From "Interviewer" to "Interviewee"

The past couple of weeks I have had the opportunity to be the "Interviewee" and I wanted to share some thoughts from the other side of the table, so to speak.

Before you get all excited, I am not leaving T-Mobile!

There are a couple of hazards in being interviewed when you are normally the one doing the interview.

First of all, you find yourself wondering if you are following all the advice you have given over the years when it comes to being prepared.

"Let's see, am I sitting up straight, am I making good eye contact, stop speaking with your hands, don't fidget, speak clearly.......good grief, what was the question?"

The other hazard is spending too much time wondering if you are doing what you have told everyone else to do when you answer the questions.

"Be specific, don't ramble, get to the point, if you screw it up move on"

You know, I gotta tell you, I went through three interviews for the position I applied for and although I felt pretty good about the interviews, I was not confident I had the position.

I spent so much time worrying about how I did, I lost focus on the position itself.

Okay, so it's easier said than done............

Relax, be yourself, be confident!

They wanted to talk to you for a reason.

They didn't just drag you in off the street because they didn't have anything better to do.

"Okay, if they did, you don't really want to work there anyway"

So, there I was, at the end of the interview, wondering if I did okay, and they asked me........."Do you have any questions?"

Of course I do, I have a whole list of great questions, I just can't remember them right now because I am too busy worrying about how I did in the interview.

You big dummy! You just blew it!

Wow, I can't believe I just did that! Okay, calm down, it will be okay. You know everything there is to know about the position so maybe not asking all the questions will be okay.

Here's my advice for today................

No matter how much you think you know, always ask questions!

I sweated for 2 days wondering if I had blown the interview in all aspects.

I really wanted this position.

So I understand what you go through when I am interviewing you and once again I will tell you to relax, be confident, you will be fine!

If you did your homework, and it's the position you want, and you are the right fit, it will happen.

But you also need to interview the interviewer.

If you get the position, there are things you are going to want to know and they are probably things you could have found out in the interview.

The interview process is still a two way conversation, it is not an interrogation.

I thoroughly enjoyed the conversations I had with all of the people I interviewed with, but I was still nervous about asking questions at the end because I was worried about how I did.

I shouldn't have been, because I did follow all of my own advice.

Thanks to all of the great people who have come through my interview room and given me great ideas!

The people that interviewed me did a great job too and I have taken some things away from the process that I can use.

"I guess you can teach an old dog new tricks"