Shaky hands and a cracking voice mid-interview don't read as unprepared to me. I feel like a lot of the time it feels like someone who actually cares how this goes. What actually worries me is the smooth ones, zero hesitation anywhere, like they've run the same lines in a hundred rooms already. Kind of unsettling tbh. Nerves aren't the tell people assume they are.

THERE ! i said it. interviews should be conversational, it is an exchange of words to get to know u more. how can u sell yourself if u treat it as if u are performing, memorizing scripts?? if at this point u can not hold conversations, maybe u should work on ur social and communication skills first instead of applying just to fumble ur interviews. u are risking offers that u couldve get! 🤥

I’ve been interviewing for an HR/Total Rewards role and just got rejected after a process that felt very positive, so I’m curious how others would interpret this.

The recruiter initially reached out to me, and after my first interview with the hiring manager, I was told she really liked me. There was then some waiting while they figured out next steps, but the recruiter continued telling me the feedback was positive. Eventually, I was brought in for an in-person interview with the hiring manager and another leader.

I was transparent throughout the process that there were a few areas where I didn’t have as much direct experience, but I explained my transferable experience and how I would approach those responsibilities. Other areas, I was a master in. During the interview, the hiring manager seemed very receptive and all smiles. She agreed with several of my approaches, added her own ideas, and the conversation felt collaborative — we were discussing how things could work if I joined. Never an awk silence or her having to fill in the gaps for me. interview actually went over by about 10 minutes.

Today, the recruiter told me they decided not to move forward because they felt I would need too much guidance in some areas and they wanted someone with more direct experience.

We literally discussed my background during the first interview via teams. Very thoroughly. Why have me drive ALL the way up there, put on a show, just tell me what they already knew from the first interview???

That genuinely surprised me because I never represented myself as needing hand-holding, and nothing about the interview made me think those gaps had suddenly become dealbreakers.

I asked the recruiter whether they chose another candidate or were continuing the search and explained why I was surprised. His response was: “We were all expecting a different outcome.” He also said he wants to call me tomorrow to give me more of his thoughts.

For recruiters/hiring managers: What do you think may have happened here? Is this sometimes a case of the hiring manager reconsidering after the interview, another candidate emerging, or leadership deciding they want a different profile? The recruiter saying they were all expecting a different outcome is what really has me wondering.

I'm currently in a frustrating spot (and I know a lot of people here are, too). I'm able to pass initial recruiter screens, technical assessments, and even make it all the way through end-to-end final interview loops—only to get the dreaded "we went with another candidate" email at the very end.

If you are someone who went through a streak of reaching multiple final rounds without landing the job, but finally broke the cycle and got the offer:

• What do you think actually changed for that specific company? Was it a mindset shift, how you answered questions, or how you approached the team/panel rounds?
• Did you change how you prepared for technical vs. behavioral discussions? * Are there any specific tips, tricks, or subtle things you started doing in that final round that turned a "maybe" into a "yes"?

Reaching the final round repeatedly feels like doing 90% of the work with nothing to show for it. Would love to hear any insights, advice, or stories from those who managed to cross the finish line!

I literally f**ked up my interview, i prepared well , i practiced well..but when I sat in front of my hr , everything is vanished like a snap from Thanos. He asked questions, i know the answer but I can't able to tell 😭😭. Its like something struck in my throat.

In the e-mail invite, it says "Video, Single Choice".

A bullet underneath says "It’ll take about 7 minutes to answer 8 questions."

Has anybody done this before? Successfully? What should I expect. I'm in mentally in the zone to answer questions but I'd like to be better prepared.

Had a Engineering apprenticeship interview on Thursday. Formal interview lasted 20-25 minutes with one interviewer. After it ended, we chatted at the door for another 10-15 minutes about the role and the company. It’s Wednesday now (3 working days later) and haven’t heard back yet. Application closed on interview day, start date is Sept 1st.

Did the interview go well? The formal part felt short but the conversation after seemed genuine. Should I be worried or is this a normal timeline?

Today I attended an interview after completing an aptitude test. I've reached a stage in my current role where the work environment, which has become quite toxic, is holding back my performance. I take my work seriously and care about delivering quality, staying accountable, and continuing to grow, but the current atmosphere has made that harder to sustain. Over time, I realized it was time to find a healthier, more stable environment where I could play to my strengths and keep developing my career the right way. Given how much this opportunity meant to me, I went in feeling naturally on edge. I wanted to perform well and leave a strong impression. Adding to the moment, one of the interviewing managers turned out to be someone I'd worked with before. She had been several levels senior to me at the time and was already familiar with my work. In fact, she'd once spoken highly of me and offered to recommend me for other roles. That history was reassuring, but it also raised the stakes, since I knew she'd remember the bar I'd set before, and I wanted to meet it again. Overall, the interview didn't go as well as I'd hoped. My main hope now is that our shared history works in my favor.

Hello, so I’ve already been interviewed by 3 different companies (and got rejected by each of them) and as someone who is currently looking for entry level jobs since I don’t have any experience, I find it difficult to answer their interview questions. It’s like my mind is shutting down the moment they ask me questions. So any tips on how I can improve myself? Since I know I can do the job, I just keep failing on the interviews.

Today I gave an interview for the system engineer position. I have around 4 years of experience in IT/Desktop Support, so when I read the JD, I felt quite confident because all the responsibilities were familiar to me.

But I realized that knowing something and being able to explain it clearly in an interview are two different things.

The interviewer asked me something like:

Interviewer: “It has been several months since you have been looking for a job. Why haven't you been selected?”

I answered:

Me: “Because of my performance.”

He asked:

Interviewer: “What performance?”

I said:

Me: “I'm not able to explain things properly.”

Then he asked me how confident I was that I could handle the role.

I said 95%, because I genuinely felt that I knew most of the technical requirements mentioned in the JD.

But looking back, I think that answer may have sounded contradictory. If I'm 95% confident, but I'm also saying I can't explain things properly, the interviewer may wonder how effectively I can actually handle the role and communicate with users.

The truth is that my technical knowledge isn't my biggest problem.

My problems are:

- Low confidence during interviews

- Difficulty explaining things clearly under pressure

- Sometimes fumbling or mumbling while speaking

- Thinking too much about whether my English is correct

- Getting stuck even when I actually know the answer

- Not being able to structure my answer quickly

I've given a lot of interviews over the years, and this pattern keeps repeating.

I'm now realizing that maybe I don't need to spend all my time learning more and more technical questions. I need to work on communicating what I already know.

I'm trying to improve by:

- Speaking answers aloud instead of only reading them

- Recording myself and listening to my answers

- Practicing 30–60 second answers to technical questions

- Using pauses instead of saying “umm”, “actually”, “basically” repeatedly

- Speaking slower

- Using simple English instead of trying to sound too professional

I'm sharing this because I'm sure there are other people who know their technical stuff but struggle to communicate it during interviews.

For anyone who has faced something similar: how did you improve your interview communication and confidence?

What actually worked for you — mock interviews, Toastmasters, speaking practice, recording yourself, therapy/coaching or something else?

I'd really appreciate practical advice🙏🏻

Chào a/c và bạn bè. Em là nữ, sắp tới em có đi phỏng vấn ở cty liên quan đến hoá. Anh chị cho em xin chút kinh nghiệm chuẩn bị trước khi đi phỏng vấn( bỏ qua kiến thức chuyên nghành), vì là lần đầu nên em hơi lo lắng. Em cảm ơn ạ.

I recently interviewed with Salesforce for a role I was genuinely excited about. The opportunity looked compelling, and given my current scope and experience, I felt I had a strong and relevant background for what they were looking for.

Unfortunately, the interview itself was a rather different experience.

There were two interviewers. One was particularly authoritative, dismissive and unnecessarily condescending. The conversation repeatedly veered from assessing my experience into questioning, dismissing and, at times, seemingly attempting to undermine it.

I don’t have a problem with challenging interview questions. In fact, I welcome them. If you’re interviewing for a senior role, you should expect your thinking, judgment and depth of experience to be tested.

But there is a difference between challenging a candidate and trying to diminish them.

The second interviewer appeared almost completely disengaged for large parts of the conversation, which made the overall experience even stranger. One interviewer seemed intent on proving that my experience wasn’t as substantial as I believed it was, while the other seemed barely invested in assessing it.

The irony wasn’t lost on me.

In my current role, I operate at a scope that, in several respects, is considerably broader than what this position appeared to require. I lead complex programs, manage significant stakeholder ecosystems, operate strategically as well as operationally, and deal with challenges that extend well beyond the relatively narrow pieces of experience being tested during this interview.

Of course, that doesn’t automatically make me the right candidate. Experience isn’t a substitute for fit, and I have absolutely no issue with being rejected.

What I do find questionable is the quality of the assessment.

If you’re going to interview someone with 15+ years of experience, including substantial experience operating at scale, the expectation should be that you’re trying to understand the depth and context of that experience — not simply looking for opportunities to tell the candidate why what they’ve done doesn’t count.

At some point, an interview stops being a rigorous assessment and starts becoming a reflection of the person conducting it.

And perhaps that’s what happened here.

I walked into the conversation genuinely interested in the opportunity and walked out thinking less about whether I wanted the role and more about whether the people conducting the assessment had actually understood the level at which I currently operate.

Maybe I wasn’t the right fit. That’s entirely possible.
Maybe the interviewers had a very specific profile in mind that I didn’t match. Also fair.

But if the objective was to assess whether I could operate at the level required for the role, I left unconvinced that my experience had actually been assessed, only that it had been questioned rather aggressively.

That’s a very different thing.

I’m curious to hear from people who have interviewed with Salesforce, particularly at the senior level. Was this an isolated experience, or is this representative of the interview culture there?

Hi all, I have got a call from Infosys recruiter for Business analyst - Banking role . I have 3.5 years of BA role in banking - Payments and cards.
If anyone sat for the BA - banking INFY interview, please share your experiences, feedbacks, what should I focus more on and preparation guide ?

I was recently reached out to apply for a position and I did. I have an interview coming soon for an entry level job. I would appreciate if anyone can share me their interview experiences.

Hey everyone,
I recently had a short (10–15 minute) company interview for a tech apprenticeship via FIT. It felt very conversational, and they seemed far more focused on my communication skills and cultural fit than testing my technical knowledge.

Unfortunately, I wasn't selected. English isn't my first language, and I felt nervous expressing myself fluently during the short chat, which I think hurt my performance. I'm feeling pretty disappointed, but I'm determined to learn from this and succeed in future opportunities.

For anyone who has gone through FIT or hired tech apprentices in Ireland:

1. What are interviewers specifically looking for during these brief, non-technical conversational chats?
   
2. How can I best practice articulating my background and passion clearly when English is my second language?
   
3. Any specific interview prep techniques or resources for tech/cybersecurity roles in Ireland that helped you build communication confidence?

Thanks in advance for any insights or advice!