Jobhop Jobhop's blog : 7 Ways to Pick Yourself up After an Unsuccessful Job Interview
Being rejected after a job interview can severely dent your confidence and it's common to painfully dwell on being turned down, whilst often forgetting the bigger picture.
Rejection, whilst it's definitely not pleasant, can often be blown out of proportion and can be viewed as a sign of failure, or sometimes even a personal snub. But whilst we're burying ourselves into a Netflix series, vowing to give up on our chosen career forever, it's easy to forget that our dream job is still out there.
Here are seven tips for jumping back on the job hunt treadmill immediately after a job rejection...
1. Let yourself be upset
First of all, no matter what happened in the interview, validate your feelings of frustration. It's disappointing to feel that you've failed at something, but don't internalise that failure. The interview didn't go to plan, but that doesn't reflect your capabilities or intellect. It was just something that happened.
2. Take deep breaths
Once you've experienced your moment of crisis, relax. Take a deep breath, or many of them. Try to calm yourself emotionally and mentally so that you're able to think more rationally about what actually happened at this apparent epic failure of an interview.
3. Get some feedback
This is probably one of the most important but at the same time the most difficult. If you've had an unsuccessful interview, then it's likely that you don't really fancy hearing why. But actually, it's essential for your personal development that you do.
A follow-up email is probably the best way to go about it, while showing professionalism and interest in your chosen career. Most people won't usually do this, so you already putting yourself in an exclusive category of conscientious candidates that want to know what they can improve on, therefore separating yourself from the competition.
Once you've received it, accept the feedback with an open mind and apply the relevant experience to future interviews. You'll find that this step really helps.
4. Exercise
Ok, so getting up and going for a job is probably the last thing you fancy doing after to closing that email informing you that you were unsuccessful. But in reality, getting yourself moving can help you feel a lot better. After around 20 minutes of exercise, endorphins are released, prompting a soothing effect which often works a treat.
Not only does exercise reduce stress but it also helps you to regain perspective, clear your head and give you more energy - just the things you need to begin the next round of your job search.
5. Think of the positives
At the very least you should feel as if you've learned something through the interview process. Everyone learns from their experiences, and interviewing should be no different. Try to think of the experience you've gained from just going along to the interview. Also, take feedback if it's given, but even if it's not, use this experience as a learning curve. Was the experience different to what you were expecting? Could you have answered the questions differently or better?
Before you head to your next interview, take the time to reflect on any of those grey areas, or anywhere that there could be room for improvement. Even if you feel like you performed to the best of your ability and were still rejected, then you can take comfort in the knowledge that it was probably the wrong company for you.
6. Make a plan
How will you handle these problems in the future? What will you do to prepare and what strategies are you going to use next time? Outline responses to the questions that tripped you up, familiarise yourself with your own skills and qualifications, and practice, practice, and more practice. There's plenty of great resources online.
We've previously written some blog posts including some different hints and tricks for your next job interview, check them out below:
Ten Questions To Ask At An Interview
10 Superfoods to Help You Nail That Interview
Looking Good For an Interview on a Budget
5 Ways to Practice Mindfulness That Will Get You Through An Interview
7. Don't give up
One bad interview is not the end of the world, even if it was your dream job. Don't let one bad experience discourage you from putting yourself out there in the future and going for more interviews. Every interview, whether it's good or bad, should be taken as a learning experience, teaching you what you should and shouldn't do the next time you find yourself sitting in that scary chair face to face with an interviewer.
We hope that you find this guide to recovering from a poor interview helpful! If you need any additional help preparing for an interview or would like to discuss how you can improve your interview technique in the future, reach out to us over on Twitter!
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- Career