20 Sep 2011, 6:04 am
Twilightflame wrote:
nemorosa wrote:
Instead concentrate on preparing for the interview. Find out as much as you can about the place, the people and the role. Think about questions they may ask you and have a few well thought out and relevant questions to ask them.
That's the standard textbook advice, which unfortunately never applied in my case. Most of the time I never really do get to ask anything, and they ask me very, very ODD questions.
One of the interview boards actually dragged me into a philosophical discussion about truth and objectivity from the get-go without any of the usual "why are you applying for this job/scholarship/exco position", "what do you know about us", "what do you think you can contribute" stuff. It seems as if my body language is sufficient to throw most of the interviews into an odd mode even before I say anything at the outset. And it was restricted to me, everyone I talked to who went before and after me got the usual interview questions.
Until I can get a textbook interview case, I can't use a textbook interview solution. It's not as if the first thing that comes into most people's minds when they fail an interview is "should I have been half-drunk earlier instead?" And most of the earlier attempts at changing stuff didn't result in any improvement, I've still never qualified for the second round of any interview.
And as most people of our level should know, when something doesn't work, "try and try again" is a pretty useless way to go about things. Same input leads to same output, should an output change be desired, an input change must precede it.
My advice may sound like very lame textbook stuff but sadly it is all true. When you are a relative novice to interviews that will also show. You must get used to the knocks because it will happen time and again.
As to the odd questions you get I can confidently say that everyone has had this experience at some time. Either you just don't "gel" with the interviewer or they are simply strange or eccentric. And don't forget everyone has a different style so expect the unexpected.
I used to be terrifically bad at interviews, but after many years I now think I'm ok. When I go for an interview I see it somewhat like an acting role; they get to see someone gregarious and confident. It is an immensely mentally draining act that cannot be sustained but it appears to do the trick.
20 Sep 2011, 7:17 am
20 Sep 2011, 7:47 am
20 Sep 2011, 10:51 am
20 Sep 2011, 11:56 am
I wouldn't recommend it but i gotta admit that chances are big that it works 
i does to me atleast. (tho i hate alcohol and just promised myself to never drink it again).
alcohol makes me hate everything, even my favorite music.
