#AwkwardInterviewMoments – Anyone else feel stupid in interviews? I mean, why do we have to brag about ourselves like we’re the best thing since sliced bread? 🍞 I always feel like I’m walking a tightrope between confidence and arrogance. It’s like a dance where one misstep could ruin your chances of getting the job. Can you relate?
Do you also struggle with talking yourself up in interviews? Let’s commiserate together and share our most cringeworthy moments. Take this poll to see how many others feel the same way! 🤔
Remember, interviews are just a snapshot of who you are, not your entire story. So, let’s laugh off those awkward moments and keep pushing forward. Let’s hear your thoughts! #JobInterviewBlues #HumbleBrag #InterviewStruggles
No, I feel the interviewers are idiots. They just sit there without knowing what to ask
One time I was asked if I would get lonely working with them. One look at my Cv and linkedin profile showed that I travelled to different locations within that country for work experience (uni or for a job). I also stated that I have no issue working in a team or by myself which was required in companies x or being a pg student. Although I gave overall excellent answers they felt that I didn’t want to work with them. I also stated that I have no issues in working in different environments that can become hot or cold.
Definitely feel stupid trying to “sell” myself. I know thats really the bottom line, selling yourself but man I cringe when I say certain things,
Interview questions can definitely feel stressful and complicated. A range of emotions should come up. Being able to think super quickly across a host of different scenarios when questions are asked is hard. On top of that, a lot of people don’t like talking about themselves. Super normal feelings. One way to help process this feeling is taking a handful of questions as prep and going through answers out loud by yourself. Just hearing yourself talk through the answer without the pressure of someone staring at you will help a lot and with time, it will become less of a foreign feeling. Part of the interview is to brag about yourself though. Maybe don’t think of it as bragging – think of it as telling a story or your past experiences.
If you are comfortable with your strengths and weaknesses it makes it easier to speak about them. Talking about your awareness of them shows you are able to self evaluate and that is an amazing trait! “I have great attention to detail but I have learned I can’t expect that from everyone else, and figuring that out has made me better at writing procedures.”
I don’t necessarily feel stupid, but I find that I have so much adrenaline from nervousness that I’m definitely more chatty and energetic than normal. Sometimes awkward.
I have one next week and I’m dreading it. It just feels like I’m bragging about myself and I feel like such an idiot. I also have major imposter syndrome so I’m just sure that they’re going to realize at any minute that I don’t belong here.
I feel you. It sucks.
Yea they really make us sweat and stretch us thin for…ya kno…an income to live…so them rejecting us based on our answers is essentially the system telling us some of us don’t deserve to live
I had an interview with a recruiter and they didn’t know the job description for the job I was applying for. They literally told me “I don’t know” when I asked what are the expectations for this role. I was convinced they were just going off of the vibe.
I feel the same way.
When I was a store manager I conducted interviews, but I tried to frame it more like a conversation to see if your PERSONALITY would mesh well with the other staff members.
I can teach you anything you need to know for the job, I can’t teach you to get along with other staff members.
I refused to use questions like “tell me a time where you went above and beyond for a customer” like ? Really?
I used questions like “what’s your favourite book?” “What do you do in your spare time” “tell me three funny but true facts about you” I feel it’s a much better way of seeing if someone is a good fit
That’s how they want you to feel so don’t and you will win
On employment exams I often am the top scorer, but in interviews I often bomb. In several jobs I became “they guy” after a year – the one everyone comes to for help. More than once, after working somewhere for a year or more, I get asked how I could have interviewed so poorly. I think it’s because I don’t lie or exaggerate about myself or my accomplishments, which makes me look bad compared to other interviewees.
Yup yup. Interviews can be annoying af. Even the basic questions. Why do you think youre a good fit? What do you think you can do for the company? And of course the obvious answers like “oh I’ve been doing this for X amount of years so I feel pretty suited for it” are unacceptable. You have to sell yourself like you’re some kind of product.
Tho I have had a few comfortable interviews. Ranted with a manager who hired me before about how much we both hated the “dress for the part” thing and how he struggled in his youth for work because he refused to cut his hair. He made the interview feel more natural and much easier to get through. Unlike most that I’ve done in the last couple years
When I asked for feedback after an internal interview, I was told that they felt I would say what I think they wanted to hear and didn’t show much of myself in my answers.
I felt stupid hearing that because my impression was that’s what you have to do in an interview..then I was told to ask a coworker what her answers were in a past interview because they were so “great.”
She never disclosed it, so I felt even more dumb…
Focus on achievements, not bragging. Think of “above and beyond” as a chance to show your passion and initiative. Explain what you did, the impact it had, and why you’re excited to do that again at this new company.
I used to enjoy interviews. I got to meet people and see what they make.
Around 10 years ago, this all changed. I feel like the interviewer just wants a captive audience to brag to. I know I’ll be getting laid off soon because my company is for sale, and I’m dreading having to force smile my way through more of this bs. More ” my daddy owns the company” or ” why is there a 3 month gap in your (35 year) career?”
Yes, yes I do. Lol.
I guess for me an interview goes both ways. I want to interview them as much if not more than they interview me. You can tell a lot about a workplace during the interview process and in turn the questions you ask will reveal what the work culture is like there.
I did my best when I had a mind set that I didn’t need the job.
I have been on the other side of interviews.
Unless the interviewers give me any indication to the contrary, I just assume they are a) worse at my job then I and b) have only a vague idea what they are actually looking for.
I love when they ask “what interests you about this job”. Quite frankly nothing, I’m interested in the paycheck Brad.
Yes and one thing I hate the most is talking about myself.
I just feel like an actress on set and they’re acting too ever had someone interview you then you work with them ?
All of the time since I have stage fright and tend to get nervous. Now I just imagine that I’m a different person playing the role of a employee looking for a job.
I once had a sales interview and the interviewer picked up a pen and told me: ‘Sell me this pen’.
It was the only interview where I felt like I was asked the most relevant question pertaining to the job. We need more interviews like that.
As a recruiter some of these basic questions tell you a lot about a person and their intentions. I can easily make my choice by these.
no, I will google a list of common interview questions and write out my answers to them (like on paper, not typing) and then when those questions or similar ones come up I have easy responses available in my brain
Yes. I hate the scenario questions, “Tell me about a time when….” and then I have to come up with some BS story or at least try and remember an actual, real scenario that happened and how I handled it. I’m not a stellar employee. I go to work, I do my job and go home. I don’t go out of my way to look for other work. I don’t go out of my way to help others. I do what I need to do to get paid. I hate having to talk myself up in interviews so they’ll hire me despite all my previous positions, skills and experience right there on my resume.
Just know there are other applicants who are prepared to answer that question with enthusiasm and positive energy.
If you can’t sell yourself, what can you sell?
they infantilize you. one interview that I just recently had; the recruiter twice via video, the director, they skipped the video with the head of their 2 other sites and went right to in-person on the site I would be working at.
I have three times the education, have ten times the certifications, and had held multiple professional licensing in over half the states. I have had my work as part of a presentation to congress, and *I am going to stop here because I am beginning to feel narcissistic….*
my parents instilled in us the value of education and hard work. I am always bettering myself. I know what they are thinking: this person is either going to take my job or be my boss. I have been told this by admin people when they have sent me the denial (by voice, nothing in writing).
I don’t need entry level questions, I have 20+ years experience. don’t ask me about a time I had a disagreement with a co-worker; I have had to sell recommendations to the c-suite, business owners, and regulatory officials.
on more than one interview, I have seen the people interviewing me pull out a tablet (separate from their checklist of interview questions) and write down some of the unique solutions I bring to issues. the best interview I had was talking about fishing with the recruiter for the interview that I just recently had. let’s walk the facility or show me the work. my resume shows what I know, so get to know me.
another thing that I don’t get is why we need like 200 interviews with 300 different people? I worked in matrixed organizations, I got the applications and most times knew exactly who I was hiring. (this is because the whole job application system is broken.)
No, I feel the opposite, the last 2 interviews I did in the dev space they had so many tisms they were incapable of conversation that wasn’t directly reading from a prompt. One guy had a clown voice and gave me vibes that’d if we had daughters the same age, she wouldn’t be spending the night at their house.
I recently had a panel interview where the interviewers didn’t know what the role was about and asked me what it was about.
I don’t feel stupid during the interview but as another commenter mentioned, I am more chatty and say random and awkward stuff. Afterwards, I feel stupid for saying those stuff.
I hate talking about myself as the rest of you are saying. I practiced and rehearsed over and over. So I didn’t come across as canned, I would act like I was thinking about a question they would ask. Total acting job😬. I would love to sit in on an interview with a narcissist. They would probably do rather well!
I felt pretty dumb in one I just got a job in. I knew most of the technical questions but I felt like I wasn’t giving a complete enough answer.
“Why do you want to work at our company/what makes our company special” fuck off I don’t even know which of the 557 applications is this job 😂