5 Ways to Handle Your Shaky Nerves During an Interview

Nervous for a job interview? You should be. By  2020, Millennials will be an estimated 46 % of all U.S. workers, which means job competition will be rough and rowdy. Not to worry, we have some quick suggestions, to help shake you of your interview nerves!

 

Did you know by 2020 Millennials will be an estimated 46 % of all U.S. workers? Share on X

 

Everyone gets nervous for interviews, but do you think of yourself as an especially nerve-ridden-no-luck-nancy? The type of person who jeopardizes every potential good thing with excessive foot tapping, stuttering or full blown mind blanks? Stop it, seriously you’re great (probably), you’re individualistic (hopefully) and we’ve got some tips to help you beat your interview anxiety.Get yourself in the mindset that you are the ultimate and ever being authority on selling yourself.

 

“Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.” -Thomas Jefferson

 

President Jefferson couldn’t have said it better. A positive attitude is crucial to prepare for an upcoming interview. Let’s get yours in check before the big day.

 

1. Prep for interviews the fun way

Get everything ready for the interview a couple of days beforehand, take care of all the technicalities. Research the company and some of their executives, get a feel of the companies’ atmosphere. Prepare a document full of common questions interviewers may ask, type out your answers. The answers should reflect exactly how you would represent yourself for employers. Have a spiel ready for one of the most commonly asked questions, “Tell us about yourself.” And then NAIL IT.

Take the night before the big day to unload yourself via your choice of guilty pleasures. Whether it be reality television, binge eating, obsessive organizing, or exercising. You do you, homeboy/homegirl!  Don’t overindulge in these guilty pleasures, do some healthy stress relievers also. Practice your breathing Meditation and relaxation can do a nerve-y body some good. Hydrate yourself, drink an ample amount of H2O to increase your alertness.

Truly put yourself in a happy place, go for a walk with your dog, sleep for eleven hours, light candles, and then do a little more company research. Be nothing if not over prepared, and well rested.

 

Interview Tip: Get everything ready for your big interview days beforehand so you can relax. Share on X

 

2. Be undeniably confident in what you are wearing

Wear something smart and definitely overdress. Don’t show up in a prom dress/tuxedo, but show you have ambition and personality. Wear a smaller defining piece that speaks to your character, reminding yourself that you are a cool person, thanks to your rad watch/broach/scarf staple piece you have on! Show your personality, but don’t overwhelm interviewers with too much jazz. Wear something cool, wear something clean, and wear something classic, then add in your tiny staple piece of flare. Pull out your ironing board, shine your shoes and manage your eyebrows because you’ve got this interview outfit completely nailed. Further suggestions for dressing up on the big day? Here, here, and here.

 

3. Apathy be gone! You are not inherently unlucky

Really, you aren’t! Tennessee Williams once said, “Luck is believing you’re lucky.” If you tell yourself you can’t do something, you probably won’t be able to do it.  Don’t set up mental roadblocks. Feeling sorry for yourself will not get you the job. Don’t beat yourself up because you get nervous, most of the U.S. population is nervous. 18.1% of the population suffers from issues with anxiety. That’s 40 million if you’re keeping count. Convince yourself that you won’t generate a mind-blank. Picture yourself in the coolest manner possible. You are the Steven Tyler of this interview (cool hair/cool voice), you are also the Meryl Streep (highly respected, and composed) of this interview. Look at you, you’re perfect for the job if not overqualified.

 

4. Project confidence, let it shine from every PORE

You’re the best, everyone loves you. Think of that one relative that brags about you at family get togethers. Remember last Thanksgiving when your Dad (and/or other relative) was ceaselessly bragging about all of those remarkably small things you accomplished as if you had just won the Tour De France? Envision yourself as that Tour de France winner, the Tour de France winner of job interviews that is! Be that person who according to your Uncle “created Facebook,” or according to your Grandma “lights up the room” and according to your cousin, “single-handedly created the funniest Instagram bio.” Be the world’s foremost hypothetical cool person, because eventually, friends, that turns into Narcissism, and Narcissists almost always get the job. For example, Christian Bale in American Psycho. Bale portrayed Patrick Bateman a psycho narcissist in the film, mind you, a psycho narcissist with a JOB. See folks, it pays to be in love with yourself.

While not all these suggestions will work for you (and some may be a little tongue in cheek, shaky nerves are no joke during the job hunting process. Steel yourself though, because you could be one deep breath away from the job of your dreams.

 

5. Job skills, your mantra and you

Brag. Gloat like you’ve never gloated before, brag about your skills, brag about your abilities, brag about the moon as if you streamlined it into space. Have a mental note (or actual note) of your strong suits ready to recite. Curate a mantra specifically for the interview. Example: “I am the Steven Tyler/Meryl Streep of this interview. I am all parts: cool hair, cool voice, in addition to being a rad-scarf-wearing highly-respected-never-aging-award-winning-individual.”  Convince yourself you are worth the job. Don’t entertain inner negative voices in your head. Confidence is both parts delusion and realization, accepting yourself as a worthy person with talents, can win you the job slugger.

 

For your next job interview, gather your thoughts, gather your research, and gather some love (for yourself.) Improving your mental state of being and self-image can certainly help build your confidence for any upcoming interview.