There are a lot of resources out there talking about how to nail technical interviews. But people always skip over the soft skills, which are arguably just as important, if not more so.
For specific organizations, being brilliant might be the only requirement. But for the rest of us, it’s preferable to find a well-rounded candidate who would add value to the team.
Here’s a list of things that will improve the impression you make during an interview.
1. Consistent Pacing and Volume of Speech
People often lump together a bunch of things under “confidence,” but telling people to be confident is not helpful. I’ll be more specific:
Maintain an even pace and volume when speaking.
Confidence is something only you can feel — it honestly makes no difference to the interviewer how confident you actually are. After all, they can only see what you show them.
What matters is how in-control you are.
We make a lot of assumptions about how a person is feeling based on external behaviors, including speech.
Candidates sometimes lose themselves in their nerves — they speak fast, they’re frantic, they’re jumping all over the place with their sentences, etc.
Those are the candidates that give off the worst impression — it means they lose control when things get tough. In turn, it negatively influences the interviewer’s perception of them: unreliable, inexperienced, fragile, etc.
Of course, it’s in the interviewer’s best interests to make sure candidates feel comfortable so they can perform their best. But there’s a limit to how much you can control someone else’s feelings.
Even if you’re incredibly nervous, you can give the impression of confidence and total control when you maintain a regular speech pattern.
Another tip: Avoid caffeine before an interview. Unless you’re about to keel over from exhaustion, caffeine will wind you up and make you seem skittish.
2. Taking Criticism
Most of us take pride in our work. So when someone criticizes your work, it can be hard to handle because it hurts your pride.
But it’s essential to learn how not to take things personally.
Most of the time, when you’re interviewing, you’re talking to people who have vastly more experience and knowledge than you.
Even if this isn’t the case, everyone has expertise and wisdom to bring to the table, and none of us is perfect.
When you don’t handle criticism well, it means that you have issues with pride. Pridefulness is fine, but in excessive amounts, it indicates you’ll likely have problems working in a team where providing and receiving feedback is the norm.
Nobody wants to work with someone who thinks they’re the best. They’re frustrating to talk to. They’re stubborn. They stick to their beliefs at the expense of the team. They’re resistant to change.
Don’t be one of those people. Learn to differentiate when someone is actually attacking you vs. when they’re providing a legitimate critique of your work.
When you handle feedback well, you demonstrate yourself as a team player. You’re attentive and receptive. You’re open to innovation and improvement. That’s the kind of teammate most of us want, and likely, your interviewers will want.
3. Thoughtfulness
Do you take everything at face value, or do you dig deeper to understand the why of things?
Over a year and a half ago, I transitioned from a pure software engineering position to a sales engineering position.
Unlike writing code, which can often be pretty straightforward, people are a lot more complicated. We beat around the bush. We say things we don’t mean, and in a way that obscures what we are thinking underneath.
One of the hardest things I struggled with at first was digging beyond the initial statements customers would make.
“I want feature A.”
“Oh, uh, our product doesn’t offer feature A.”
That’s what most people would think. It was my default mode of thinking: black and white.
But what you learn in sales is that there’s usually something deeper behind the things people say. And you discover what that is by digging for it.
“Why do you want feature A? What are you concerned about?”
Sometimes, you’ll discover that although the request itself is something you don’t support, you have another feature or workaround that addresses the underlying concern they had.
This principle of digging deeper and being thoughtful goes beyond just sales or sales positions — it can help you understand your loved ones and your day-to-day interactions with people as well.
By demonstrating this thoughtfulness in an interview, you establish just how valuable you are as a person.
You can spot opportunities where others see none. You can find root causes and problems where others don’t. You can recognize and empathize with people who want to be understood.
All of this, in turn, makes you an invaluable team member, and good interviewers will recognize this and jump on it.
4. Tact
“Honesty is the best policy,” as they say. But there are two reasons why this may not always be the case:
- Some things don’t need to be said.
- There’s a difference between “being honest” and “being an ass.”
From self-help books to comics and TV shows, people have glorified the idea of “telling it like it is” and just saying what’s on your mind.
The reality? Nobody needs to know everything on your mind except you. Ultimately, the question is what kind of value your words offer.
Will your words push people in the right direction or deliver insights? Then yes, say them. But don’t pretend that you’re “honest” when you’re just saying things to make yourself feel better.
Does your interviewer need to know about how awful your current boss is? No. Do you need to tell them that this job is just another stepping stone to you? No.
It’s a true story — a colleague of mine interviewed a candidate who told him that the position would “set him five years back,” but that he needed a job, and this one “seemed the most interesting.”
Why would anyone say yes after hearing something like that? We’re not suckers. If you’re so good, then find a “worthier” job.
To garner respect and make a good impression, you have to be mindful of what you say and how you say it.
By demonstrating this skill in interviews, you establish yourself as both thoughtful and a team player. You don’t needlessly tear others down or say things to upset people. You’re mindful of how you affect others.
To learn more about this trait, see another article I wrote here:
Conclusion
Nailing the technical side of interviews is straightforward — learn the algorithms, practice problem-solving, and get better at coding. But the often-missed side of interviews can make or break the impression you give.
By being conscious of the four soft skills highlighted in this story, you can command a greater degree of respect and likability, which will drastically influence a hiring decision.
Even if you don’t ace the technical portion, it’s a lot easier to say yes to you if all of the interviewers liked you and want you on the team.
And even if you did ace the technical questions, most employers won’t hire you if they think you’ll be a pain to work with.
Therefore, the soft skills are critical for your next job interview. Best of luck with your interviews.