How to handle stress interviews - Margaret Buj - Interview Coach

How to handle stress interviews Stress interviews are rightly called unethical as well as immoral. It is, however, required to interview in such a way for a lot of jobs. If the nature of the job requires the employee to be active in handling pressure along with tackling the difficult people tactfully, then a stress interview is the best option to assess the candidate’s competency for the position. The employer usually uses the strategies of asking questions that are confusing, while interrupting or talking over the candidate. The employer also intimidates the candidate by making them feel uncomfortable or even passing negative or insulting personal comments. If you find yourself in such a kind of interview, then you can prove your worth by doing the following things. Prepare The first and foremost step is to be fully prepared for the questions that would be asked, which can  be related to the field you are applying for and the company where you are being interviewed. You need to be persuasive enough to convince the interviewers of your relevancy to the job posting by displaying your achievements and skills with decent examples. Detach the emotions If you want to be in a win-win situation, then you need to stay calm and collected by thinking of the questions as a game, and answering by restraining yourself from losing your temper. Negative body language Sometimes, the interview confuses the candidate by not maintaining an eye contact or shuffling while sitting. As a consequence, most of the times, the candidates become defensive and mess up their own body language. Make sure to take it slow and take a deep breath while you are being scrutinized, in order to appear calm and at peace. Buy yourself some time Most of the interviewers in such a situation try to deliberately confuse the candidate by forcing them to give a quick answer. In such a scenario, make sure that you take enough time in answering the interviewer after repeating the question to understand it better. Distract yourself The pressure can also be reduced if the interviewee moves from the seat where they are being interviewed. For this, you may have to think of some excuses that would enable you to move around. You can pretend to use the flip chart or even walk around while coming up with an answer. Become assertive If at any point of the interview, you feel uncomfortable due to the questions or any other personal comments; you can show your assertive side of the personality by leaving the interview room. You have all the right to bring the interview to a close if it is not working out for you. Take a decision This kind of interview is best suited to give you a reality check on what it would be like to work for a particular manager or the team that you are being interviewed at. You have the power to decide whether you would take up the job there or not. Make sure to remember that it may get worse with time once you have said yes to the offer because it doesn’t happen this way. Author Bio: Ashley Albert is the author of this guest post. Her articles are frequently published on essay writing company, where she gives his valuable advice on career advancement. People are inspired by her due to her expertise in the field of HR.