If you have a job interview on the horizon, it’s pretty normal and indeed natural to feel a little apprehensive or nervous. It’s important to remember though that it’s an achievement in itself to come this far and that you’ve already impressed the employer since they now want to meet you in person. Continuing to impress them is what matters now so it’s vital that you do your best to put those interview nerves or fears at bay. Here are 5 Ways to be more Confident at Interview which should certainly help.

Do your research in advance

We really can’t stress enough how important it is to do your research in advance of the interview. Find out all that you can about the company, about its products or services, about its competitors – even about its culture. Likewise make sure that you do some research on the role – the typical duties you will be undertaking, the other departments or organisations that you will engage and interact with. The more research you do on these things, the more comfortable you will be and consequently the more confident you will appear. It’s pretty much a given that you will be asked what you know about the company so to be able to answer this easily will certainly give you a little boost of confidence.

Plan your answers

Now unless you have psychic abilities of some sort, it will be virtually impossible to know in advance the exact questions that you will be asked. However, you can make a pretty good guess of some of the most typically asked questions for the type of role you are going for. It’s best therefore to do a little research in advance of these questions and then to plan how you will answer them. Particularly with competency style questions, do spend some time thinking through some good strong examples that you can use in the interview. Planning your answers in advance will really help you feel more confident before and during the interview – particularly if your researched questions are the ones that are asked!

Practice beforehand

If you can, do try and ask a friend or family member to ‘role play’ an interview with you. This may initially appear awkward, however the more that you practice and rehearse your answers, the more relaxed you will be when it comes to the real thing. It’s best of course if your friend or relative is honest in their critique of your performance and provides you with constructive feedback that you can use to improve your answers before the real interview. Apart from improving your answers, this will also help highlight any habits you may have which could potentially affect your performance – from fidgeting in your seat to using “um” and “ah” too many times.

Focus on your body language

The interviewer starts forming an opinion on you as soon as you walk through the door, even before a question has been asked. To appear as a confident candidate from the off, it’s vital therefore that you focus on your body language. Walk in with your head up, offer your hand to the interviewer, smile and maintain good eye contact. All these things matter since first impressions really count. Likewise during the interview continue to focus on your body language. Clasp your hands together, continue to hold and maintain good eye contact with the interviewer. If you are being interviewed by a panel, make sure that you look at each interviewer when you answer, even if they are busy writing notes – the other interviewers will pick up on you trying to do this.

Be Yourself

Finally, this is perhaps one of the simplest, yet best pieces of advice. You have been invited to a job interview because you have the skills, qualities and experience that an employer is looking for. It’s important to remember that and to believe in yourself. On paper the employer has deemed you to be a suitable candidate – your job now is to convince them that they are right. Speak with enthusiasm and passion about your past work history and use proven examples to illustrate how you are a credible and worthy candidate. Look on the interview as being a little like a conversation – adopting such a viewpoint can go a long way towards helping you appear more relaxed and confident.

We hope that these 5 Ways to be more confident at interview help you should nerves be getting in the way. Got any other tips that you’d like to share? Why not let us know via the comments section below.

Still feel that you need more interview advice? Check out Anson Reed, specialists in online interview training and 1-2-1 Interview coaching.