- Report this article
Albert Riehle
Albert Riehle
Senior Recruiting Manager (National) - Connecting top Life Science talent with exciting and innovative companies. Specializing in Pharma, Biotech, Medical Device, Clinical, Food, and Personal Care Products .
Published Apr 19, 2023
+ Follow
With almost a decade of experience in recruiting, I have learned several immutable truths. One of them is this: People who finish an interview with regrets, usually did better than they believed they did and people who tell you they crushed it, very rarely did.
Why the disparity? I believe it has to do with self-awareness. A self-aware person always believes they could have done better in an interview. They think back through the questions they gave perfectly good answers to and wish they had added a detail or a fact to support their answer. They are aware of the answer they gave and the answer they may have given if they had time to prepare for that specific question, or had been less nervous when answering it.
Those without self-awareness think they crushed the interview. They spent the entire time telling the interviewer how great they are and what a good fit they would be without coming up for air. They finish the interview and think that having dominated the interview means that they did well. Intelligent, accomplished professionals make this mistake every day. They are the ones who seek to "win" an interview and their mindset often keeps them from getting the jobs they want.
The balance of a good interview should involve the candidate doing about 60% of the speaking and the interviewer doing about 40% of it. That's what any candidate should be targeting. Sometimes it can't be helped. Not every hiring manager is good at interviewing and it's possible that you will need to carry more of the conversation. Some interviewers don't ask the right questions and spend so much time telling you about the company and the job that you worry you won't get a chance to mention your best qualities and attributes.
So, what's the key to not talking too much? It's pretty simple.
In closing, you have to be self-aware to interview well. If you know that you're a talker or have a tendency to ramble, you need to use these tricks and others to slow down and answer the questions that are asked. Practice answering common, open-ended questions that can easily find you talking too much. When they say, "Tell me about yourself," they don't want a re-cap of your entire career or to know that you won your 3rd-grade Spelling Bee. You can anticipate a question like this or one like it and have a succinct, practiced answer ready to go that doesn't take more than a minute or two to answer. Remember, you never make a friend by only talking about yourself. You rarely succeed in an interview with that strategy either.
Do you have any tips you can share about tactics you've used to make sure you don't over-talk in an interview?
Like
Celebrate
Support
Love
Insightful
Funny
8
To view or add a comment, sign in
More articles by this author
No more previous content
- Top 12 Most Commonly Asked Interview Questions in the Life Sciences Industry and How to Answer Them Jul 25, 2024
- 10 Quick Tips to Make Your Resume AI-Friendly Jul 23, 2024
- Common Misconceptions About Recruiters: A Deeper Examination Jul 18, 2024
- Saying You Are a "Quick Learner" Is a Mistake in Job Interviews Jul 9, 2024
- Understanding "Quiet Firing" Jun 27, 2024
- Navigating Language Barriers for ESL Candidates in the Life Sciences Job Market: Advanced Strategies Jun 25, 2024
- Weekend Discussion: The Dell Dilemma: A Turning Point for the Future of Remote Work Jun 22, 2024
- Leveraging Temporary Roles in the Life Sciences Industry to Secure Permanent Positions Jun 18, 2024
- Precision in Keyword Strategy: Optimizing Life Sciences Resumes for AI Jun 13, 2024
- The Advantages of a Variable Resume Over a Static Resume in the Life Sciences Industry: Tips for Maximizing Impact Jun 11, 2024
No more next content
Sign in
Stay updated on your professional world
Sign in
By clicking Continue to join or sign in, you agree to LinkedIn’s User Agreement, Privacy Policy, and Cookie Policy.
New to LinkedIn? Join now
Insights from the community
- Global Talent Acquisition What do you do if you make common interview mistakes?
- Interviewing You're navigating an interview. How can you steer clear of common decision-making pitfalls?
- Human Resources Here's how you can navigate tricky interview questions about your weaknesses.
- Training What are the best ways to follow up after a second interview?
- People Management You’re about to go into an interview. What are the most important things to know about the interviewer?
- Creative Strategy How can you effectively follow up after a Creative Strategy interview?
- Decision-Making What do you do if you need to showcase your decision-making experience in an interview?
- Staff Development Here's how you can confidently tackle difficult or unexpected interview questions.
- Mentoring Here's how you can navigate an interview question when you're unsure of the answer.
Explore topics
- Sales
- Marketing
- IT Services
- Business Administration
- HR Management
- Engineering
- Soft Skills
- See All