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Poll: How anxious are you before an interview?
6 points by rognjen on March 12, 2023 | hide | past | favorite | 5 comments
Given the spike in interviewing questions, I'm curious to know: how anxious are you before an interview?

To qualify the choices a bit:

Not at all - I feel confident and not worried about the prospect of failure.

A little - I'm fairly confident. Maybe the good kind of anxious.

Quite - I don't know how well I'll do and I'm worried about failing. I might not sleep that well or wake up very early.

Very - Very anxious, possibly with physical symptoms like nausea.

A little
3 points
Quite
3 points
Not at all
2 points
Very
2 points


This is something that has changed a lot from when I was in my early 20's to now in my mid-50's. Not just the passage of time, but also the fact that I now do contracting/consultant work, where I know that every employment is temporary and I am looking for a good match for me as much as I am trying to convince them I am a good hire.

In retrospect, in my youth I should have spent a little less time hoping I got the job, and a little more time reminding myself that I am wanting to find out if they are a good employer (more shopping mindset, less selling mindset). Not that one should be arrogant or anything, of course, but the interview should be working both ways. Also, in a phenomenon oddly similar to first dates, not trying so hard to sell yourself makes you more interesting to the other party, which means you do best in an interview when you need it least (life is not always fair).


It's not so much anxiety - but one has to be prepared for the fact that these people can, and (far too often) will throw pretty much anything at you, with essentially no understand of what they're doing or why.

And then of course ghost you, even in the interview itself seemed to be perfectly fair and above board.

And when come back with the inevitable fake apology when confronted about it.


I used to be, I faced a tough job search at one point and got over it.

I am almost dangerously introverted but I’ve learned how to charge myself up so I can outperform almost all extroverts for a short period of time, then I go back to my lair to recharge.


Not at all. Miss one bus, catch the next one. There's far more demand for engineers than the current supply. I don't see it being any different in the forceable future


Sometimes the interview is interesting...https://youtu.be/Uo3cL4nrGOk




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