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Messed up my first ever job interview


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donotmicrowave

..the title says it all!

 

It all started out bad. It was in another city, I missed my bus, then almost couldn’t find the place, dropped my salad at lunch and so on..

 

The interviewer was very essygoing and kind. I was very nervous and just kind of shut down. I forgot all my questions, I hadn’t researched the company enough. I just answered, was nice, but I wasn’t open or confident.

 

I feel really bad about this. I really liked the job. She told me I could give her a call or email her if I have any questions, I think I will give her a call and ask my questions a bit later.

 

Or is that a waste of time..? The interview only lasted for 20min, that’s a bad thing, right?

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donotmicrowave,

Stop beating yourself up over this. :)

 

It's happened to most of us at some time :o

 

If you have a chance to speak to the interviewer then take it - you'll get some pointers about where you were weak in the interview.

 

No experience is ever wasted, so learn from this.

 

Next time allow more time to find the place, research the company better, have some questions written down. So at the next interview you'll do better won't you? :) Of course you will.Good luck x

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lucy_in_disguise

Practice makes perfect. We've all been there on disastrous interviews and he good news is, if you're just starting your career, you've got 40+ years to work on this.

 

Re: where to go from here with this particular company- it may be a long shot, but if you are truly very interested in the position and company, you can try to reach out to the person in charge of filling the position (hopefully not the same person who interviewed you) explaining that you were very nervous because you are so interested in this job, and asking for another chance. That's exactly what I did after my own first (disastrous) interview many years ago, and to my surprise- I got a second chance, had a better interview with another person, got the job, and happily worked for the company for 7 years. It's definitely a long shot but sometimes being open and vulnerable during this process can work out. Especially when you're young and just starting out. We are all human, and many hiring managers can relate to your situation.

Edited by lucy_in_disguise
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..the title says it all!

 

It all started out bad. It was in another city, I missed my bus, then almost couldn’t find the place, dropped my salad at lunch and so on..

 

The interviewer was very essygoing and kind. I was very nervous and just kind of shut down. I forgot all my questions, I hadn’t researched the company enough. I just answered, was nice, but I wasn’t open or confident.

 

I feel really bad about this. I really liked the job. She told me I could give her a call or email her if I have any questions, I think I will give her a call and ask my questions a bit later.

 

Or is that a waste of time..? The interview only lasted for 20min, that’s a bad thing, right?

 

call her is ok, email is more formal, she may reply you to arrange another interview .

 

20min is too short for a formal interview, if she really will let u in she will need another .

 

from what she says, u have left her a good impression:)

so go ahead and don't forget to tell us the good news.

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Nobody does something perfectly the 1st time.

 

What did you learn from this? Hopefully it was to scout out the location of the interview in advance & not just on line. Practice going to unfamiliar places. Give yourself extra time to get to important meetings. Use the 120% rule. If you think it will take 60 minutes to get somewhere, budget 1 hour & 15 minutes. Perhaps invest in a better brief case so you have your lunch in a secure professional looking bag not separate in your hands where you can drop it.

 

Also do some practice interviews before you go. Write your Qs down. Read them if you have too. Nobody will fault you for being prepared.

 

Do send a thank you note. Use it to raise any issue you forgot in your nervousness.

 

Now pick yourself up. Dust yourself off & send out 5 more resumes today.

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JustGettingBy

Most people mess up their first ever interview, its fine. Your post indicates that you know what you did wrong, so next step is to see what you can do to avoid those same mistakes in the future.

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Probably the first of many interviews.

 

Try not to stress it. Just learn from the experience for future interviews.

 

Good luck with your job search!

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donotmicrowave

First of all, thank you guys so much for the feedback! I read it the same day, and it really made me feel a lot better.

 

Now, here’s what happened. I never called or emailed, I just let it go, as I received some more opportunities for interviews and such.

 

She emailed me yesterday to tell me the results - she said she loved me! And that she would love to see me working for their company, but there are no opportunities right now for me..? She told me to get in touch if I ever move to the city, told me she’d make sure to keep my CV, and contact me right away if a place for me opens.

 

I replied very nicely - thanked her for the opportunity and her time, mentioned it was my first interview and was very nervous, but that I’m glad I got to have that experience with her! I wished her the best and all that!

 

Perhaps she’s letting me down gently or something like that? I’m not sure, I didn’t get that vibe from her email, it made me feel really good though!

 

It taught me so much! I now know how to go about a job interview, and how not to drop a good salad during lunch.

 

Thank you, all!

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Ha. If it can console you in any way, I once had a job interview set up. I had to reach the place with my car and it wasn't even far away. Nevertheless, I had an accident with my car. I had to call someone to pick me up. I was late for the interview and had to explain I had a car accident.........

 

I didn't get the job. But who cares.

 

In your case, I think you still have a chance. If I were you, I'd call, right away, not e-mail.

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