How to Confidently Interview for that Job

If public speaking is the #1 thing that rattles people’s confidence, then interviewing for a job has got to be a close second.

It doesn’t matter if you’re new to the workforce, returning to the workforce, or a seasoned professional just looking for a change, the prospect of “selling yourself” is totally nerve-wracking – especially when the stakes are high and the new job is a need, not a want.

Conventional interview prep advice tends to focus on studying the organization you’re interviewing with, crafting answers to tricky questions you may (or may not) be asked and getting comfortable with talking about compensation.

But when it comes to your confidence, the advice tends to begin and end with vague and unhelpful phrases like, “Be confident in your abilities,” and “Put your confident best forward.”

That’s all well and good, but what if the interview goes wrong or gets weird? You might have gone in confident and then BOOM. Something knocks you off balance.

My guest on this episode of Real Confidence knows a thing or two about how to master job interviews. Dr. Kyle Elliott used to be a resume reviewer on Fiverr and now is a highly sought-after career and Certified ACI Confidence Coach, largely serving tech executives.

Kyle’s got the goods – and shares them – on how to build, use, and hold onto your confidence before, during, and after the interview so that anytime you have one, you can handle it with poise, ease and resilience.

Top takeaways from our conversation include:

• Why it’s helpful to remember that even the most experienced, high-level professionals struggle to articulate their skills and achievements effectively
• How to create a "fabulousness phrasebook," of your individual selling points and accomplishments to reference during interviews and use as a confidence touchstone
• What it means to approach an interview as a conversation instead of an interrogation and ways you can control the narrative to demonstrate your communication and critical thinking skills
• Ways to handle challenging interviews so that even if things don’t go well you know you did your best and don’t leave feeling defeated
• Why post-interview reflection, which is often overlooked, is one of the most important things you can do

Dr. Kyle Elliott is a high tech career coach, mental health advocate who’s been featured in Business Insider, CNBC, CNN, Entrepreneur, Fast Company, Forbes, Fortune, Glassdoor, Harvard Business Review, The Muse, and The New York Times, among dozens of other leading publications. You can learn more about Kyle and his services at caffeinatedkyle.com.