of failure, may become incoherent and lose composure. In fact, at the conclusion of an interview, as a candidate, you could express your understanding of the position, enthusiastically tell the interviewer you are interested in the role, inquire about the next steps, smile, shake hands with the interviewer, and thank them for their hospitality and consideration.