93% of People You Interview for a Job Feel Anxious

Are you going to interview job candidates for your small business? If yes, then you should try to make them relaxed in order to better evaluate them because many job candidates feel anxious during interviews. And interview anxiety often rattles the performance of interviewees.

According to the recent survey from JDP, a majority of job candidates (93%) have experienced anxiety related to their interview.

Job Interview Anxiety

To stay relaxed during interviews, candidates employ different techniques, such as listening to music, visualization, meditation, etc. In fact, 64% of candidates listened to music before their interviews to calm their nerves.

It goes without saying that small businesses struggle hard to take skilled people on board. In addition to competing within their segments, small businesses also have to contest with big companies to secure the top talents.

So, being a small business owner yourself, you must try to put interviewees at ease. Doing so will not only help you better assess them but also help you sway their minds to join your business.

Key Findings of the Recruitment Survey

Most job candidates go through anxiety during interviews. And Anxiety can result in nervousness.

29% of people, as the survey found, said that interviews make them most nervous. And you will be surprised to know that interviews make people more nervous than doctor/dentist visits.

Not being able to answer difficult questions, not being able to address a weakness, and not coming off as intended are some common causes of nervousness, as the survey points out.

It is not like that job candidates don’t try to ward off anxiety and nervousness. Of course, they do.

64% of the candidates, according to the survey, listen to music to relax. And 29% of candidates use positive self-talk to prepare for interviews.

Also, they spend around 7 hours researching a company so that they can be better prepared for an interview.

However, despite spending time to know about a company and implementing various relaxing techniques, the majority of job candidates (93%) feel anxious while giving interviews.

As a small business owner who wants to hire the top talents, you should do everything to calm the nerves of job candidates. This is because nervous or anxious candidates tend to clam up. When they talk less, you will know less about them.

Relaxed candidates give deep revealing answers, enabling you to know how they are actually as a person.

What’s more, job candidates will have a good impression about you and your business if you make them feel relaxed. As good candidates have multiple options these days, making them feel comfortable during interviews can sway their minds to join you.

How to Put Job Candidates at Ease

Small business owners should make efforts to bring much needed calm in interview rooms.

Following are some tips that can help you make job candidates feel relaxed:

• Offer them a drink and start with informal conversations
• Introduce your small business and tell them about your role
• Smile as it has the power to calm their nerves
• Be encouraging while conducting interviews

Needless to say, guesswork often makes candidates nervous. So it is better if you send brief outlines to candidates to let them know about the structures of interviews.

Also, you should not ask interviewees any personal questions as personal questions make job candidates uncomfortable.

About the Survey

JDP included 2,018 job candidates in its survey. The objective of the survey was to know how people prepare for job interviews and how they feel during interviews. The survey roped in 57% female and 43% male. And the experience level ranges from junior to mid-level to senior. You can click here to know more about the survey.

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Image: Depositphotos.com

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