So, your resume is now beautifully formatted, your credentials are front and center and you have crafted the perfect accomplishment statements. You’re all set for your interview, right?
Well…almost.
Before you go into that interview, you want to make sure you have your most attractive qualification in place: confidence.
True confidence has an amazing way of bringing attention to you as an individual in a way that your qualifications, credentials and past experience on paper simply cannot.
Now don’t get me wrong – of course an employer needs to know that you can do the job and have the proper credentials to back it up – but those are the preliminaries.
During the actual interview, it’s becomes more about the rapport that a hiring manager feels or doesn’t feel during the conversation.
That rapport can deepen significantly when you share who you are and what you have to bring - with confidence.
Now, I know what you’re going to say “Some people are just born with it!” It’s true that some people have a natural confidence; however, it is not necessarily something that you have to be born with. True confidence stems primarily from a sense of worth and overall preparedness and so it is a skill that can be developed.
If you struggle in the area of confidence, be encouraged! Here are some key strategies to help you overcome low self-confidence and build the rapport with employers that will make you a strong contender in the job market.
First of all, do not focus on what you don’t know, or what you don’t have or what you consider a weakness. There will always be something you don’t know or don’t have and dwelling on that is a confidence-stealer. Focus on what you know that you know, what you are proud of accomplishing and what stirs your heart. Write it down, look it over and speak it out, over and over again. You will be amazed at how this floods you with positive energy.
The next step is to be prepared. The more prepared you are the more confident you will be. Preparation means that you have taken time to know who you are and what you value and then taken time to do research on the specific industry, company or role. It means that you have selected popular interview questions and actually prepared answers for these questions and practiced those answers in front of the mirror, friends, family or a career advisor. You have contacted professionals in the field, read articles, books or blogs daily – you have basically immersed yourself in the thing that you are preparing for. This constant focus and dedicated practice will give your confidence an incredible turbo boost.
Finally, just relax! Sometimes you just have to decide going in that you are going to view this as a learning opportunity no matter what the outcome.
In the case of a job interview, consider the worst case scenario.
If you don’t have a job and you don’t get the job you just interviewed for, then you really haven’t lost anything. You have, in fact, gained some additional knowledge that will empower you for the next interview.
An article by Fast Company on job search strategy confirms that how you view setbacks in your job search can impact your overall career success.
If you choose to view a setback as a learning opportunity, you can go back over the process and learn from it. Taking these positive, forward-thinking steps will ensure that you are even more prepared for the next round.
So settle in your mind that you will continue to press forward, even after setbacks, and create your own future. This will make it easier to relax and just be yourself, which is a natural breeding ground for confidence.
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