5 Mistakes That Will Sabotage a Job Interview3829511

Even the most qualified Candidate can be overlooked for a job position if they make mistakes during the job interview. Most of the job seekers out there read advice on job interviews with a knowing nod. Most of us make these mistakes before they start learning how to master the hospitality jobs. Even when you follow the best advice there are some subtle mistakes that are hard to identify, or overcome. 1. Your Present Job Holds Back Your Future Career You hate your job. Your frustration is almost palatable. Even when you answer the questions correctly, there are still slight nuances in your voice, glances, or body language that raise red flags for job interviewers. Your anger may taint your ability to answer questions well. For example: a) When you are asked what your achievements are you will be unable to answer because you ‘gave up’ trying to accomplish anything in your last job. b) How did you work with people? This question is difficult to answer when you were suspicious and didn’t like the people at your last job. c) Why do you want to leave your current positions? Everything you say negative about your previous job reveals something about your priorities, motivations, and personality.

2. Do You Know The Company’s Product? To successfully navigate a job interview you need to do more than surf their website. Learn about the department staff on LinkedIn. Read the company white papers. Search google for references to their websites. You many be looking for a job as a restaurant manager, but which corporation owns the restaurant. Do they have other holdings? How are their stocks doing? What is their management strategy.

3. Act Like You Are Not Being Watched Every hospitality jobs article tells you to consider everyone you meet after opening the front door is evaluating you. But have you considered the security cameras? What about people who appear to be other Candidates. This can be very telling when the interview process includes someone who appears to be passing through, or casual. This person may turn out to be your future boss. One single demeaning comment can ruin your chances of landing the job.

4. Failure to Keep Current

Do you know what is current in your industry? Are you taking courses? What is the latest book you’ve read? Can you hold a decent conversation about the latest management skills or restaurant trends?

5 No Plan

“Failure to plan is a plan to fail.” Did you have plans and projects that you executed in your last job? Do you have your notes and documentation? Did you create benchmarks? Were you under budget?

Do you have a plan for your future? Is this job just a stepping stone? How long do you plan to stay? If you stay a long time do you have an idea of things you want to improve, execute?

These 5 things are difficult to prepare for, and sometimes it is difficult to determine whether you are making the mistakes. It takes self-awareness and dedication to improvement to convince a job interviewer that you are a successful manager.