5 Things You Don’t Want To Hear At The End Of An Interview
By Susan Gitonga
Receiving feedback at the end of your interview is a good way to gauge your performance. However, not all feedback ends up being good. With that in mind, here are 5 things you don’t want to hear at the end of an interview:
1. “I called company ABC and they have never heard of you.”
Imagine the shock you will receive when your prospective employer tells you that they one of the Companies you had indicated in your CV and they said they have never heard of you.
It is possible that the people who knew you and worked closely with you in that company left, but in most cases the interviewer will not take that as an explanation.
The obvious reaction and assumption from your interviewer is that you lied. In an interview, lying is one of the character traits an interviewer is wary of. At the end of the day, they want to give the job to someone who is honest and is full of integrity.
To avoid this from happening, ensure that your seniors at work know you enough to remember you.
2. “I’m concerned about the spelling errors and mistakes on your CV and cover letter”
Spelling mistakes might mean that you rushed through when writing your CV and Cover Letter and you did not put much thought and care into the writing process. On the other hand it might also tell the interviewer that you are not good in English which might disqualify you from getting the job.
In order to have a good CV and Cover Letter to show the interviewer, ensure that you are keen when writing. You can also ask a friend to go through your documents and correct any errors that may appear on them.
3.” Are you sure this is the right opportunity for you?”
What the interviewer is trying to say is that after looking after your CV, they feel like you might not be a good match for the position.
When this happens, however, give the interviewer confidence to hire you by telling them past work experience and roles that are related to the position you are currently hiring for. This is your opportunity to say what you can do for the company once the opportunity is given to you.
4. “Actually my name is…”
It could be that the interviewer said what his name was at the beginning of the interview and because of how anxious you were, you happened to forget.
At the end of the interview, you might think that thanking him referring to his name is a good idea that will make you both appear to be friends and you end up calling him a different name that is not his.
E.g. “Thankyou so much Mr. Kamau,” you tell him. And he responds by saying, “actually my name is Wambua.”
This is something you don’t want to hear because the interviewer will assume you were not paying attention, so much so that you forgot his name. To avoid putting yourself in this position, avoid referring to his name, or better still, ensure that you not down his name to avoid forgetting.
5. “I was looking at your Facebook page and noticed…”
Do you remember the Social Media information you added to your CV? Well, believe me when I say that most of the time your interviewer will spare some minutes to see what you share online.
Imagine the interviewer saying that they noticed you are a party girl based from the photos of you drunk on Facebook. The interviewer might also comment about any negative information you have shared online which might make you appear unprofessional and questionable when it comes to your character.
That said, ensure that your social media profile is clean and simple. Remember that anyone can have access to the information you share online. Therefore, keep it clean.
I hope you enjoyed the tips and the enlightenment on the things you should ensure you don’t hear during your interview. All the best!
