It’s natural to feel anxiety about an upcoming job interview. Many of the candidates we work with tend to feel nervous before they head into an interview.  When you get nervous, it means that what you are doing is important to you.  However, heading into an interview overly nervous tends to lead to an undesirable outcome– it can paralyze you or lead to exhibit some unflattering traits during their interview – either speaking too much and rambling or clamming up and not saying nearly enough.    

Today I wanted to go over some of our suggestions to help calm your nerves before heading into the interview. 

The first and most important thing to do is to be prepared.  Ultimately, the best wayto stay calm is to be very prepared in every way possible.  Research the firm and the lawyers the position will be supporting. Practice answers to anticipated questions, think of three to four examples that highlight things you want the interviewer to know about you and your skillset or performance on the job. Also make note of the questions you want to ask the interviewer.  Know the location of where you are going, know the names of the people you will be meeting with and bring enough resumes for both them and yourself. 

This is one opportunity. Remember, this is just one interview and one opportunity.  You need to explore it to make sure it is the right match for you. It is important to remember that there are other jobs out there and no matter what happens, this interview will be a learning experience that will make you a better job candidate moving forward. 

Also, remember that this will be a conversation.  When you interview with lawyers, the majority of times the interview will take on a very conversational nature.  You need to remember this – whether meeting with a lawyer, office manager or HR, this is simply one conversation.  Further, it is a two way conversation.  This isn’t just going to be them interrogating you—you have questions you need answered, and they are most likely just as nervous about making a good impression.

There’s only so much you can control and accept the fact that mistakes will happen.  You can only control so many things about the interview process - You can take the time to figure out how long it will take to get to their office; You can pick out what you are going to wear, what you bring and how hard you prepare and study. However, you cannot control everything and you need to accept the fact that mistakes will happen. 

Finally, keep in mind that you got the interview because the interviewer saw your resume and liked what they saw.  You ticked enough boxes to get your foot in the door and there is enough of what they saw to believe that you can do the job.  Now, it’s whether or not you are the best match.  If you are, then fantastic!  If it’s not the best match and you don’t get the position, then that’s okay too! 

You want to make sure that you secure a position at a firm where you can be yourself and a position that aligns with your current skillset, while also pushing you to grow in your career.  If this is the position for you and there is a strong match between you and the firm, then things will work out.  If not, there are other opportunities out there that will provide better long term matches.   

Thanks for reading!  If you have any questions or would like to discuss further, feel free to send us an email or give us a call.

Happy Job Hunting and Good Luck!