Interview debrief

[Anglewannabe]

Well, I had an interview. The 2 people were very friendly. I honestly hate the ‘after feeling’ interview. Thinking of ways I could have better answered the question, second guessing if I gave a good answer and all the over thinking

The part I hate the most is they would often ask questions such as ‘tell us about a time you made a mistake and how it was resolved’. My job is so specific that unless the other person works there, they are probably lost with the technical details. I try my best to word my answer in a way that anyone could understand, but I still feel like a babbling idiot boring them with details.

So, I tried to show I was a team player.

When they asked ‘How do you handle a mistake’, I gave an example and made sure to mention I thanked the person who brought it to my attention

When they asked 'tell us about a time someone asked you to do something you did not know how to go about, I said ‘I backed the person up and asked ‘in a perfect world what would you expect to see happen’ and then I was able to figure it out’. When they said ‘so you were able to help her’, I said ‘it was a team effort we figure it out together’

I tried to look at both people but paid more attention to the hiring manager. Then when the person from HR walked me to the door, she stopped at the display case and spent another 15 talking about their products they had on display. I asked some questions and tried to make good comments such as ‘I read the industry trend is blah blah blah’

I wrote the HR person a thank you email and asked her to forward it to the hiring manager (since I did not get her address). The person from HR wrote back and said 'It was a pleasure meeting you as well, I look forward to talking more. That seems like a friendly response. I do know if that means they are polite or I have a good chance.

They did tell me there would be a second interview but they would both be on holidays next week so I will not hear back for a while. So now I have over a week to fight the temptation to review in my mind the interview.

This is more stressful than the pre-interview jitters

Angie

 

[1ke]

Sounds like you did just fine!

 

[Viki63]

Good luck on getting the job.
It sounds very positive.
However, if this doesn’t work out, you know God has something better in store,.

.

 

[tawny]

Praying to St. Joseph for you to secure employment.

 

[underacloud]

Sounds good Angie.

I highly doubt they’d spend 15 minutes talking with you after the interview if they were not interested in you as a potential condidate.

I’ll keep you in my prayers.

 

[Hoosier_Daddy]

Well, I had an interview. The 2 people were very friendly. I honestly hate the ‘after feeling’ interview. Thinking of ways I could have better answered the question, second guessing if I gave a good answer and all the over thinking

The part I hate the most is they would often ask questions such as ‘tell us about a time you made a mistake and how it was resolved’. My job is so specific that unless the other person works there, they are probably lost with the technical details. I try my best to word my answer in a way that anyone could understand, but I still feel like a babbling idiot boring them with details.

So, I tried to show I was a team player.

When they asked ‘How do you handle a mistake’, I gave an example and made sure to mention I thanked the person who brought it to my attention

When they asked 'tell us about a time someone asked you to do something you did not know how to go about, I said ‘I backed the person up and asked ‘in a perfect world what would you expect to see happen’ and then I was able to figure it out’. When they said ‘so you were able to help her’, I said ‘it was a team effort we figure it out together’

I tried to look at both people but paid more attention to the hiring manager. Then when the person from HR walked me to the door, she stopped at the display case and spent another 15 talking about their products they had on display. I asked some questions and tried to make good comments such as ‘I read the industry trend is blah blah blah’

I wrote the HR person a thank you email and asked her to forward it to the hiring manager (since I did not get her address). The person from HR wrote back and said 'It was a pleasure meeting you as well, I look forward to talking more. That seems like a friendly response. I do know if that means they are polite or I have a good chance.

They did tell me there would be a second interview but they would both be on holidays next week so I will not hear back for a while. So now I have over a week to fight the temptation to review in my mind the interview.

This is more stressful than the pre-interview jitters

Angie

After reading some of your threads about work, this is refreshing. You did just fine. Don’t be too nervous. Though being a little nervous is sometimes kind of exciting. I always look forward to the post interview pre “next step” time. It is a little like having a lottery ticket before the drawing. You can play out all sorts of scenarios about how great a new job or how awesome the offer is. Reality is sometimes less exiting but it is fun to think of.

Remember most of those “common” interview questions rarely have a perfect “right” answer but have definite "wrong answers. Dropping the word “team” is a good thing usually. They want to make sure that when asked about a problem you have that you are not someone who just things everything is someone else’s fault. Though I am sure we all can have answered better at certain questions, rarely is a decision made on those “common questions” if you answer them they way you should.

Have fun with this time. Because right now, you don’t know either way, so best to just assume it will be a great opportunity. And if the job does not come your way then the interview is invaluable experience at interviewing.

 

[pianistclare]

+1
Sounds very encouraging!

After reading some of your threads about work, this is refreshing. You did just fine. Don’t be too nervous. Though being a little nervous is sometimes kind of exciting. I always look forward to the post interview pre “next step” time. It is a little like having a lottery ticket before the drawing. You can play out all sorts of scenarios about how great a new job or how awesome the offer is. Reality is sometimes less exiting but it is fun to think of.

Remember most of those “common” interview questions rarely have a perfect “right” answer but have definite "wrong answers. Dropping the word “team” is a good thing usually. They want to make sure that when asked about a problem you have that you are not someone who just things everything is someone else’s fault. Though I am sure we all can have answered better at certain questions, rarely is a decision made on those “common questions” if you answer them they way you should.

Have fun with this time. Because right now, you don’t know either way, so best to just assume it will be a great opportunity. And if the job does not come your way then the interview is invaluable experience at interviewing.