Confidence can be tricky, but confidence is essential for a successful job search.

If your confidence is too low as a result of all the apparent rejection, your job search performance can be negatively impacted. You can overthink or overanalyze everything because you are hesitant to act or make a decision, anticipating more rejection.

Your personal image can be tarnished because your lack of confidence adversely impacts your ability to write or speak clearly.

Conversely, if your confidence is too high you can appear cocky, or difficult to work with. Over-confident people may not prepare for tasks because they feel they can wing it.

Complacency from over confidence can reduce preparation time which will often damage performance and eliminate opportunities.

The Costs of Low Confidence

Low confidence, when not dealt with, can be crippling — financially and emotionally.

And, low confidence makes all aspects of job search more challenging, often resulting in a lowered expectation and an unsatisfactory job.

How does low confidence show up?

• You are not comfortable introducing yourself to others. This translates to lost networking opportunities, not meeting those who could potentially help you.
• You don’t seek out those in your network who could possibly help.
• You don’t present your best image, so people don’t have an interest in following up.
• Your responses at interviews are underwhelming, and you don’t receive offers.
• You rule yourself under- or over-qualified, so you don’t follow up on potential opportunities.
• You waste time considering roles that don’t challenge you or that are outside your field.
• You are less likely to negotiate.
• You take the first opportunity because you don’t think others will happen. When you accept a job with that mindset, you can be making a big mistake. Company culture may bring you down, and you end up miserable and looking for another position too soon.
• There’s a strain on your personal relationships. When you are not taking action because you feel overwhelmed, your inaction can cause loved ones to nudge and prompt you. The way they nudge and prompt can also impact your confidence and the relationship.

When we have too much to do in a short amount of time or if we’re overcome by emotions or distractions, we can feel overwhelmed. When overwhelmed, it can become difficult to focus on what you need to accomplish.

As it relates to your job search, this could mean you don’t reflect about what you want in your next role, spend more time than you wanted to on your resume and cover letter, or don’t spend time on all of the other critical tasks required in your job search.

My Personal Confidence Disaster

After a successful consulting project where the client valued our contributions, I was overly confident that I could help any client in the future.

The following two projects showed my over-confidence was hurting me. I struggled to make a positive impact. Zero of my recommendations were implemented, and I was asked to leave both projects.

My confidence took a big hit, but this event was definitely not the end of my career. It was an enlightening learning experience and, although painful, I am grateful to have encountered it.

I recovered, and I started my own coaching and consulting firm to help others navigate to their success.

Recovering Your Confidence

Having the right amount of confidence is critical to enhance your image, communicate effectively, and sell yourself without being pompous.

Just as others have rebuilt their confidence, you can enhance yours. To show you you’re not alone, here are a couple of brief case studies about how two people increased their confidence:

• One person lacked confidence because she thought she was too old. She was just over 50 and as we explored further, we discovered her lack of confidence stemmed from her belief that her target companies wouldn’t value her because she wasn’t a specialist. By focusing on smaller companies that would value her general consulting and management skills, she felt more confident in her search and, as a result, was more confident in her interview. She landed a great job.
• Another person was berated by her management and lacked confidence in her capabilities. After inquiring about who she helped and the difference she made, she was able to recall the positive impact she made and could concisely articulate it. After reflecting on these experiences and enhancing her resume, she regained her confidence. She also removed a lot of stress, resumed her fitness routine, and lost 20 pounds. Her confidence is skyrocketing.

The point of sharing these with you is to drive home the point that it is possible to regain confidence. I’ve done it, these two people have done it, and you can too.

Bottom Line

In this guide, we’ll help you consider:

• The costs of low confidence.
• Ways to ensure you have a healthy mindset.
• Ways to stop feeling overwhelmed while doing everything needed to find your next opportunity.

What would help you gain your confidence? Send me a note. If you were hoping to see more details, let me know.

More About How to Build Confidence:

• Build a Positive Mindset for Job Interview to Build Confidence
• Build Confidence for Your Job Interview by Being Well Prepared

The post Guide to Build Confidence for Your Job Search appeared first on Job-Hunt.

My confidence about my accomplishments and ability to build rapport allowed me to be somewhat dismissive toward interviews. In reflecting about the offers I did not receive, I realized I was “winging it” in job interviews. Not a good idea. So, I changed my approach, as described below, and succeeded.

Instead of doing what too many job seekers do, don’t wing it in your job interview.

The roadmap for enhancing your interviewing confidence starts with having the right mindset for your job interview. Then, follow these steps to be well-prepared for your job interviews:

Really Prepare for Your Interview

Invest the time and effort necessary for success. The cost will be the time you invest. The result will be making a better impression in your interviews, feeling more confident and handling the whole situation better.

1. Write down your responses to the most common interview questions.

The goal here is not to memorize your responses. The goal here is to be thoughtful and articulate so you’re not crafting your response on the fly. By knowing these answers ahead of time, you will put yourself at ease. Even if you’re not asked any of the questions directly, you’ll be able to weave a couple of responses into other answers. You’ll demonstrate that you’ve done your homework.

2. Reframe negatives into positives.

When I was considering starting my own organizational-development consulting firm, I spent four months doing business development and looking for full time positions.

I imagined that some people might ask, “Could you explain why you have had a recent unemployment gap.” I didn’t want to mention I was starting a company because some people would believe I would likely leave soon.

So, to focus on the positive I said,

“I’ve been building my network and refining my functional skills. In fact, I developed a framework that can be used to help leaders better understand challenges they are facing. Would you like to learn more?”

Using this approach I deflected the negative into a positive — the value I could provide. I nailed it. I got the offer the next day.

Whether you believe you’re too old or too young, overqualified or under qualified, too general or too specialized, think about how can you reframe your situation into a positive.

3. Identify your three strengths the hiring manager would value, and prepare more stories.

For another powerful interview I recently had, I took the time to think about what the hiring manager would value and what challenges they face.

I’ve seen projects fail when relationships sour, don’t get off on the right foot, or leaders don’t lead effectively.

Putting a more positive spin on these challenges, I said that my strengths were building relationships, acclimating quickly, and leading teams. I was prepared with specific examples to demonstrate those.

This is a great opportunity to show restraint. Rather than rambling on about the specific examples, I asked, “Which of these strengths is applicable to this role and would you like me to go into more detail?”

4. Determine ways you can weave in your success stories.

Role play different scenarios. You may not be asked directly, “Tell me about yourself” or “What are your strengths?” Some people may ask less explicit questions about your background.

Determine the most important stories you think are relevant for the position, and be prepared to weave them in when appropriate.

Apply Your Preparation to the Interview

When you are well prepared, you can focus on applying that preparation to the job interview

1. Take comfort knowing you have prepared.

I can recall going into an interview where I didn’t prepare as much as I should have and 5 minutes before the interview, I was thinking about how I could have prepared more. Reassuring yourself about your preparation efforts will help calm any jitters you may have.

2. Assess the communication style of the interviewer(s) and tailor yours as appropriate.

Some people prefer to hear the story and the details; others prefer to get to the point. Is the person you’re interviewing direct and precise with their communication style or are they free flowing? Did they engage you in a lot of small talk or not?

If they are direct and precise, get to your point concisely. If they like to elaborate more, feel free to give them additional details.

If you’re unsure how to adjust your style or if there is more than one interviewer, aim for the middle and give concise yet meaningful responses.

For more information about tailoring your communication style, I highly recommend Dr. Tony Alessandra’s book titled The Platinum Rule.

3. Don’t make assumptions about what other are thinking.

In one interview, I faced a panel of three people. I felt good energy from two of the panel members, but the other didn’t say a single word until I asked questions.

I could tell from her responses she was relating with my answers and experiences. In fact, after receiving the offer, she became a big advocate for my work.

Had I assumed she didn’t like my responses, I could have lost confidence during the interview. I focused my energy on the other positive cues I was receiving. Although I was discounting her quietness, I was still routinely making eye contact with her.

Discover ways to build on your success

1. Reassure yourself – there is no perfect interview.

Give yourself credit for what worked well. Write down the several things that worked well for you. In fact, I’ll ask as the interview is ending, “What worked well for you during our conversation?” This gives me an opportunity to get instant feedback.

2. Write down the one thing you’d like to improve next time.

Only one. If you write down too many ways to improve, it can be overwhelming and cause you to worry too much.

Bottom Line

There are many ways to increase your confidence for job interviews. This list can be overwhelming if you are trying to do everything recommended before your next interview. Overwhelm is often equal to a lack of action. Don’t feel overwhelmed. Here are three questions to help prevent you from feeling overwhelmed:

1. What are the insights you’ve had after reading this article?
2. Based on those insights, which single action will help you the most?
3. What benefits will you receive by taking that action?

As you gain comfort taking these actions, come back to this article, and determine the next action for you take. Remember that everyone has had to face job interviews and felt that they did a less than stellar job. So, don’t beat yourself up, but do focus on improving for that next job interview.

More About How to Build Confidence:

• Guide to Build Confidence for Your Job Search
• Build a Positive Mindset for Job Interview to Build Confidence

The post Build Confidence for Job Interviews by Being Well-Prepared appeared first on Job-Hunt.

Although people will respond differently, using a road map and taking positive steps will help you increase your confidence just as I was able to increase mine.

To strengthen my interview confidence, I developed the right mindset, prepared more thoroughly, adapted during interviews, and reflected about the interview. As a result, I felt more at ease walking into the interview.

For you, it could be one of a few steps that have helped others in these common situations. Yes – common. You’re not alone. Just as others have rebuilt their confidence, you can enhance yours.

We just need a road map. Let’s get to it!

There are two parts to the road map for enhancing your interviewing confidence.

1. Develop the right mindset (this article).
2. Really prepare for your interview, which includes how to apply your preparation to the interview and build on your successes.

In this article, we’ll focus on developing the right mindset.

Develop a Positive Mindset to Increase Job Interview Confidence

The right mindset for your job interview is a positive one, a frame of mind that will enable you to present your best self in your job interviews.

These are the elements of a positive mindset:

1. Believe in a growth mindset.

In other words, believe that with enough preparation, practice, and experience you can enhance your interviewing skills.

There may be some parts of interviewing that are new to you. That’s okay.

When we do new things, we get more tired because we’re using different parts of our brain. How much thought do you give to riding a bike or other skill-based hobbies? Learning to ride that bike took time, effort, and concentration. However, after mastering that skill, bike riding became easier to do.

The same is true for job interviewing.

If it’s hard for you to write about your accomplishments or look people in the eye, then having a growth mindset will allow you to believe that by practicing a little each day, you will improve.

• What’s the cost to you if you believe you can’t improve?
• What is the most challenging thing to you when it comes to interviewing?
• What small steps can you take each day to overcome these challenges?

As we do new things repeatedly, they become habits. Habits take less time and effort to build, but once established, they become much easier to perform.

2. You are on equal footing.

Yes, you may really need the job. But, you also need to understand if you will like the job and the organization. So, you are interviewing them just as much as they are interviewing you.

When I first started a business and was running out of capital, I needed to find a position to provide for my family. My family was under stress and I took the first opportunity that came along. On my first day, there were signs the culture wasn’t right for me. I continued to test those assumptions and sure enough when my project was over, the company didn’t want to consider me for future opportunities.

Even though I was able to provide for my family for a short time, it wasn’t a good long-term fit. This is a common mistake many of us make at least once in our careers. So, ask questions to ensure the company is right for you.

[Read 50 Good Questions to Ask in Interviews for ideas.]

3. You can only control what you can control.

Let go of the rest.

You can’t make like the hiring manager like you. You can’t take back words you might have wanted to say differently. You can’t reverse time if you’re a few minutes late.

You can prepare your responses, treat each interview as a learning experience, and ensure you put your best game on (e.g. appearance, attitude, timeliness) because you control those aspects of the job interview.

4. Take credit for the good work you’ve done.

Don’t be bashful. What success stories are you not sharing because you don’t want to seem boastful? How will holding back information impact your interview?

Remember the skills that qualify you for the job. Be proud of your accomplishments that demonstrate you are qualified for the job. If you don’t share those qualifications and accomplishments in the interview, the employer will never learn about them.

Bottom Line

By developing the right mindset before your next interview, you can feel more confident walking in and ease some of the jitters you may typically have. In part 2 of the roadmap, preparing for your job interview, learn how to assemble the elements of a successful job interview.

More About How to Build Confidence:

• Guide to Build Confidence for Your Job Search
• Build Confidence for Your Job Interview by Being Well Prepared

The post Build Confidence for Job Interviews by Having a Positive Mindset appeared first on Job-Hunt.