Overcoming Nervousness & Acing the Telephone Interview

With so many people out of work these days, there may be dozens if not hundreds of people applying for the job you want, need and deserve. And because there are so many job seekers for every available position, an increasingly important aspect of the weeding out process is “the dreaded telephone interview.”

The good news is that your excellent resume put you on the list of job applicants to be called, right? The bad news is that, because so much of communication is non-verbal, you just lost many of your natural advantages over others competing for your job.

As career councilor Dan Miller puts it, “You can’t take advantage of your good looks, great wardrobe, firm handshake, eye contact, and JLo perfume.”

What you can do is be so prepared that your excellent qualities will be evident from your voice alone. Because, while it’s not very likely you’ll be hired over the phone, you can’t make it to that dream job you seek if your phone performance is less than impressive.

And, that’s going to be easier than you might think. Because, instead of having to remember all the brilliant things you plan to say, you’re going to be involved in what amounts to an “open book test.”

Begin as you would for a face-to-face interview by deciding what questions you’re likely to be asked and writing out your answers. Your next step is to go through each answer making bullet points that will remind you of what you want to say. Then, unless you have an actor’s ability to read and sound spontaneous, rehearse your answers until you the sound conversational. How will you know? Because you’ll be rehearsing your answers into your tape recorder. Don’t have a tape recorder? Get one.

Now, with your notes spread out before you on your kitchen table – with each question written in bold letters for easy identification – you’re ready to give answers that are well thought-out and smoothly delivered.

Three suggestions as you go into the interview itself.

First – Control Your Butterflies. Pretend you’re a golfer and put an imaginary driver behind your neck and across your shoulders. Since we tend to store most of our tension in the spinal column, the golfer’s turn will help you get your butterflies to fly in formation.

Second – Stand up during the interview. Standing changes your breathing and tone of voice, making you sound more confident and in control.

Finally, if at all possible, be looking at yourself in a mirror as you talk. By responding physically – as you would if you were sitting across the table from your interviewer – the enthusiasm you’re showing will be more likely to be transmitted over the phone.

Just as the purpose of your resume is to get an interview, the purpose of your phone interview is to move to the next level – the face to face interview. If you use the techniques I’ve discussed, that will be you sitting across the table with all your sterling personal traits on display for your interviewer to see first hand. Good luck.

For more about time-tested job interview techniques and other tips on becoming an excellent communicator, visit our web site at snellcom.com.