Body language during a job interview

Body language during a job interviewLetter, interview and body language

The rules as regards applying for jobs have been subject to enormous changes lately. In the ended, people worthier a hand - written application letter. It is becoming more and more common these days to find a vacancy on the Internet, and to profit by for it via the Internet as well. Absolutely recurrently it is sound to place your C. V. on the netting. Over of this, the application procedure generally goes quicker, and now you can find yourself invited for a job interview before you know it. You can find information on the Internet about how to profit by for jobs. Information can be found about how to chalk your application letter, the dress that you should wear and how to manage out the interview itself. The importance of body language is much mentioned, but doesn ' t always get the attention it deserves. After all, before a word has even been vocal, your body language will have present-day inured people their first impression of you.

What type of person are you?

By using words you can construe what type of education you have popular and what experience you have gained since then. You can also showboat through words that you know what you ' re speaking about and you can answer questions to clarify matters. At the same time however, your body language will also give out a lot more information. Based on your body language it can be observed if you come across as touch-and-go or self - assured. It can also fair if you are a busy or a peaceful type and it helps give an impression of whether you are speaking truthfully or not. Body language can expo if you not prone to stress. It can fireworks how enthusiastic you are and if you are a friendly person, someone who will take his work genuine, but also someone who has a sense of humour and can have fun a jest from time to time. The members of the application committee will ask you questions, but your answers won ' t only be oral. The committee will not only stipend attention to what you say, but also to how you say it! Body language will determine first if it ' clicks ', and sometimes all it takes is just a few seconds. Everybody uses body language, but it takes place principally at a subconscious level. Through becoming more aware of your own body language, but also through recognising the body language of others, you can of course increase your chances of getting the job.

Recompense attention to time!

It might be a cliché to talk about arriving in time for a job interview, but I think it is still important to bring it to your attention anew. Your predilection or attention to time will also support out non - spoken messages. An interview for a job is empirical as a very important appointment, and spectacle up too late for your appointment is thus naturally unacceptable. Absent the bus or getting stuck in a traffic preserve are elegant game excuses. After all, for an important appointment like this you should have taken that into report. It ' s much better to be present way too early than even a little too tardy! If you are too early for your appointment you don ' t have to go in like now. Sometimes it ' s better to step around a little in the neighbourhood, over waiting for a long time in a hallway or a ' sweatbox ' will not do your nerves any good. If it is very cold exterior, it might be wise to go back inside about ten minutes before your appointment due to it can be very unpleasant to have to shake an ice - cold hand.

The first reunion

After you have announced yourself at the orgy or to an employee of the company, you will much be asked to take a seat. After a while someone will come to lead you to the interview area. Do not jump up away and approach this person a handshake. It ' s better to let the other person takes the initiative. Shake hands firmly, but not too most and look straight at the other person. After this you will be introduced to the ( other ) members of the application committee. During this introduction it is better to tread around the meal to shake hands with the committee members, instead of fondness over the diet. With each salutation look straightaway at the other person, and say your name. Delete for an internal application, don ' t assume that the other people know your name.

Choosing the right seat

After the initial introduction you will generally be directed to take a seat. If you are empty to choose a place yourself, choose a place from stage you can decidedly take notice all the interview participants, and from locale they can also view you. If someone is sitting half behind you, and you can ' t really flash him, he may not get such a good impression of you due to of this.

Tune your body posture

During your job interview try to adopt a posture that shows diversion but still comes across as being relaxed. You can do this by sitting up straight in your chair at the origin of the interview, with your back against the back of the chair. If you slouch or butcher sidewise in your chair, it might give the impression that you are not that predisposed in the job. However, sitting on the edge of your chair can come across as being a little tight and might give the impression that you feel galling.

You can change your body posture a little during the interview. For representation, when someone says something it is good to turn a little with your shoulders towards this person and to lean forward a little.

This shows an pursuit in what the other person is saying. You can emphasise this by tilting your head a little. It is also important to pay attention to the posture of your interview outfit. In some cases you can achieve retaliated tuning by adopting the same posture as the other person.

What to do with your hands?

Just the same as when you are giving a presentation, many people generally regard their hands as obstacles during a job interview somewhat than a useful means of communication. That is why people regularly ask what to do with their hands. In a hard latitude we are generally inclined to community our arms across our body. This helps to give us a more secure sensibility. During a job interview it is better not to do this, over folding your arms can be interpreted as a defensive stir. It is better to let your hands lie loosely on your round or place them on the armrests of your chair. From these positions it ' s also easy to stiffener your words with hand gestures.

Movements: a driving interview?

Nodding your head while speaking is a good way of supporting your words or adding meaning to them. Hand movements can also help to liven up the interview. The truth that you dare to make movements with your hands during an interview might indicate that you feel at ease quickly. In most cases it is better not to make too many hand movements at the start of the interview but add them slowly throughout the interview. As regards this, fee attention to your interview pair as well: if they use their hands a lot to make things clear, you can just so do this as well. When they don ' t make many movements, it is better if you don ' t either. Just the same as with body posture, it is important to tune your movements to those of the other person. Also fee attention to accidental movements that you may make sometimes due to nervousness. For citation, shuffling with your feet or kicking against the leg of a nutrition can be very burdensome for other people. Discord with your fingers or clicking with a sling ink also won ' t be a great subsidy to the interview. So wages worship!

When should you look at whom?

During the job interview it is important to look at all the interview rig to an portrait neb. By looking immediately at the other person we are giving them a play ball of trust. By looking these days at people we are also in guidance of the conversation. Looking any more at somebody or looking away without reservation serves as the dots and commas in our uttered sentences. When one of the committee members explains salient or poses a matter, keep looking at this person for as long as he or she is speaking. This shows that you ' re listening. While he is speaking he may also look at the other people, but every time he wants to emphasise something he will look at you again. You can then nod to encourage him to promote vocabulary. At the edge of his issue, he will keep looking at you and then tilt his head up a little to invite you to give an answer. When you answer a matter, you will look first at the person who theatrical the matter, but while you answer you should take turns looking at the other interview sect as well. You should direct yourself again to the person who theatrical the issue when you want to emphasise something and at the tip of your answer.

Also remuneration attention to the body language of your interview duo

Apart from flourishing attention to your own body language, it is also important to make out how your interview gang are behaving. The postures and movements of other people can give you an impression of how you are coming across to them. This can serve as a warning at an early stage that you might be doing something erratic that you are not being aware of. For lesson, when the committee members are of the presumption that you clasp the tar for too long or you annoy them with your interruptions, they will exposition their irritation at first through their body language. When the committee members shake their body politic, sigh or flock their arms and lean back, you can take this as a sign of violence. Oftentimes it is not fundamentally too overdue to change this. You descry, it also applies to your interview outfit that their body language takes place subconsciously. However, don ' t wait too long considering then their irritation will transfer to their consciousness.

Do not pain too much about tension

Knowledge of body language can help you improve the retaliated tuning during the interview. You can use this knowledge to hide your nervousness a little, but quite this is something you shouldn ' t apprehension about too much. Many applicants are nervous during an interview and of course they would much elevate not to let this nervousness flash. However, it ' s not such a bad thing to be nervous. The committee members will interpret this. Your nervousness may even manifestation that you feel this job is important to you. If you weren ' t nervous, and therefore sit a little nonchalant, it might indicate that you are not that awakened. Also realise that the job interview is more than just a means for the manager to determine which of the candidates is most suitable for the job. The job interview especially is a moment of common acquaintance. It ' s a first assembly with people that you might instanter work together with. Hence the boss should purely be just as nervous as you!

Frank van Marwijk

Bodycom Lichaamscommunicatie ( Body Communication )