Superbowl Ads & Interviewing

Who knew that both the Superbowl and Interviewing would ever be a blog topic. Did you see the Tide commercial where the guy (candidate) is sitting in an interview and each time the guy tries to talk about his qualifications, the stain on the guy's shirt talks over him?

Tide-to-Go Superbowl Commercial, My Talking Stain Ad

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Often times a candidate's dress or characteristic takes center stage over the interview which is why the Tide commercial is such a good example that actually happens. A friend of mine had a candidate come to an interview with his pet iguana. During the interview, the iguana kept pacing back and forth across the candidate's shoulder. Apparently, the iguana was nervous. My friend had a hard time focusing on the candidate for obvious reasons.

A nervous habit can also be magnified in the interview. In the past, I had a candidate repeat the following phrase about 75 times in the interview, "And Everything." It was very distracting and was very hard for me not to begin counting the number of times he repeated, "And Everything" and everything.

The point is as a candidate you want to be your best. Be prepared. This includes dressing appropriately, leaving distracting accessories (iguana) at home, doing your homework on the position and the company and practicing your pitch and interview questions with friends or in the mirror. It's normal to be nervous in the interview. Preparing appropriately for the interview allows you the opportunity to let your qualifications shine through and not distractions.