6 Reasons You Didn’t Get the Job

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July 20, 2011
By Tony Morrison
59 Comments

You were called in for an interview after applying for an open position at one of your dream companies. You went in for an interview, smiled, nodded and answered all of the hiring manager’s questions to the best of your ability.

But, ultimately… you didn’t receive a job offer. What happened?

Here are some possible reasons why you didn’t get the job, and things to avoid for next time:

You failed to follow-up. Following up at every step in the hiring process is critical. It shows that you have passion for the open position and are interested in working at the company. It’s also a great way to establish a relationship with the hiring manager and help them learn more about you. Did you follow-up after your interview via e-mail or phone? Did you send a thank you card? If not, it might have cost you the position.

You didn’t seem like a good cultural fit. You thought you answered the hiring manager’s behavioral interview questions well. When they asked you to tell them “about a time when…” you had a solid example of a past accomplishment or situation. But, maybe there was something about you that didn’t sit well with the hiring manager. For one reason or another, they couldn’t picture you working at their company. So, you weren’t the top candidate for the job.

You didn’t clean up your online presence. After the interview, the interviewer might’ve chosen to Google you. Perhaps they found your public Facebook profile, and perused your photos of bar nights and college parties. I’m pretty sure that didn’t impress them—and it’s likely they chose a candidate that would represent their company in a better light.

You demonstrated poor communication skills. Maybe you used a lot of filler words such as “um” and “like.” You may have stumbled on your answer a few times or struggled to come up with an answer. Whatever it was, you didn’t sell yourself as well as you could have. Practicing your interview answers on your own or with a friend can help with this.

You didn’t have a handle on why you wanted to work for this specific organization. You probably applied at dozens – or even hundreds – of job openings while job searching. This interview might have come out of the blue, or it might have been another in a string of interviews. But if you didn’t demonstrate to the employer your understanding of the organization, its strengths and weaknesses, its competitors, etc. you might be passed over for someone who does.

You spoke badly about your former boss. There’s a reason why hiring managers ask about former positions and supervisors during an interview: they want to see if you’ll dish the dirt. It’s easy to complain about your last employer during an interview, but it’s not impressive — and prospective employers will see an immediate red flag, no matter how great you seemed.

What other things should you avoid to maximize your chance of getting the job?

Tony Morrison is the vice president at Cachinko, a professional community where social networking and job opportunities come together. Find him on Twitter.

Brazen powers real-time, online events for leading organizations around the world. Our lifestyle and career blog, Brazen Life, offers fun and edgy ideas for ambitious professionals navigating the changing world of work.

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Category: Job Search

http://twitter.com/Wise120 Anna Gregerson

Good points all but a bit incomplete. These 6 have been pounded on for the last 10 years. They are real, of course – and are common sense basics. But what about the other reasons that no one wants to talk about? Here are 9 more reasons you didn’t get that job:

7. You didn’t fit the “profile” – you are the wrong age, race, culture for the hiring manager ( white or non white, US or Non US citizen, Wrong country of origin, Primary Language English or Non English, too young, too old)

8. You are very experienced/overqualified, mature = You are over 50.

9. You look like you’ll be a challenge = you have a visible disability – blind, deaf, use a wheelchair, speech slur. It’s going to be a hassle to deal with accomodations and you’ll likely sue anyway. God knows what will happen to medical insurance and workers comp rates.

10. You are in a “career transition” = You have been unemployed too long. Corollary: You are new to that field or function – likely with new degree or certificate – but still don’t fit the profile – nice try. Have you considered a startup?

11.You don’t equal someone else who is suddenly available and more qualified/better fit – After the interview went well and you completed all the first 6 points, suddenly another candidate has shown up. Variation – oddly, a “must hire ASAP” job is not actually being decided on or is on hold = any of 7-10

12. You have an attitude = After any of the above, you seek the truth. If you ask questions even just to clarify — – or even wors, if you speak The Truth That Has The D Name, you have attitude. If you do not speak it, then hiring managers and companies can stay in denial or outright violation – individually or as a group – because after all, no one’s complaining, right?

13. You look like you’ll go far – This one’s tricky – if you say you’re content to step back, or you want to learn new things at this stage, you are either incompetent, lazy or screwed up somewhere along the line. If you agree, it’s clear you’ll jump into their job or another company as soon as you can. Worse, they may have to work for you. Frankly, any of this might be true Would you REALLY stay in a job paying half of what you earned before if someone offered you something – anything – better? Passionate does not pay the mortgage.

14. You interviewed on a bad day. Indicators include tears, foaming at the mouth, stroke level red face, sweat, tight lips,distracted questions, slamming the door upon arrival – No matter what you do, you are a part of that bad day. In theory you can turn it around and be a bright spot in it esp if you can show you can solve the problem that’s making them nuts.

This can go either way – You can get points for dealing well with difficult situations – or they can decide you’re more like a therapist, parent or worse – their supervisor or really really worse – competition – all not good.

Offering to reschedule is sometimes ok. However they usually don’t want to have to deal with HR – again. And it’s pointless when once they’ve seen you, they know they’re not going to hire you anyway – for whatever reason, they just know it won’t work. (for clues, see above)

15. You didn’t reverse or change longstanding (lifetime to millennia) and deeply held fears and beliefs.

Hey, you had 30 minutes – maybe even an hour to not only change those of that manager – but to conclusively show how despite these (you didn’t really think you changed them did you? It was only an hour ! ) you are the best qualified, best possible fit with the current and future core, cross functional, horizontal and vertical teams.

True, the strides made in the 60′s and 70′s took over 500 years of campaigns, organizing, research, media coverage, awareness raising, education, laws, formal programs, tax credits, repeated successes of employees despite the odds – and more – And true, HR and personnel law are not required courses in business school and besides, the hiring manager was really into Fraggle Rock during those news cycles. Deal with it.

And oh yeah, true, those “difficult relations” all around the Mediterranean have continued over thousands of years with memories of atrocities burned into DNA. And yeah, maybe someone in your country blew up the hiring manager’s cousins last year. Or last century.

And yeah, it gets real tricky when HR thinks you both speak the same language just because you’re both from somewhere around India (so it’s Pakistan…details, details…) And – sigh – yes, the media is portraying age as stuffy, clueless, grouchy, in desperate need of assorted meds, fiber and assistance with daily living. And you’re older than the manager’s parents – Which s/he will likely look up on Spokeo the minute the interview is over.

If you’d really truly done your research, you’d know all this – and “position yourself” by turning any or all of these into positives that show how you saved or made companies money. Because that’s what it’s really all about. This is really basic y’know.

Good Lord, you DID have that 30 – 60 minutes face to face – what else do you need?

Oh really? Well then, let’s just add another point –

16. You are clearly too demanding
- http://jwschiff.tumblr.com Jaclyn Schiff
  
  These are some good additions and I appreciate you taking the time to add them here… next up, I think we need a full post from you!!
- http://entryleveldilemma.blogspot.com Edward – Entry Level Dilemma
  
  #10 is what I’ve been struggling with. I almost got my dream job last year but didn’t when they went with a more experienced candidate.
- Irenecolth
  
  Hate to say it, but #9 is just exasperating. Do abled people want the disabled to contribute or not? Do they want people with disabilities on welfare or not?
  - http://twitter.com/Wise120 Anna Gregerson
    
    RE: Do abled want disabled to contribute or not. 1. They want everyone to contribute – now defined as doing the eqivalent of two jobs or more.
    2. “They” is too broad. Unless it’s a direct report to an EVP, there is a hellish process to get additional headcount – and only slightly less to get approval to fill a vacant spot within that. This includes several players, all of whom usually have to be really happy before, during and after your time there.
    3. Managers are often on a mission to become at least a director, preferably a VP and hopefully an EVP. Hiring mistakes do happen but you really only get about 3 shots. Because those are expensive.
    4. Busines school does not require taking humann resources or disability awareness – on a good day you only have to take some form of cultural diversity thing – this is broadly defined.
    5. Fear and misconceptions are totally huge. blocks. You do not have to put on your resume that you have a disability. If it does not impair your duties, I don’t think you have to put it on your application either. This can get you past the phone screen but then you really have to play it right.
    6. There is so little time available now – maybe 30 seconds of coherent thought a day – so they need solutions not who know what problems.
    7. I’ve been on both sides of this myself, with my kids,with my DH and as a hiring manager in a nonprofit placing kids with physical disabilities into employment. Hence hiring people with disabilities. It really did take a whole lot of time to understand, get over issues I didn’t know I had, then actually get them working. The ones that worked out were the ones who made this ridiculously easy for me. And nicely helped when we said or did something inadvertently stupid, wrong , politically incorrect or dangerous. They managed their own disability and accomodations needs – all I had to do was make it happen which usually meant money. But that’s ok.
    8. I have not seen anyone with much of a disability make it to the interview stage. I have tried to educate but HR doesn’t want to piss off managers and managers generally don’t like getting on HR radar screen more than absolutely necessary. SO – It has to come from above or you have to really get a relationship or use an agency that can do all of the above and bring value.
    9. Managers at director and above will take risks if it means more headcount and budget – also if something will give them an edge. My theory is that if they can “get” that hiring someone w/ a disability gets them all this, they very well might be more open. This, however requires you to be a fabulous employee and be ok with being a bit of a poster child. You cannot screw up. No one really can – but you super can’t. It has to be worth all the time,effort and risk to get educated, get team over their issues, educate them on rights, strengths etc. And OTHER teams too. This is one where they either fly or die.
    10. If you can get advocacy, education and support from an agency e.g. rehab, nonprofit etc. it breaks the ice and lets the worries neutralize. If you can offer up a job coach for awhile that is likely good as they don’t have to come up with answers themselves.
    11. If HR is willing to beat them over the head and shoulders for about a year or more – and if their bosses (VP, EVP CEO) state it as a priority, it can actually happen. But that’s going to take lots of many things.
    12. Yes, everyone wants to hire the best hire they can – and most are really good people who want to think they are open to it. And they might be in theory – but reality just has all the above and more. personally I think abled requrire a sort of reverse curb cut. I could illustrate all this with true stories but there is not space. Perhaps volunteering as a speaker? If there’s food, most people will attend.
    - Marty Lake
      
      The first time I read your post I was like WTF? But upon further review, this is frickin’ hillarious!
      
      I think it points out the goofiness of what the process has become with healthy doses of sarcasm sprinkled throughout.
- http://www.anne-gilman.com Anne Gilman
  
  All the above reasons are excellent. The one that didn’t come up is that it’s really beyond your control. You don’t know if the bosses nephew was in the wings or the very best candidate came in just after you. Also, “Rejection is God’s protection.” You’re meant for something else… a better fit for you.
- http://belleinthenorth.wordpress.com Michelle
  
  Or how about “You have a degree in X but X isn’t hiring so you look else where at they don’t want to hire you because you have a degree in X and shouldn’t be working there.” Yup. Has that been covered already?
  - Jeff
    
    I feel ya. That’s my current situation.
    - http://belleinthenorth.wordpress.com Michelle
      
      It’s frustrating. I keep telling them, “If I was able to get a job with my diploma, I wouldn’t be here but I am.” That should at least show something.
      
      Or, I have three years government experience. I can’t even get in to retail and I am hurting for a job… badly. I can’t work for the government because I don’t have ENOUGH experience.
      
      I seriously don’t know what employers are looking for anymore.
- Alex
  
  I am impressed.
- Justin P
  
  The biggest problems I’m currently facing, some of which have been briefly addressed…
  
  1. The transition from academia to industry. It seems that to get a job in industry, you must have 2 years experience in industry. The ole’ Catch-22. Academic jobs can be very rewarding, however, if you’re just a lab researcher, it makes more financial sense to be working at an industry where the salary is better and the work is geared toward patents instead of publications. There are a good number of transition jobs available for people finishing their B.S. or B.A., but what about the people who worked academia following college for a few years, or those with an M.S.? When you get your PhD, you typically follow with post-docs, which you can hold until you find another position, but where I stand, I’m just getting poor, and without a volunteer position, I’d be losing my valuable memory of job techniques.
  
  2. Don’t have a current job. It seems a lot harder to get a job if you don’t already have one. This makes sense, logically, but is rather a harsh and unfair reality.
  
  3. What about your cover letter and resume/cv? How do you know that it isn’t your presentation of yourself that is doing you in? I guess this is more about getting the interview, but if they can’t quickly navigate your CV during an interview, then goodbye job.
  
  X> Just annoyed that even after sending thank you notes and following up about a job, never hearing back from them. Ever. Like every time the phone rings for 6 weeks, your heart stops until you realize it’s not them. I just wish the post-interview stage was more communicative, that they would let you know, even by “Don’t respond to” email saying I’m sorry, but we have found a more qualified candidate, we will keep your records on file for x number of months….
  - Jeff
    
    I have probably applied for over 100 jobs easily since I graduated and only heard from 3 of them that had no relation to the field I got my degree in. Only had an interview for 2 and neither of them ending up hiring anybody.
- http://www.hire-me-dammit.com Megan Dougherty
  
  Wow – Awesome Addition Anna! You’re right that the stated list has been done and done and done and we know!
  
  I’ll raise you one more:
  
  17. Too Attractive or Not Attractive Enough – both can be deadly. People who are too pretty are stupid, and people who are insufficiently pretty will depress everyone else.
  
  Also: What’s the truth that has the D name?
  - CareerAdvisor
    
    I would assume it’s Discrimintation.
    - http://twitter.com/JLynnPro Jen M.
      
      Actually, I believe it’s “disability.”
- http://twitter.com/JLynnPro Jen M.
  
  Bravo! #9 is why my deaf boyfriend is on disability right now.
  
  Once prospective employers found out he is deaf, they would stop talking to him. It doesn’t matter that he was good at what he was doing and that he’s extremely intelligent. (Something) forbid he should need an interpreter for a meeting!
  
  It’s very aggravating!
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http://www.wayforwardsolutions.com Kay White

Yay Anna – love the way you write like I assume you speak….and your whole ‘get over it’ approach is great. It does come down to positioning yourself and nailing what ‘what I do’ does ie make you money/save you money. The end.
Ali

Also, know the salary range for the position you’re interviewing for (or at least have a good idea). When you say that your salary requirement is $80k and the position normally pays $55-$60k as an industry average, don’t be surprised when they take someone with more realistic salary requirements.

Obviously, negotiate so that you get the best total compensation package possible, but be realistic.
Jan

I would like to add one: the internal candidate. Within the past year, this has happened to me on one interview and three initial contacts with organizations. I was thankful to have enough of a relationship with those three contacts for them to tell me that there was a strong internal candidate, but the one place disappointed me a bit because I had been volunteering with them for months and had taken a full day off my temporary job to drive the three hour round-trip for the second all-day interview with their staff.
- http://www.videopro.ro Servere si mixere video
  
  That’s just wrong Jan. Why put you to all that trouble when they practically already knew who the winner would be. Not cool.
  
  Echipamente video si camere video profesionale
  Echipamente video profesionale si servere video
- Eva
  
  See, this is something that makes me angry. I’ve run into this along with the “We have to do interviews every 6 months” or “Corporate makes us interview all qualified candidates when we hit 500 apps” several times.
  
  I know it’s supposedly done in the spirit of fairness, but pretending you’re actually interested in hiring someone when the position has been filled or the company isn’t looking for people is like dangling bacon in front of a starving dog, and a waste of time to boot. I find that much less fair than just not interviewing people you’re not going to hire, or ending interviews as soon as possible with unsuitable candidates.
Anonymous

I would not categorize all of these as “things you should avoid to maximize your chance of getting the job.” Yes, avoid badmouthing the last boss or company. I can’t see how that would ever be a good idea. But if you aren’t a good cultural fit, pretending to be one is likely to lead to an unhappy parting six months down the line.

“Cleaning up” the online profile is tricker than it seems, too. For example, I (Gen Xer, former recruiter) really don’t care that a potential hire-e “partied” in college and has beer-guzzling photos on Facebook; it’s what I expect college kids to do, so it’s neutral to me. A more complicated example: some people talk politics online, some don’t. Talk politics or causes, and you risk a particular recruiter not liking what you have to say. Keeping quiet is a huge price to pay, though. For some people, it’s important enough to promote [fill in the controversial topic] that they don’t care to work for an employer that expects them to give up the power of connecting with others around the issue.
http://item-9.com Jason Pelker

Completely off-topic, but I highly recommend increasing your CSS’s paragraph font size to 15px and the p line height to 1.5 em. It increases your articles’ readability dramatically.
http://twitter.com/micheleherrmann micheleherrmann

I think also salary plays a factor. If they have a set range for an applicant, perhaps they think you would expect more or if you list a certain range that is higher that their set rate, maybe you’re excluded. Or if you are from out-of-state, that could be a factor if they think of relocation costs and the time needed for you to find a place to live.
http://www.8womendream.com Cath @ 8 Women Dream

I think employers are enjoying the available strong candidate bubble that is going on out there right now… but all cycles change and eventually the tide will shift in the other direction. Then we can start seeing articles like …

“6 Reasons You Never Want To Work For A Certain Type of Company”;
“6 Ways to Tell The Company You Are Interviewing With Sucks”;
“How To Tell You Don’t Want To Work For Someone”;
“6 Signs Your New Boss is Crazy”;
“How To Tell a Job Will Be Horrible Just By The Interview.”

We never talk about how dysfunctional so many companies are and how they burn out their brightest employees, who start out loving what they do and then end up digging ditches for a living. (But you have a Bachelors Degree in Economics… why are you here? Sadly, the
movie Office Space wasn’t that far off the mark).

Or they end up starting some small businesses of their own while they are on unemployment – vowing never to go back to corporate America …
- http://twitter.com/JLynnPro Jen M.
  
  Yup!
  
  Yet you are “not allowed” to say “I’m leaving my previous employer, because they are all crazy!” *eye roll*
  
  If cultural fit is an issue with hiring companies, why can’t the hiring companies accept that people leave jobs due to bad cultural fit?
  
  Ugh!
- Christallin
  
  This is true. Why do we assume there is something wrong with us?
Marty Lake

The list could be endless. You reminded them of a childhood bully. You had the same name of a painful breakup in the past. The hairs on your eyebrows were not symmetrical.

Interviewing and jobs are relationships in the same sense as dating and marriage. Assuming the qualifications are met for the position, anything else past that is really how you connect with the people doing the hiring. All you can do is be yourself and let the chips fall where they may. Choose the positive aspects in life and you’ll project a positive aura. Somewhere along the line you’ll connect and be on your way.

Underneath all the processes, check boxes and logical reasoning lies gut feel – the vibe you project. It will either mesh or not with the folks you are meeting.
- Kay Lorraine
  
  Marty, you’re remark that “You reminded them of a childhood bully.” was an amazing blast to the past.
  
  In a former life, I was a film producer. We were auditioning kids for a part and there was one 11-year-old redhead who stood out head and shoulders above the rest. But the producer refused to even consider him for the part. We pressed him for a reason and he finally admitted that when he was a kid (he was Jewish), “there was a red-headed kid that used to terrify me. He was a bully who chased me home daily and would hit me and trip me in school. I hated that anti-Semitic bully.”
  
  We even suggested dying his hair dark brown but this poor kid didn’t get the job that he deserved because it was just too traumatic for the producer.
  
  You never know what drives people’s decisions.
  - Marty Lake
    
    Wow! Thanks for sharing. Human beings are really interesting and complicated creatures!!
    - For The Sake Of Purity
      
      Or really lame and boring creatures full of spite.
- Christallin
  
  Agree. I interviewed with an interviewer who appeared to be overweight. During the interview she mentioned she would be going away for a while. When I asked where she was going, she replied that she was going on maternity leave. I seriously had no idea she was pregnant as her abdomen did not appear disproportionately larger than the rest of her body, which was overweight all over. I am a certified Personal Fitness Trainer, about 5’9″ with a slender build. On the way out she remarked about how tall I am. I knew then that I would not get that job. Not because of anything related to the position, but because the interviewer lacked the confidence to work with someone she perceived to be more attractive than herself. Nothing I can do about this.
Albemis

For those growing frustrated, I understand completely, but like someone said in a previous comment, take it as a sign, you probably don’t want to work for these people regardless of the salary or benefits they are offering……be willing to work whatever kind of job, for whatever pay you have to for awhile and keep the faith that the right opportunity will come along, IT WILL. Same goes for people who feel they have been unfairly terminated or laid off, learn to roll with it, you’ll end up a stronger and wiser person for it. Don’t listen to their BS about some issue that you have that you need to work on that may have contributed to your termination, in most cases, they’re just trying to rationalize treating you like shit, because they couldn’t live with themselves if they admitted that maybe they are the ones in the wrong. Don’t feed into their negativity. It is a proven fact that one of the biggest problems with America is how corrupt our corporations are, and if they can’t see awesome you are, it’s their loss, they’ll get what is coming to them some day. On the bright side, there are also a lot of small to medium sized businesses that operate with a ton of integrity, and if you keep your spirits high, something will happen and you’ll catch on at one of these amazing places with an amazing job that you can feel great about on most days. Nothing will ever be perfect, but if a company makes you feel crappy during the interview process, imagine how they would make you feel if you worked for them for a long time. They aren’t worth the time or the energy.
- Eva
  
  Except of course if you starve or wind up homeless before the “right job” comes along because you can’t get even burger king to give you a chance. Boy are you naive. Not having a job when unemployment runs out that pays equal to your rent or more means you have a few months to live.
  
  Only there’s nothing you can do about it, because it’s just as hard to get a job at McDonald’s as it is to get a job at a fortune 500 company.
  
  I’m getting so sick of people giving career advice that just consists of “do the same thing over and over and expect different results.” and “Well, if they didn’t hire you, you don’t want to work there.” There are people in this nation who would sell organs for ANY job and can’t get one.
Christine

These are all great points. As a recruiter the one thing that disqualifies more candidates than any other is an inability to listen.

I do a quick 30 minute phone call with all of my candidates before an in person meeting and easily over half spend 25 out of 30 minutes talking. Stop trying to sell yourself before you even know what questions your interviewer is going to ask!

Believe it or not – generally the less time you spend talking during an interview, the better it will go. If you have an engaged interviewer they will be excited to tell you more about the company and position, they will personalize the interview, and turn it into the type of open conversation that will really determine culture fit and get you to the next step.
Jobo

Ya know what? They just don’t need people anymore. Everything’s been either outsourced or computer programmed into oblivion, and they’re just too greedy to care about if anybody in their own country actually has a job.
- For The Sake Of Purity
  
  Oh please. If they’re interviewing and investing in screening candidates, they want someone. Stop the pity party.
  - http://writtennessa.com Nessa
    
    Yeah, I agree. Industries are changing and jobs are there. It’s a matter of being adaptable. Most people aren’t.
    - http://www.escortamsterdamservice.nl Escort Amsterdam
      
      i agree also
Jobo

If you really want to find out what happened to the jobs in the country, you have to read what the big evil CEO’s read:

http://www.bnet.com/blog/harvard/outrageous-ceo-pay-how-about-lowering-salaries-of-longtime-workers/12426?promo=713&tag=nl.e713

I think the comment at the end sums it up:

“So after the carnage in the rustbelt and a leaner an more empowered workforce, what do you have?

9+% Unemployment, 16+% underemployment, corporations sitting on piles of cash, and an economy which has all the hallmarks of a “depression” except government sanction.

How does Booz etc propose we get back to full employment and general prosperity?”
http://twitter.com/fit4thabo Thabo Hermanus

Interesting comments but your being declined for a job is not as scientific as the reasons articulated by all here. If anything, most hiring managers cannot tell you why someone “just did not seem right” for them or “would not fit in with the team”. I think one thing most people overlook when stuck in the disappointment of not getting the job is that if you got the job and were not fit for it, the confidence damage to you would be exponentially worse than simply being declined at interview. Sometimes you have to learn to trust the process, and trust me mistakes will be made!
- http://twitter.com/JLynnPro Jen M.
  
  I can attest to this. I’m in “that job” now, and I’ve been trying to get out for a long time! (Can’t afford to just quit, so I’m stuck until I find another, better job.)
Brianmcivor

I would add another point: Your Interviewers liked you and liked somebody else just as much; on balance the other person had the edge in experience and knowledge in some area that you lacked.
http://www.nutrientsbest.com melatonin

Can you tell some tips on how to be cultural fit?
- For The Sake Of Purity
  
  Join meet-ups in the area you want to work in, they’re usually free and you connect with people working in that industry. It helps to live in a place like New York where there are many. I also take free classes in the industry I am interested in working in. It takes some research but there are MANY ways of meeting people outside the traditional networking events. Last but not least, provide value for people in your network. Volunteer to work on a project for a day to help out or find out what other’s personal interests are so you can start helping them. They are then more likely to think of you when something comes up. Following this plan got me great opportunities that others just dream about in my adopted industry (tech).
http://pvcguttering.net Dimitrihouse

Though it doesn’t always hurt, when you really want a particular job and you went away feeling that the interview went perfectly, the dear john letter can be a real slap in the face. Though it isn’t easy, establishing what you did wrong and just how you are going to rectify it, is the only productive response. I especially liked the tip about filler words, sadly its easier said than done for some people, myself included.
http://www.alongthewritelines.blogspot.com Derek

I think, weighing up all the factors in the post and the excellent comments, the key thing is to show the interviewers that they’d be missing out if they didn’t take you on. It’s a sales pitch, pure and simple, and the most attractive product (define that as you will) will be the person they choose.
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http://allaboutedu.com/ Rahul Shah

Thought provoking point of views. Specially people who really didnt get a job can relate so well to the article.
jacob grayson

” You spoke badly about your former boss. There’s a reason why hiring managers ask about former positions and supervisors during an interview: they want to see if you’ll dish the dirt. It’s easy to complain about your last employer during an interview, but it’s not impressive — and prospective employers will see an immediate red flag, no matter how great you seemed. ”
It’s true
[URL="http://romantic--poems.blogspot.com/"]My blog[/URL]
jacob grayson

You spoke badly about your former boss. There’s a reason why hiring managers ask about former positions and supervisors during an interview: they want to see if you’ll dish the dirt. It’s easy to complain about your last employer during an interview, but it’s not impressive — and prospective employers will see an immediate red flag, no matter how great you seemed.
It’s true
StupidLoser

I can attest to both the “cultural fit” and “communications skills” bullets above. I recently applied for a job that was perfect in terms of level (senior level), pay (seemingly above average pay package) and the like. The initial phone interview went great – so much so they wanted me to fly to their HQ and meet everyone. Unfortunately due to a medical emergency I couldn’t go. They were gracious enough to reschedule and have a number of conversations near where I lived instead the other day.

I met with three people – the boss (a VP), a potential colleague (director) and another manager (senior director) of a different group that I would interface with, but less often. In general I thought the interviews with the director went okay, but the conversation with the senior director messed me up which could have destroyed my chances with the VP.

It was the simplest questions – the classic strengths and weaknesses question that everyone should know their answer to by heart. Interestingly enough, I have not been asked that in any other interview than with this individual. I named two weaknesses and knew the damage was done. I tried to mitigate the damage, but I am not sure if I was successful.

The last interview was with the VP. I thought I did pretty good with answering the questions even though his body language wasn’t very receptive – I am chalking that more to the fact that it was early in the morning and it was really cold (wishful thinking on my part). When he asked me what he was looking for in terms of an ideal candidate, he almost parroted the opposites of what I said my weaknesses were. I was toast. At that point, I asked him more about one of these specific characteristics and it seemed like maybe I might be okay (I said my managers would say I would sometimes ask for insight re: priorities and he said that his goal for his employees is that they would be independent).

Oh I forgot to mention that this position requires strategic thinking – I believe I was able to show that pretty well since the VP said good a bunch of times and liked certain answers. However, at the end he asked me if I would be willing to do more tactical work in the beginning and I said definitely. He also told me that we would be working closely together at least in the outset to get that done (which is fine – it would give me insight to his expectations right?). The last thing he said is that assuming the feedback went well with the others, he’d have me meet with one more person — it sounded like it was more of a formality interview in some ways…

I got a form letter like response from the recruiter today saying that they are reviewing me against the other candidates and should get back to me next week. Considering that they want someone to start in the beginning of January, they need to move fast to make that happen if I need to give “2 weeks notice”

Long story short – study both the “easy” questions and the “hard” ones — I know I did well on the hard ones — its the easy ones that can throw you. Don’t let it happen to you.

Hope this helps someone out there… I have had too many interviews and I am going to beat myself up over this one for a very very long time.
http://www.fredericksburgagent.com Fredericksburg Homes for Sale

I think the one element missing from all you described above is confidence. The employer needs to witness your confidence in yourself and the position you’re interviewing for.
http://www.the-canvas-art-shop.co.uk/ wall art

What a wonderful post, thats so interesting.
Lefty

[ There’s a reason why hiring managers ask about former positions and supervisors during an interview: they want to see if you’ll dish the dirt. ]

I do NOT understand this. It seems to be Bible to hiring interviewers too. If they ask why I left my last job, and the reason is my boss was the second coming of Atilla the Hun, what am I supposed to say? They want me to lie. And then these companies are shocked when they discover they have a bunch of liars working for them. This is one more reason I despise the American Corporate Model.
- Guest
  
  I feel for you. But when an employer hears your blunt, honest, critically negative but honest review of Atilla, they wonder how you will represent the company in a sensitive situation with a client or vendor or international partner. There is a place for honesty in all of our hearts. But there are ways of saying things with tactfulness, business acumen and forward thinking, healthy outlooks that would outweigh the nastiness of Atilla.
  
  If you look at this situation imagining yourself sitting on the tip of a fingernail moon on a clear night down at the world, was your honest appraisal of Atilla the reason you would have wanted to have lost this job in this market? I think not. Atilla is not worth the proverbial “bullet”. You deserved that job.
  
  A simple answer, such as: “I was sure it was time for me to find a company where I could make a more significant contribution. So I called you.” gives you the attention and leaves Atilla in the dust of the past where she/he belongs.
  
  You don’t need to lie. After all, Atilla’s stories will be great entertainment over beers with friends. In the limelight of an interview where a company is relying on you to front their image in a new position, Atilla’s stories have no place but a destructive one for you.
  
  I urge you to try to see things more positively and with some humor. Life is good and a positive perspective is the only thing that will keep Atilla’s out of your life and the lives of those you love. Find a good company to work for but be careful the Atilla’s don’t sour you into becoming one of them.
- http://www.yourstylematters.biz/ Maria
  
  The potential employer is wanting to know what kind of character you have. Are you prone to gossip? If you bad-mouth a previous employer in a job interview, there is the concern that you may bad-mouth this potential employer, too if hired. Find a more tactful way to discuss the reasons for leaving that other company. And you are not lying by being tactful.

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