7 ex-executives from big companies like Google and Facebook share their best tips for succeeding in a job interview
For those who are prone to nervousness, a job interview can turn into a nightmare.
You are sitting across from the interviewer, trying to convince him that despite your nervousness, you are the right person for the job. And conducting the job interview by video call, something common during the pandemic, could be just as difficult.
Whether the job interview takes place in an office or on a computer screen, the rules for success are the same.
Most experts will tell you that it all comes down to preparation: knowing ahead of time how you're going to answer the tough questions and reflecting on the direction you want your career to take.
Here are some of the best tips we've heard for wowing your interviewer, no matter how nervous you're feeling.
Ovul Sezer, Francesca Gino and Michael Norton, professors at Harvard: "Avoid excessive humility at all costs"
Harvard research suggests that excessive humility, that is, bragging on the sly, is actually a factor in rejection.
In one experiment, more than three-quarters of the participants bragged about humility. They were asked to write how they would respond to a question about their greatest weakness in a job interview.
Among the most common were being a perfectionist, working too hard, being too nice, and being too honest.
However, research assistants said that participants who answered truthfully were more likely to be hired.
Candid responses included statements like "I'm not always the best at staying organized" and "I sometimes overreact to situations."
Toni Thompson, Human Resources Executive at Etsy: “Explain that you are leaving your current job because you want to grow in a different direction”
Maintaining a positive attitude gets complicated when the interviewer asks why you left your current job? But Thompson, a former human resources executive at The Muse, gave an example of how to answer this question honestly, without speaking badly.
"Let's just say that to get to where you want to be, you need really good social media skills and you're just not being given the opportunity to do that in your current role because someone else is doing it. That's a perfectly valid reason why you might be looking at another company for an opportunity."
You can substitute “social media skills” for “technical skills”, or “editing skills”, or whatever you hope to develop. Above all, you need to explain why your job doesn't give you the opportunity to grow or take your career in the direction you'd like.
Traci Wilk, Former Starbucks HR Executive: "Talk About Your Growth Mindset"
Wilk, Senior Vice President of Talent at The Learning Experience, likes to ask candidates to tell her about the most challenging work experience they had and what they learned from it.
She specifically looks for evidence of a "growth mindset."
She says that if the candidate speaks matter-of-factly about "things she would have done differently" it's a good sign because she shows a "high degree of self-awareness."
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Wilk especially wants the person to share some "reflection that she did after the situation, how she took it and applied it in future situations" during the job interview.
Lexi Reese, former Google executive: "Show that you care about having an impact on others"
More than one human resources executive has said that she shies away from candidates who seem selfish.
To spot signs of a huge ego, Reese likes to ask candidates, "If your life is a book, tell me what the chapters in that book are."
She is interested in knowing why you made the decisions you did: "You can discover things like the ego," she says.
Reese thinks it's important to ask yourself questions like, "Is your ego focused on, 'I'm proud to do the right thing in a way that's going to impact a lot of people'? Or is it focused on: 'I did this and that and I'm great?'
Maurice Schweitzer and Adam Galinsky, professors at Wharton and Columbia Business School: "You have to have trust and respect"
In their 2015 book Friend and Foe, Schweitzer and Galinsky say that success, both in business and in life, is a matter of competing and cooperating with others; often at the same time.
In the case of the job interview, demonstrating confidence is a form of competition, while showing attention to the interviewer is a form of cooperation.
Employing both tactics simultaneously is a winning strategy.
For example, Galinsky tells Insider that when he was interviewed by professors for university jobs, he would say something like, "I loved his research on… It reminds me of my research on…."
Diane Chaleff, Google Product Manager: "Leverage the relationships you already have"
Diane Chaleff was offered her last job as head of Google's G Suite in the Office of the Director of (CTO, for its acronym in English).
In her case, her job didn't even come to her through a job interview, but rather through a casual conversation with the CEO of Google Cloud in the CTO's office.
They talked about projects they had worked on, and midway through the conversation, the CEO offered him a position.
These kinds of interactions are easier at Google, where employees are encouraged to try out different roles within the organization. Chaleff had previously worked at Google as Product Manager for Google Drive.
But Chaleff's experience underscores the importance of building relationships with colleagues wherever you work.
Your next casual networking conversation with co-workers, or other professionals in your network, could end up being the path to your next job.
Miranda Kalinowski, Head of Global Recruiting at Facebook: "Try to keep the human element when hiring virtually."
It's hard to maintain a personal touch in a job interview when it's remote, so try to be creative about how to make yourself memorable.
When asked if any candidates stood out because of something she did in the interview process, Kalinowski recalled an unforgettable experience.
The candidate realized that no one would be in the office to receive a thank you card in the mail. So she decided to make a handwritten card and email a photo of it to her interviewer.
"That made the person stand out and seem a little more human, and it brought a smile to the hiring manager's face," Kalinowski said.
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