How to be Confident in an Interview
Be confident. It's that simple, right? For me, this is something I had to learn how to do. Confidence is not something that always comes easy. In college, I walked into my first day of class thinking, "Wow, everyone seems to know what they are doing… but we are all freshmen. What did I miss?"
All I missed was faking the confidence. In reality, most of the time no oneo one knows what they are doing. Later on, my colleagues ended up telling me how anxious they actually were as well. It was hard for me to understand this at the time.
Fast forward to my junior year of college where I experienced walking into my first job interview. Let's just say I never got the job. I was not confident, and my body language gave it all away. If we fast forward a little more to the following semester, I turned down five jobs and finally got the internship of my dreams! Does this have to do with my experience? Maybe. Does this have to do with the quality of my resume? Possibly. Does it relate to how I held myself and confidently acted like I knew what I was talking about? Absolutely.
How To Build That Confidence
Start working hard and learning how to fake it. Someone can have their resume filled with the most impressive things, but re they going to portray it like that by exuding confidence? Or are they going to shy away from the chance to be proud of their qualifications? There are many different tips that I referred to that helped me build my confidence and allow me to strengthen my ability to advocate for my talents:
Prepare For the Worst
When going into an interview, study everything that could be said to you or thrown your way. If you go into an interview prepared for the best AND the worst, you will not be shocked or thrown off by any questions. Memorize your elevator pitch and come prepared to answer scenario-based questions. Above all, give it your all.
2. Take Those Risks
I have always been outgoing and very talkative. However, something no one knew about me was how I would never put myself out there to be the first one to say yes or ask difficult questions. I learned this skill here at Grand Valley State University. With the help of GVPRSSA, I gained the confidence to take those risks. Today, I have the confidence to finally tell individuals what I want and see how they react. I ask direct questions and take those extra risks even if the answer is no. Once you take these risks, you will notice how much braver you become, which helps boost your confidence.
3. Be Honest With Yourself
Something that you never want to do is lie, especially to yourself. We are all learning and growing as students every day. If you know you are growing into a certain skill, you can always mention that growth journey while conversing with a future employer. You know what you can do, and that is what you need to focus your confidence on. Interviews can be intimidating because you want them to pick you, but all you need to do is talk yourself up and mean it. Making sure you are honest with yourself and the interviewer is most important.
4. Fake it Till You Make It
To live in this world, especially the PR world, you need to fake it till you make it. This is one of the most simple yet effective life lessons. Faking confidence in an interview is a common method used to stand out from others. It’s important to tell yourself that not everyone is walking in as confident as they seem. As long as you research the employer, company, and interviewer, you will have the information you need throughout the interview to make it seem like you know what you are talking about. To look more confident, make sure you are not slouching, spinning in your chair, looking away from the interviewer, or playing with your fingers. Here is an article that I have used in the past to help me with making my confidence in an interview increase; just by faking it. With time, confidence will come naturally and you will not be faking it as much.
Building confidence looks different for everyone. If you are someone who struggles with confidence in an interview, start with the four simple steps discussed above. As said in a report from the Forbes Article 10 Ways To Build Confidence , there are different steps that might help you; like taking risks and preparation. Study your habits and find what works best for you. If you struggle with this, don't feel discouraged. Everyone has worked on confidence building at least once in their lives. We are all in this together.
Alexandra Lucaj is a junior studying Advertising and Public Relations with a minor in General Business. She is the Vice President of Public Relations for GVPRSSA. Outside of school, she works as a Community Relations Intern at the West Michigan Whitecaps. After graduation, Alexandra hopes to continue using her PR skills in the professional sports industry.