Dear Sales Diary: Interviews Uggggh!

I hate interviews. I know that we're all suppose to be little "professor positive" when we walk into an interview, but seriously; it's like lining yourself up for a chance at rejection. And get this, I interview very well! Imagine if you don't interview well. You're screwed.
There are all kinds of reasons for an interviewer to reject you. First of all, they all have a script or document which tells them what to ask and to analyze your responses. Usually that is a phone interview. And if you pass their little test, then you get lucky enough to meet them in person. And again that have a script or document for the interview. Hell, even I had an outline of questions I wanted to ask just to make sure I was hiring the right person. And despite all those tools, it's difficult to choose the "perfect candidate". I have hired and fired hundreds of people and I found that there are a few things you shouldn't do during the interview process:

1.) No short sleeve, button down shirts - If you wear this it tells the interviewer you don't know what you're doing or you just got out of class at St. Mary's Reform School.

2.) No food in the interview - Believe it or not on 2 occassions I've had people show up with food, saying they didn't have time for lunch. Heh, I want to talk to you, not watch you stuff your face.

3.) No jeans - Absolutely a no-no. If I tell you it's a casual interview that means, wear khaki pants or something not a pair of your best Levi or Wrangler jeans.

4.) No gum - I had a candidate "pop" his gum all through the interview process. It was so annoying by the end of the interview I wanted to "pop" his face!

5.) Conservative Jewelry - I interviewed a candidate one time who was wearing a Cartier watch. When I heard about her rich dad who gave her everything she wanted, my immediate thought was, "she doesn't need this job". So I probed her and she told me exactly that, "I don't need the money, I just want something to do til I get my inheritance." Rich people are clueless.

Those are just 5 quick tips for interviews. I'll pass on 5 more examples next time. Have fun out there...you have one of the best jobs in the world. Make sure you keep it!

-M