I see a lot of clients who get discouraged by constant rejections in the job application process or even get through to interview stage but there are no offers. The sad thing is – they start thinking that something is wrong with them, whereas essentially the reason is something completely different:
1) There is a miss-alignment between the candidate and the role – that could be in the area of competency and technical skills, soft skills, personality fit, etc
2) There is a miss-alignment between the candidate and the company – values, culture, preferred behaviours, vision, mission and goals;
3) The candidate can be under-qualified or over-qualified for the role
4) The candidate could be applying because of the wrong reasons – desperation, just need the job, being driven only by higher monetary rewards, trying to resolve personal problems by changing jobs/careers, etc.
5) The candidate may not know how to prepare adequately –due to lack of awareness around own strengths and weaknesses, motivations and drivers, life and work values, etc. How he/she is coming across in written communication, on video, in person..
6) The candidate may not know how to position herself/himself strategically – what are their unique selling points, how do they add value to the company?
7) The candidate may lack interview skills and experience
8) The candidate may not understand fully the industry or the role
9) The candidate may lack self confidence and presentation skills, due to previous rejections, or could suffer from general anxiety, worry and nerves, exacerbated by the pressure to perform…
10) The interviewer may be unprepared, tired, not trained in interviewing techniques, etc
11) The company is not very clear on the role they have available and/or the person specification…
12) Well done for reading thus far! ?
…AND YOU GET THE GIST – THE LIST GOES ON AND ON AND ON….
So, rather than keep being sucked into this whirlwind thinking (that may be keeping you up at night?) and wondering where YOU did wrong…give yourself a break! It is all about alignment – get in touch so I can show you what I mean. Remember – the result of an interview is the reflection of how you did in that interview (and all of the above influences), NOT of who are as a whole person and it IS NOT a measure of your self-worth!
Leave a Reply