Mistakes in the interview room are commonplace. So, as part of your interview preparation, it’s vital to understand what the most common interview mistakes are, in order to avoid making them yourself. To read the full blog visit: https://social.hays.com/2017/05/30/6-common-interview-mistakes-to-avoid/

1. Mistakes in the interview room are
commonplace. So, as part of your
interview preparation, it’s vital to
understand what the most common
interview mistakes are, in order to
avoid making them yourself.
Here are the six common interview
mistakes you need to be wary of.
6 COMMON INTERVIEW
MISTAKES TO AVOID
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2. You can look up your route the night
before, leave early, and still turn up
late due to unexpected delays.
To avoid this, practice your route
beforehand and aim to get to the
interview location about 45 minutes
before the interview is scheduled to
start.
Make sure you’re sat in the
reception of the company building
at least 15 minutes before the
interview.
1. Arriving late

3. Once you arrive, you will come
across many of your potential new
colleagues; whether it’s in the
elevator on the way up, whilst
you’re sat in reception or walking
through the corridor on the way to
the interview room.
Don’t forget to at least smile at
everyone you walk past. Often, the
hiring manager will ask these
people for their first impression of
you. A positive answer can work in
your favour.
2. Ignoring everyone besides
the interviewer

4. When asked what you know about
the organisation, avoid simply
reciting the ‘about us’ section of the
company’s website. Instead, use
other sources during your research
such as social media updates, case
studies and press releases to build
your knowledge.
Talk about your findings in your own
words during the interview. This will
demonstrate that you have made a
conscious effort to understand the
business and are genuinely
interested in the opportunity.
3. Reciting the company
website

5. Have a structure in your mind for
your interview answers and use the
STAR technique when answering
competency based questions.
Practice answering some interview
questions using this framework.
Sticking to a loose structure for each
of your answers will stop you from
going off on a tangent during your
interview and help you keep the
attention of the interviewer.
4. Rambling on

6. During the interview, certain
questions can prompt candidates to
speak negatively about themselves
or their previous company, whether
it’s answering the question “why are
you looking to leave your current
employer?” or “Tell me about a time
you failed”
Research which tricky interview
questions you might be asked, and
practice phrasing your answers
positively.
5. Speaking negatively

7. One of the biggest gripes for a
hiring manager is a candidate who
doesn’t have anything to ask at the
end of the interview.
Before your interview, prepare
a number of questions to ask your
interviewer, but listen out for
answers to these during the
interview, and have some spare
questions up your sleeve.
6. Not asking questions at
the end of the interview

8. Hopefully this preparation will prevent
you from making a mistake during
your interview.
If you do make a mistake, don’t
panic. This doesn’t mean you have
ruined your chances, and at the very
least, you have learnt a valuable
lesson for next time.
Read more interview tips on our
careers blog, Viewpoint:
• How to interview confidently
against the competition
• How to use your EQ to ace that
interview
• Change your thinking and calm
your interview nerves

9. ABOUT HAYS
Hays is a leading global
professional recruiting group, the
expert at recruiting qualified,
professional and skilled people
worldwide.
With 10,000 staff operating from
250 offices in 33 countries across
20 specialisms, last year we placed
around 70,000 candidates into
permanent jobs, and around
240,000 people into temporary
assignments.
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