It feels good to come home after a great interview. The interviewer laughed at your humor, you answered his questions, you gave great eye contact, and well you rocked it! Well, you believe you did. But, as each day goes by, you hear no response. No email, no phone call, and the worries start to sink in because you stopped applying to positions. You thought for sure that you got this job! What happened? In most cases, you missed the mark in one or more areas. Like many rejection emails, it begins with the word “unfortunately”. You dropped the ball somewhere and you need to know where you went wrong. Notice these five primary reasons why you did not get hired.

Punctuality

There is a saying: “If you are fifteen minutes early you are on time. If you are on time, you are late.” Could that have been the case with you? Imagine being invited to a formal gathering where only a select few delegates will be present. Only the best of the best are there and you happen to be one of them. At such an event, would you dare to arrive late? Even if you are only there for the free cocktails, you would be there on time. An interview works the same way! Out of hundreds of applicants, only a dozen or less are invited to meet their potential employer with the hopes of being hired. To heighten your chances for hire, please arrive on time. On that day, nothing else matters!

2. Lack of Knowledge of the Company

Talk about a blunder! I would not even hire you! Having some knowledge of the company shows how interested you are in this job. It is that reason why when you receive your interview invitation, the employer provides their company website. Before the interview, remember to take the time to review their “About Us” page as well as any accolades they may have achieved recently. You can also check out what others have to say about the company on websites like Glassdoor (don’t just read the negative reviews from past workers, read the positive ones too) and check to see if any of your Linkedin connections work there now or have worked there in the past. It’s always good to do that bit of detective work to help prepare you.

Coming to the interview with no knowledge of the company shows you only applied because of the compensation they were offering. True, that usually is the number one reason, however that is not your ONLY reason for applying. Take the time to learn about them and what their mission is. You can decide if you want to work there now instead of wanting to quit a few months after being hired.

3. Poor Use of Questions

This can be rather tricky and to be frank, if you screw this up, it’s over. There is a part at the conclusion of any interview that the interviewer will say “Do you have any questions for me?” That is your time to take charge! Command the floor, ask hard hitting questions that make them aware that you are serious about this position. If you ask questions like “What is the salary for this position?” or “What days are we usually off during the holidays?” Are you kidding? No matter how well you did for the interview, it will all be down the drain because of that. Save those for the last questions. If you want the job, use that time to ask questions that will generate further interest in the employer that you are a top candidate.

Try asking questions like: “Are there opportunities for growth?” “Where do you see the company heading in the near future?” “What are some of the challenges that I’ll be presented with if I am hired for this position?” Trust me, many interviewers will be impressed and you will stand out.

4. Presentation

If you went to a fancy restaurant, you are expecting fine dining at its best. However, what if your server looked messy and unkempt. Or your food didn’t look freshly made. Would you still feel that way about the restaurant? Definitely not! Although the restaurant looks great, you would leave highly disappointed. If your interview is disappointing, you will not get the job. Sure, you may arrive early for the interview and look extremely professional. But, if you speak unprofessionally, cannot keep the conversation going, lack a professional demeanor, then your good exterior doesn’t mean anything because the inner person doesn’t match. Presentation is everything when you interview. Your performance needs to be just as good as the dress or suit.

5. Thank You

This is extremely debatable, but in my opinion, it needs to be done. After you complete your grand slam interview, you should send a thank you email to the potential employer. This shows appreciation for the opportunity to be invited to their office with the chance of being employed. This email does not have to be long, but it should show your genuine interest in the role as well as how confident you are in providing the assistance the company needs in order to continue to be successful. So, when the interview is over, ask your interviewer for his business card. You will not regret it.

Interviewing for a position will always continue to be one of the most difficult things to do as a professional. It naturally brings us out of our comfort zone, which in turn causes us to make mistakes during our interview. But we can change that. We can improve how we interview, especially if we take these necessary precautions. And soon, we will not just have a job that we enjoy, but we will build on a career that we will never look back on.

If you’d like to learn more about interviewing and receive personalized, one-one-one coaching for interviews visit my website and learn more. Click here: Get A Job Interview Coaching