27 Interview Tips to Help You Stop Dreading and Start Loving Interviews

Job Interviews

Angela Guido

You need more interview tips like you need a hole in the head, I know. But this article is different. Instead of loading yourself down with the same old mechanical checklists that just increase interview anxiety, stick with me and you will interview-proof yourself.

It’s time to learn how to love interviews instead of hating them.

Hey beautiful people! Are you stoked for that next interview you’ve got coming up? If you’re like most of us, the answer is “heck naw!” It’s not at the level of climate change, death, or public speaking, but if we’re honest, job interviews definitely fill us with more anxiety than warm fuzzies.

But there’s no reason why this has to be the case. Sure, there’s a lot riding on an interview – ideally a better job, more money, a rosier future (if not, please don’t apply for the job in the first place!). And of course, fear of rejection is a whole thing in and of itself.

But if you think about it, this is all an interview is: Another person taking an interest in you and listening to you attentively for 30 or more minutes.

I mean, at some level, it’s kinda like therapy, but free!! You get to talk all about yourself, your passions, your experiences, and your desires while somebody patiently listens to you. What’s not to love about that?!

If you want to learn how to love these intimate, juicy conversations, read on! I’ve got 27 more tips to help shift your perspective. Here’s what’s coming:

Getting to know yourself and what’s generally awesome about you

The first step on the road to interview happiness goes within. Great interview performance and confidence and grace and charisma stem from self-knowledge. The better you know yourself, the better you can help someone else – perhaps a hiring manager – get to know you. I recommend you amp up your self-knowledge even before you start hitting submit on those job applications. It will help ensure you’re applying for the right jobs for you! It will also help you muster up the boldness to go for what you’re really worth and remind you that you should be trying to get the job to fit you, not the other way around.

Here are 8 steps to greater self-knowledge and awareness.

1. Know your greatest hits

You’re gonna have to talk about yourself in that job interview. And most of what you will talk about will be your achievements (failures, too, but those come later). So the first step in building your confidence and inner knowledge is to look at all that you have achieved to date. Don’t hold back on the private self-bragging either. Go all the way back to childhood if you want. Include high school, college, and every era and aspect of life in and outside of work. Personal achievements, professional, academic, and community – write them all down.

Then, simply choose your favorite 5-10 of them. Pick the ones that really make you proud to think about. We’ll call these your “greatest hits”. If you’ve got a big job interview coming, a good rule of thumb is to choose five recent professional achievements and five from other eras and aspects of life. Employers want to know who you are, not just how you work, so accomplishments from extracurriculars, community service, and university are fair game part of the time. Your greatest hits will form the foundation of most of your interview stories. Reflecting on them will also remind you of just how darn awesome you are.

For good measure, make sure you’ve got at least one of each of these types of experiences in your list:

Influencing others (also known as leadership)
Collaborating with people different from you (also known as teamwork, diversity, empathy)
Overcoming a big challenge
Solving a big problem

If you’ve got your greatest hits list, you are well on your way to greater self-knowledge. Now let’s look closer at those achievements.

Where to use this self-knowledge in the interview: as the core foundation of confidence you have in yourself. You know you can show up, act, and create value. This employer would be lucky to have you!!

2. Know your biggest choices

I’m not gonna get too deep into narrative theory here, but let’s just say that one of the most important ways you can help someone get to know the real you is to share stories about your choices. When you show someone how you go about tackling challenges, how you think about problems and situations, and how you navigated all of those past experiences through your own free will, they end the conversation feeling like they really know who you are. That’s the vibe you’re going for in the interview (more on that later).

So take some time to reflect on some of your biggest choices and make a list. Consider things like choices you’ve made in:

University and/or college7
Major
First job, second job, etc.
Geographical moves
Taking on a new challenge or learning opportunity
Dedicating your time and effort to something that mattered
Going against the grain or what was expected of you
Saying a strategic “no”
Any other choices in life that have seemed important

This list should evoke great feelings of joy and pride in who you are. No two people make the same choices in this infinite video game of life, and the choices you’ve made distinguish your avatar as the unique hero that you are.

Where to use this self-knowledge in the interview: as an even deeper confidence-builder for your core character and values, and when walking them through your resume (more on that later).

3. Know what makes you happy at work

You are going to have to answer questions about your future, about this company and this role, and about what you want from all of the above. The better you can show that your own objectives and selfish interests are aligned with what the company needs from you in this position, the more you will win the hearts and minds of your interviewers.

But don’t pander to them and say you want their job because you love their company and product without having carefully thought about whether helping build that company and that product are aligned with what you actually want or it will ring hollow.

Use our Happy at Work Equation to sort out what you want from your next job, including the tasks you enjoy, people you like to collaborate with, impact you want to have, and growth you’d like to experience. Make a wish list. Then go after ONLY the roles that give you what you want.

Where to use this self-knowledge in the interview: in answering questions like, “Why is this role a fit for you?” and “Why do you want to work for our company?”

4. Have a career game plan

Career goals are nice if you can understand how to make them happen. But for most of us, long-term goals are a kind of fool’s errand. The best laid plans… as they say. Because things change so fast – the world, but also you!! – trying to trace a linear trajectory from today to what you think you want in the long term will frustrate you and make you feel inadequate. It’s also not really how things work.

The best job for you isn’t one you will find. It’s one you will create. You’ll do it one step at a time, starting with where you are and adding a bit of goodwill, aid from others, and serendipity. So you don’t need a huge set of career goals. You just need a game plan. It’s a ‘game plan’, because if you’ve ever played any sport, you know that the game plan is just a loose guideline to get you started. Once you’re in there, you’ve got to improvise, change course, and make it work – that is, until the next time you reassess and regroup on your game plan (something we recommend you do twice a year).

Things to have in your game plan:

Your career bucket list: a wish list of things you’d like to achieve, impact, learn, do, and be before retirement
A medium-term target: a solid hypothesis of what you’d like to be doing in 3-5 years’ time (think role, responsibilities, and impact more than companies and titles)
A list: of things you want to learn, do, and achieve in your very next role

Where to use this self-knowledge in the interview: when you’re asked where you see yourself in the future or when discussing why you want this job.

5. Know your biggest failures and why they were failures

People usually freak out about the failure question. We hate appearing weak and ineffectual. But what most people don’t realize is that how you deal with failure is actually the biggest predictor of success. At one level, the only difference between the winners and the losers is that the losers gave up too soon. You will be asked to talk about a failure, and believe it or not, it’s your chance to win the interview. If you nail this one, you will stand out because most people will punt.

Take some time now to think about the biggest failures you’ve had in life: missed opportunities, mistakes, or regrets that still linger. That one time you went against your own values and are still paying for it with guilt. Most really big failures are failures to live up to the standards we set for ourselves.

Make a list of all the failures that come to mind. Then, commit to forgiving yourself for any that are outstanding. Finally, get up and dance to your favorite tune to clear the air so you can move on happily to the next step.

Where to use this self-knowledge in the interview: when asked to talk about mistakes, failures, setbacks, or disappointments.

6. Reminisce to unlock key details from your memory

This might be the most important tip on this list. Have you ever noticed that although you lived your life, you created those experiences, you nailed those greatest hits, the specific details and facts of the situation elude you at the first attempt to remember them? This is because of how memory works. We can’t hold all the details in short-term memory, or we wouldn’t have enough processing power to cross the street without getting run over or calculate tips or search YouTube for cat videos. As a result, much of our life experience is actually buried in long-term memory – a pump that needs a little priming before it will send forth its contents.

Once you’ve figured out your greatest hits and your failures, take some time to freely reminisce about these experiences. I recommend you take copious notes as you let your mind wander. Some questions to help bring back those memories:

What was the final outcome of the achievement; what were all the happy points at the end?
What was the beginning of the story – where were you, who else was there, what were you trying to do, and what did you want at the outset?
What was challenging in the middle? What obstacles stood in your way? Who? When? How did you feel about them?
What did you do to overcome those obstacles? Or in the case of failure, why did you fail to do so? How did you strategize? What did you actually say and to whom and in what format?
What did you learn from this experience? What did you learn about yourself?

I could go on and on. Let your mind take a trip down memory lane. I promise you won’t regret doing this work now. Great interview answers are detailed, vivid, story-like. To tell a vivid and brilliant story, you’ve got to paint with the details you can remember. If your palette is empty, the story will be, too. Don’t count on yourself to remember the distant past under pressure. Take time now to unearth those memories.

Where to use this self-knowledge in the interview: pretty much anytime your mouth is moving.

Get to know yourself vis-à-vis this company and role

The 6 steps above are steps you can (really, should) take before you even hit submit on a job application. They’re about getting to know yourself better in a vacuum so that you can appreciate and understand what makes you great! The next phase is to map that greatness onto the target company and role you’re applying for. Complete these next 3 steps once you’ve got an interview invite in hand.

7. Know your “whys”: Why our company? Why this team? Why this role?

Continuing in the self-knowledge vein, you need really good answers to questions that place you inside the company and invite you to envision your future there. These are the “whys.” Why do you want this job? Why are you interested in working for this company? Why is this role a good fit for you?

You can already see that if you completed steps 1-6 above, the answers to these questions should come naturally once you’ve done a little research about what the job is and what it offers (more on that in the next section!). So after you have figured out what the demands of the role are, what this company is all about, and even what the company product or service does, you will want to take a few extra minutes to think about why: why do you actually want to do this job at this company with this product/service? How does it resonate with you, your career plans, your values, and your sense of purpose?

8. Know your weaknesses vis-à-vis this role

Another question that freaks people out is the weakness question. But just as the failure question can be a game changer for your interview, so can a proactive and planful approach to addressing weakness.

Because you know what? You really shouldn’t be applying to a job you are 100% qualified for. Where’s the fun in that? What opportunity will you have to grow and develop if you’ve already been there and done all that? You SHOULD have skill gaps and areas for development vis-à-vis the role you are applying for. In fact, we recommend aiming for jobs you are about 60-70% qualified for. Showing the interviewer that you are aware of those gaps and have a thoughtful plan to address them will knock their socks off and make them want to give you the chance to learn those things.

Here’s how to make your list:

Scan the job description for all the requirements and the tasks required of the person in this role.

Give each item a check if you have already demonstrated experience along those lines.
Give each item a circle if you don’t have directly parallel experience, but you do have experience tangentially related to this activity (e.g., maybe you’ve never built a sum-of-parts financial model, but you have extensively used Excel to do financial analysis). Err on the side of giving yourself a circle if you have any experience that comes close or is in the ballpark.
Give it an X if you have absolutely no related experience (e.g., you’ve never once in your whole life been responsible for managing a team).

For the checks, get ready to tell stories about those relevant experiences.

For the circles, get ready to talk about how those experiences have prepared you for this new, related challenge.

For the × marks, make a plan for how you will address this gap within the first 60 days on the job, using the resources within the company and your personal network.

Where to use this self-knowledge in the interview: when talking about weaknesses, areas for development, or challenges you expect to face in the role.

9. Get ready to walk your specific interviewers through your resume

In many cases, you will know exactly who you’re going to be talking to before the interview itself. A little light internet stalking is a good idea (more on that later). Once you know who you’re speaking with and what their knowledge and experience base is – and ideally, what their stake is in this role you are applying for – then you can plan the opening moment of the conversation in a way to create maximum value – i.e., maximum human connection.

I talk a lot in my book, Interview Hero, about the importance of thinking of the interviewer as your friend. Check it out if you want to go more in depth on that subject. But let’s just say these two things about the opening question:

First impressions really really really matter
Your interviewer is probably having a stressful day, and a blockbuster walk-me-through will be a big favor to them and their attention span (and therefore, of course, also to you and their interest in getting to know you better!)

You want your answer to the most frequent first question, “walk me through your resume” or “tell me about yourself,” to captivate and engage. Don’t just go through the motions. And please, oh please, don’t just whip out your resume and start elaborating each step on it. Instead, make a bold choice about the framework that best allows you to…

Share your passions and most relevant values and themes vis-à-vis this role
Connect with this person and their background and potential passions
Feel deeply excited to talk about yourself because you are putting forth the very best of who you are and what your career has been about

Getting to know them: Before you apply

10. Research the company

Before you even apply for a job, take 30 minutes to get to know the company. We’ve talked through how to nail down what you want. Company research means figuring out what they want – what’s important to them.

Start with their core values and mission, essentially the DNA of their corporate culture. What are they here for? What do they believe in? What are they trying to do? You should be able to find their core values pretty easily online (ironically, Google’s corporate values have become harder to track down).

Beyond core values, find out what they look for in their employees and seek insights into the interview process. You might also want to think about things like who their top competitors are and how they stack up (in terms of strengths and weaknesses) against these competitors. If you want to get even more into the weeds, consider what opportunities and threats the company or industry could be facing in the next few years and whether there’s anything new going on for them (any recent developments, changes, or news in the media).

Some great resources for this kind of research include…

Firsthand.co
Glassdoor.com
Company websites

As you wrap up your research, think critically about the company’s purpose, mission, and means. Who are their key customers and consumers? Do you care about these constituents? What do its products or services do for consumers/customers? What unintended consequences do its products, services, or practices have, and are these impacts that you can be OK with?

Once you’ve determined which position to apply for, look into the job itself – your team/function, what you’ll be doing. Informational interviews can be one of the best ways to tap into these kinds of insights, so read on!

11. Conduct informational interview(s)

Informational interviews are the only way to really get under the hood for a specific company – to gain authentic insights into its culture and community and learn more about what your specific job/function/team is like. They’re vital for understanding both your tasks and your growth trajectory.

If you get the chance to do an informational interview or two (and we really recommend that you do!), ask about not just the culture (company philosophy, ideals) but also the community. Company philosophy and reality can be two very different things, so asking questions about community will help you uncover actual behavior on the ground (How do people treat each other? How are employees evaluated?). These things can be hard to glean from the outside, which is part of what makes informational interviews so valuable.

Also be sure to ask targeted questions about what you would be doing day-to-day in the kind of position you’re interested in or applying for – what the role looks like, how you’re going to grow, etc.

12. Understand the type of interview

Company research could give you a clear enough window into the type of interview that’s typical for your company of interest (which might also be dictated by industry norms if you’re interviewing for, say, management consulting positions). If a Google search doesn’t provide enough intel, be sure to ask about the interview process in any informational interviews you do with current employees.

You’ll want to know the approximate length, setting, and components of your interview, as well as who it’s likely to be with. If neither Google nor your informational interviews fill in enough blanks, ask your HR contact for some details about the process.

Another important thing to know is the types of common interview questions they’re likely to ask (again, this could be dictated by industry). Prepare for the classic opening questions covered in step 9 – tell me about yourself; walk me through your resume – and beyond that, practice responding to behavioral questions, point-blank questions, and why and want questions (which get at the future) based on your intel.

13. Size yourself up against the role (salary expectation)

To size yourself up again for the role you’re applying to, break the job down into its core components and see where you have relevant experience and where you may need to grow a bit more to qualify (covered in step 8 above.) Remember: no one is a perfect fit for any job, nor should you be! Any position worth interviewing for should offer you some amount of growth.

Break the job description down into qualifications and requirements (what they’re hoping for in a candidate), then check the boxes and sum it all up. How many do you already have? If you’re lacking some, how can you compensate and show transferable skills? This is a perfect time to think through your key stories and examples. Figure out how your experiences map to the job’s expected skills and responsibilities (what you will be expected to do) and note any gaps. For the areas where you’re lacking directly relevant experiences, brainstorm stories that show you leveraging the same abilities.

Research typical salary ranges for the position you’re applying for – both at this specific company and among competitors – so you can have a decent sense of what to expect, ensure you’re not quoting a starting salary, and can prepare for any related questions about what the compensation package could entail. Your own salary history could also come into play, especially if you’ve worked in similar roles leading up to this one.

Getting to know them: After you apply

14. Use their product or service and have an opinion about it

This step is simple enough, and actually very important. If your interview is with a consumer-facing company, be sure to use their product or service in advance! It could be really embarrassing if this comes up in the interview and you haven’t ever examined or tried what they have to offer. Be ready to articulate what you think of it and what could be improved.

As a bonus step, create a short PowerPoint presentation outlining your experience and advice about the product, based on the role you are applying for. For example, if you are applying for a marketing job, consider what changes you might implement to their marketing efforts on a specific platform of your expertise. If you’re applying for a product job, what product enhancements would you like to see? Have an opinion and be able to talk about what you love and would change about how they already do things.

15. Find common ground with your interviewer

Interviewers are human, and all human beings value connection. If you want to make your interview a smashing success – and build a new professional friendship, regardless of the outcome – find ways to connect with your interviewer, starting with any common ground you might share. Do you have any shared values or passions? Lived in any of the same places? Currently binging any of the same shows?

No need to do any serious sleuthing on your interviewer. If your focus is on building an authentic connection, common ground will become evident enough during the more informal, small-talk parts of the interview process, and even in any lead-up communications.

Common ground is yet another reason to make the “Interests” section of your resume actually interesting (i.e., detailed and specific). It gives your interviewer an opportunity to relate to you. Then, once you’re in person or on Zoom, you can start the encounter off with a deeper sense of camaraderie.

16. Plan questions for the interviewer

Your interview is sure to hit that closing moment when the interviewer looks at you and says, “So what questions do you have for me?” Don’t mistake this for a mere formality. It’s actually a wonderful opportunity. This is your chance to engage in more of a dialogue with your interviewer and deepen your relationship with them and the company.

You’ve earned some time by answering all their questions, so come prepared and don’t squander this opening. Use this opening to ask the insightful, intelligent, and meaningful questions that you’ve planned in advance. So what should you ask?

There are two things that all people love to talk about: their experiences and their advice. Ask questions that allow your interviewer to talk about what they’ve experienced, their career field and professional growth. Give them a chance to tell a story or share what they know: How did you get into this role? What has been your favorite project? Ask for insightful guidance and advice: How do you suggest I hit the ground running? What are two things I need to know about the organizational culture here?

Do not (do not!) ask things that can simply be googled. This will only show that you didn’t do your research. Whatever you choose to ask, it should go beyond anything you could learn from the internet and speak to what you’re genuinely curious about your potential employer. And then be sure to actually listen to the answer!!

Get presentation ready

17. Upgrade to the Interview Hero Book

Finding these tips useful? Upgrade to the whole book. Available on Amazon!

18. Practice, don’t memorize, your answers to key interview questions

If you know what to expect during the interview, you’ll be far more relaxed when the day comes. That’s one reason company research and informational interviews (both discussed above) are incredibly useful. If the interviews you’re preparing for happen to be MBA admissions interviews, I recommend checking out MBA Mission’s (free) primers. Unfortunately, no such guides exist for company interviews, so that’s where your own research comes in.

As you prepare for the key questions you’re likely to face, think through the overarching structure of your answers. Memorize the general outline of your answers – not full, paragraph-length responses. When you have a clear mental map of where your answer is going and what it’s comprised of, you can improvise in an eloquent way and avoid any rambling. The details of your planned stories are your palette; they give your answers color and provide a sense of spontaneity and naturalness in the moment.

Practice your responses in different settings and with different types of people – real or imagined. Tell your most important stories (those key experiences related to this role) in front of the mirror, in the shower, to your mom, to a friend. Think about how you might express it differently to the CEO of a company. This variety will give you flexibility no matter what kind of person shows up to interview you.

19. Be ready for technical interviews and skill tests

Not every interview will have these components, but it’s definitely something you should look into in advance and prepare for as needed. Indeed offers a Guide to Understanding the Technical Interview if you’re looking for somewhere to get started (or if the concept is completely foreign to you). Columbia’s career center also offers some guidance on preparing for software or technical interviews. Suffice it to say they’re quite different in nature from more traditional interview types.

Skill tests crop up in interviews for a wide variety of industries and encompass quite a range of hard skills that employers might wish to gauge. Indeed comes through again with a section on Skill Assessment Tests. They also walk you through the 6 Most Common Types of Tests you could face in an interview.

20. Prepare your reference list

Much like having printed copies of your resume on hand, being prepared to furnish a reference list will calm your nerves and boost your confidence for the interview – even if no one ends up asking you for it.

Your reference list should comprise a variety of individuals – drawn largely from professional settings (former supervisors, etc.) – who can speak positively about you and your qualifications for the position. If you’ve taken the time to decide on your best options in advance, you’ll save yourself a lot of sweat when references do come up. Be sure to give anyone on your reference list a heads up so they can be ready to sing your praises. You can also direct them to our article on great recommendations.

21. Decide what to wear for your interview

When it comes to interviews, you should look sharp. Even more importantly, you should feel sharp. Know what the dress code is for your interview. In most cases, a well-fitted suit/pantsuit is your best bet, but some firms have a shorts-and-flip-flops dress code, in which case a suit might not be best! Do some digging. If that information isn’t publicly available, ask someone. And if there’s no one to ask (unlikely!), use your best judgment. For most corporate jobs, it’ll be a suit.

Within the bounds of company dress code and expectations, dress in a way that makes you feel good. Use your interview outfit to highlight your professionalism and competence. For me, shoe choice is crucial, because how my feet feel affects how the rest of me feels.

Do not decide what you’ll wear the day of the interview! How you dress is really important for your confidence, so plan at least one day in advance and take care of any ironing that might be needed.

22. Figure out logistics (as needed)

The day before the interview, make sure you’re organized and ready to show up and perform. Leaving those logistical details to the last minute – or, even worse, to chance – will undermine your confidence and peace of mind. Print any important documents, lay out your interview outfit, plan transportation.

Don’t take any chances when it comes to transit. Confirm and double confirm the interview time, then map your route via public transit, Uber, driving, etc. Know where your interview will take place, decide how you’ll get there, and map out how long it will take. (Add another 50% to your travel time, or at least 30 extra minutes, to be safe.) While it doesn’t hurt to be early, being late is a dealbreaker. Even if they don’t dismiss you outright for not being punctual, your confidence will be destroyed.

23. Create an interview inspiration board

Feeling creative in the lead-up to your interview? Let those creative juices flow as you put together an interview inspiration board. Sometimes called a mood board or vision board, an inspiration board can help you focus your intention, hone your longer-term goals, spark some joy, and even boost your confidence! Find out how to create a beautiful mood board and learn more about the benefits of this creative outlet on Canva.

24. Get Zoom ready

There’s some specific prep work that goes into a successful Zoom interview, so don’t take the virtual format for granted. For a detailed how-to, read our 10 Tips to Crush Your Zoom Interview.

When it comes to virtual interviews, you’ll have to think more like a filmmaker: camera position (find a flattering angle; know where you’ll focus your eye), backdrop, etc.

Invest in a good webcam ahead of the interview if your laptop’s built-in camera won’t cut it (or doesn’t exist). Visual clarity impacts your rapport with your interviewer – it’s hard to feel like you’re connecting with someone you can barely see! – so your image really shouldn’t be granulated. Framing and camera position also matter. Don’t cut off your face or the top of your head. You should be nice and square in the middle of the shot, making eye contact with your interviewer.

Figure out your location and lighting in advance – natural light usually yields the best results – and check on that wi-fi signal. Test your Zoom connection multiple times in the days and hours before. Finally, wear something that makes you feel like the best version of yourself (and please wear real pants!!).

25. Print your resume

We all know by now that most interviewers won’t need you to hand over a printed copy of your resume, but it’s professional best practice to bring a resume to an interview. Have a couple copies printed, put them in a nice portfolio for safekeeping, and bring them with you. You’ll feel better for having them.

26. Get a good night’s sleep

The value of a good sleep the night before your interview can’t be overstated. You absolutely need to recharge your brain so you can meet the mental and emotional challenge of the interaction to come.

27. Get pumped and reduce interview anxiety

Keep your morning routine on the day of an interview. If you always exercise in the morning, make time to do that. Coffee addict? Get your fix. Breakfast lover? Be sure to eat your breakfast.

You might also consider doing something kind for yourself, something you really enjoy. I love finding somewhere to get a great latte on the morning of an interview or important meeting, especially if I’m in a new or less familiar location. That kind of thing might mean budgeting extra time, but it allows you to go in with an air of owning the day, of taking control of your morning.

Bottom line – before you leave for the interview, get happy!! Below are some ways to do so.

Get pumped before your interview:

Review your resume and remind yourself of the many awesome choices you have made
Work out or meditate, whatever you usually do to get your energy up
Call a trusted friend for a pep talk, especially if you’re nervous or feel like you need support; they can give you concrete reasons why you’re awesome
Practice an inspiring story or two (no need to go overboard, don’t rethink any answers at this point)
Listen to awesome music to get that life-is-amazing energy up
Finally, focus on your intention (why you’re doing this interview in the first place, beyond your short-term agenda of getting the job)

There you have my top tips for reducing anxiety and getting pumped before the big day, so you can get out there and start loving your interviews!

If you embrace alllll the meaningful preparation and interview wisdom outlined above, we promise you will be well on your way to transforming your relationship with this key aspect of career progression, success, and fulfillment (interviews!).

Wishing you all the best as you make this transition!