ten inches from your fingers, are using deodorant, and are not wearing clothes so daring that they call a lot of attention to themselves; and in either case, that
• you have on freshly laundered clothes, pants, or pantsuits with a sharp crease, and shoes, not flip-flops, freshly polished; and
• you do not have bad breath, do not dispense gallons of the odor of garlic, onion, stale tobacco, or strong drink, into the enclosed office air, but have brushed and flossed your teeth; and equally
• you are not wafting tons of aftershave cologne or overwhelming perfume fifteen feet ahead of you, as you enter the room. Employers are super-sensitive these days to the fact that many of their employees are allergic to such things.
2. Nervous mannerisms. It is a turnoff for employers if:
• you continually avoid eye contact with the employer (in fact, this is a big, big no-no), or
• you give a limp handshake, or
• you slouch in your chair, or endlessly fidget with your hands, or crack your knuckles, or constantly play with your hair during the interview.
3. Lack of self-confidence. It is a turnoff for employers if:
• you are speaking so softly you cannot be heard, or so loudly you can be heard two rooms away, or
• you are giving answers in an extremely hesitant fashion, or
• you are giving one-word answers to all the employer’s questions, or
• you are constantly interrupting the employer, or
• you are downplaying your achievements or abilities, or are continuously being self-critical in comments you make about yourself during the interview.
4. The consideration you show to other people. It is a turnoff for employers if:
• you show a lack of courtesy to the receptionist, secretary, and (if at lunch) to the waiter or waitress, or
• you display extreme criticalness toward your previous employers and places of work, or
• you drink strong stuff during the interview process. Ordering a drink if the employer takes you to lunch is always a no-no, as it raises the question in the employer’s mind, Do they normally stop with one, or do they normally keep on going? Don’t… do… it! even if they do;
• you forget to thank the interviewer as you’re leaving, or forget to send a thank-you note afterward. Says one human resources expert: “A prompt, brief, faxed business letter thanking me for my time along with a (brief!) synopsis of his/her unique qualities communicates to me that this person is an assertive, motivated, customer- service-oriented salesperson who utilizes technology and knows the rules of the ‘game.’ These are qualities I am looking for…. At the moment I receive approximately one such letter … for every fifteen candidates interviewed.”
• Incidentally, many an employer will watch to see if you smoke, either in the office or at lunch. In a race between two equally qualified people, the nonsmoker will win out over the smoker 94 percent of the time, according to a study done by a professor of business at Seattle University. Sorry to report this, but there it is;
5. Your values. It is a complete turnoff for most employers, if they see in you:
• any sign of arrogance or excessive aggressiveness; any sign of tardiness or failure to keep appointments and commitments on time, including this hiring-interview; or
• any sign of laziness or lack of motivation; or
• any sign of constant complaining or blaming things on others; or
• any signs of dishonesty or lying—especially on your resume or during the interview; or
• any signs of irresponsibility or tendency to goof off; or
• any sign of not following instructions or obeying rules; or
• any sign of a lack of enthusiasm for this organization and what it is trying to do; or
• any sign of instability, inappropriate response, and the like; or
• the other ways in which you evidence your values, such as: what things impress you or don’t impress you in their office; or what you are willing to sacrifice in order to get this job and what you are not willing to sacrifice in order to get this job; or your enthusiasm for work; or the carefulness with which you did or didn’t research this company before you came in; and blah, blah, blah.
There you have it: the mosquitoes that can kill you, when you’re on the watch only for dragons, during the hiring-interview. One favor I ask of you: do not write me, telling me how picayune or asinine some of this is. Believe me, I know that. I’m not reporting the world as it should be, and certainly not as I would like it to be. I’m only reporting what study after study has revealed about the hiring world as it is.
But here’s the good news, when all is said and done: you can kill all these mosquitoes. Yes, you control and can change every one of these factors. Go back and read the list; you will see.
Before you let the interview end, there are five questions you should always ask:
1. “Can you offer me this job?” I know this seems stupid, but it is astonishing (at least to me) how many job-hunters have secured a job simply by being bold enough to ask for it, at the end of the (final) interview, in language they feel comfortable with. I don’t know why this is. I only know that it is. Anyway, if after hearing all about this job at this place, you decide you’d really like to have it, you must ask for it. The worst thing the employer can say is “No,” or “We need some time to think about all the interviews we’re conducting.”
2. “When may I expect to hear from you?” If the employer says, “We need some time to think about this,” or “We will be calling you for a second interview,” you don’t want to leave this as a vague good intention on the employer’s part. You want to nail it down.
3. “Might I ask what would be the latest I can expect to hear from you?” The employer has probably given you their best guess, in answer to your previous question. Now you want to know: what is the worst-case scenario? Incidentally, when I was job- hunting once, and I asked my interviewer when was the latest I might expect to hear from him, he replied, “Never!” I thought he had a great sense of humor. Turned out he was dead serious. I never heard from him again, despite repeated attempts at contact.
4. “May I contact you after that date, if for any reason you haven’t gotten back to me by that time?” Some employers resent this question. You’ll know that is the case if they snap at you. But most employers appreciate your offering them what is in essence a safety-net. They know they can get busy, become overwhelmed with other things, forget their promise to you. It’s reassuring, in such a case, for you to offer to rescue them.
(Optional: #5. “Can you think of anyone else who might be
