10 Ways To Calm Your Job Interview Anxiety

You have cold sweats, a racing heartbeat and your blood pressure is increasing.

We are not talking about that gut feeling that you get when you watch a scary movie or ride a rollercoaster. We are referring to interview anxiety that happens to almost everybody before and during a job interview.

Whether you are a first-time job seeker or an accomplished professional, going into an interview can be a frightening experience especially when you are trying to land a position that you are targeting. Most people experience high levels of stress before or during an interview but research illustrates that anxiety negatively affects interview performance because it can decrease your chance of landing a second interview and ultimately an offer letter.

The ideal way to counter job interview stress can also be the best way to make the interview process work for you as a candidate rather than against you. Preparing before the interview takes place is essential. Researching a potential organization’s workplace culture, mission and values as well as highlighting the ways your professional profile matches the desired qualifications of the role can keep you focused in the present moment.

Each interview provides you with the opportunity to prove that you are the optimal candidate for the position as well as offering you an opportunity to decide if those employees that you are meeting with are people you want to work with. If you can lean into highlighting your accomplishments and relevant knowledge, you can optimize your chances of landing the role. Use these strategies to overcome your job interview fears and make the process work for you.

1. Understand How Your Interview Stress Response Works

The Anxiety: Freezing Up

With so much at stake, it makes sense that our physical body would be thrown into a stressful response resulting in an urge to flee, fight or freeze. None of those options are possible in the moment, the stress can build even further and cause us to experience both internal and external symptoms of anxiety including:

• Changes in our voice patterns and tone 

• Racing or irrational thoughts

• Changes in body temperature

• An inability to sit still or a desire to fidget

• Elevated heart rate

• Sweating including a cold sweat or sweaty palms

• Nausea

• Blushing

• Shortness of breath

• Dizziness

You may not experience all these symptoms but any one of them can throw you off. The key to understanding how to calm your nerves before an interview is to find out what triggers you.

The Solution

Start with self-reflection. Ask yourself the following questions to identify your personal responses.

• Which of the above symptoms have you experienced before?

• Do you tend to be more nervous before or during an interview?

Depending on your answers, you might want to focus on pre-interview preparedness in the form of research or mock interviews. If your interview anxiety is more intense prior to an interview rather than during, you may need to engage in pre-interview calming exercises.

2. Knowing That You Are Not Alone

The Anxiety: The Fear of Being Judged

Let's face it: No one likes to be judged and that is what a job interview is to a t—a judgment zone. If it is any consolation, most adults in the US have reported that they feel anxious about their job interview performance.

Candidates tend to worry about arriving late, that the interviewer will ask a question where we do not know how to answer, job seekers tend to bring a wide range of anxieties into virtual and in-person interviews. 

A Potential Solution

For example, if you are afraid of coming off as less than professional during the interview, remember that everyone on the other side has been where you are now. 

All hiring managers should be aware that even the most talented applicants may appear nervous during the interview. 

3. Conduct A Dress Rehearsal

The Anxiety: Feeling Out of Control

Sometimes your brain can ruminate right before a big interview. Before you know it, because you are nervous about every question you will mess up your answer. What if you freeze up and forget to mention your best attributes and greatest achievements?

The Solution

Rehearsing with a friend, family member or mentor can help to train your brain regarding the need to escape during the hiring process. Have a list of questions that you think might be asked and ask them to give you critical feedback on your answers.

If you do not have time to rehearse in the days leading up to your interview. You can review popular interview questions, especially those designed to confuse you, such as “"What is your biggest weakness?"

Formulate creative talking points that highlight the strengths you already have that align with the employer’s mission and values. Read over your notes right before the interview so that you feel prepared to the best of your ability.

4. Calm Your Nerves

The Anxiety: Pre-Interview Nerves

Many job seekers get nervous before an interview but once the interview starts, they find themselves enjoying themselves. These calming exercises can help you relax so that you can put your best foot forward.

The Solution

Replace your pre-interview nerves with positive energy by engaging in the following strategies:

• Utilize relaxation exercises such as meditation, deep breathing, positive visualization or targeted muscle relaxation.

• Ramp up your confidence by listening to a motivational music themed playlist or a pre-interview pep talk.

• Lighten the mood by watching funny videos or a few minutes of your favorite standup comedy routine.

5. Exaggerate Your Fears

The Anxiety: Fear of the Unknown

Sometimes it is the unknown that causes us to avoid taking risks. Focusing on what could go wrong can be a self-fulfilling prophecy.

The Solution

This might sound like the opposite of a calming exercise, but as you are preparing for your interview, ask yourself what is the worst case scenario that can happen and then add to that. Is your greatest fear not being able to answer a question? Spilling your water all over the table? Wearing the wrong type of outfit? Play that scenario out and you may just calm your nerves by realizing that it's not a dealbreaker.

6. Give Yourself A Self Encouraging Talk

The Anxiety: Negative Thoughts

Instead of getting trapped in self-doubt, focus on a positive outlook. These are not just helpful for sports teams, they can also help you feel confident before your interview takes place.

The Solution

Make a list of your best qualities as a coworker. Say them aloud as often as you need to until they are at the forefront of your mind and you are ready to share them proudly once you are in the room or potentially onscreen with your next potential employer.

7. Focus On The Positive

The Anxiety: You Forget Your Key Points

It can be helpful to think about a job interview as an elevator sales pitch where we strive to emphasize our top selling points. 

The Solution

Preparation is a helpful way to counter your interview anxiety, but there is a tipping point. If you arrive at the interview over-rehearsed and you can sound like a robot reading from a script. Aim to make your interview a conversation, not a hard sell where you are the product being sold. Accept that you will almost certainly fail to mention all the points you want to emphasize during the interview and know that doing your best is enough. During a phone or virtual interview, you can create a document with the points that you want to cover. For an in-person interview, make a more polished version of your presentation that you can send to the interview committee ahead of time or bring with you. That way you can refer to it during the meeting and you can even explain that you prepared it just for the occasion, demonstrating how invested you are in the role.

8. Do Not Change Your Personality

The Anxiety: Imposter Syndrome

A job interview is not set up like any other kind of social scenario. It can be frustrating to hear the stereotypical suggestion to "just be yourself" when the hiring process is not a setting that is designed to make candidates feel relaxed and unguarded.

Many of us feel like we do not deserve the roles we want most. We convince ourselves that everyone else at an organization, especially one we admire, must be smarter and more capable than us. We might also know that on some level that this is incorrect because we have done our research and developed the right types of skills but that does not mean we believe it.

Sometimes our insecurity can convince us that we need to adopt a different personality.This tendency can make candidates seem fake or untrustworthy and in turn sabotage your chances. It can mask your true self including all the things that make you unique and appealing. It can even lead you to try to bluff and make up vague answers to tough questions instead of simply admitting that you do not have an answer.

The Solution

Give yourself permission to tell the employer that you do not have an answer. Not only will this ensure that you do not say something that is inaccurate but it will help you to focus on the aspects of the position that you are not sure about.

No one is an expert on everything and prospective employers do not expect you to be. Having the courage to say "I don't know" or "I'm not familiar with that" in an interview may earn you authenticity points.

One of the worst things you can do is try to guess what you think the interviewer wants. Keeping it up for the duration of an entire interview will be exhausting. Your attempts to impress might come off as inauthentic so it is better to win or lose the position by being yourself.

9. Confront Your Fear of Failure

The Anxiety: Looking Unprepared

It can be easy to imagine that one bad interview performance will doom you with everyone in your industry. This just is not true. Learning how to relax before an interview by focusing on small achievable tasks can keep you from spiraling.

The Solution

Adhere to all the old-school best practices. Select your interview outfit and lay it out the night before. When you make your selection, lean toward a more formal look over a casual one. For virtual interviews, opt for solid colors over white or prints. Arrive early and use the extra time to go over your prepared notes on the company and the role including crafting questions to ask the interviewers about the company.

Remember that if you are not selected for the position, it is unlikely that you will ever see any of those interviewers again. Most recruiters and hiring managers won't remember a bad interview performance.

10. Use This Checklist to Reduce Your Interview Anxiety

Many of these strategies can help to reduce your anxiety before your interview. The following checklist is designed to make sure that you have covered all the bases and ensure that you are as confident as possible when you walk into or log onto your interview.

1. Mental Preparation:

• You can start a week or so before your interview by practicing mindfulness or meditation for a few minutes daily. This will help you to develop a more general sense of calm.

• Try positive affirmations like faking it till you make it. Phrases like "I am prepared" or "I am capable" can help boost your self-confidence.

2. Physical Relaxation Techniques:

• Deep breathing exercises are essential when it comes to anxiety management. Take a moment before the interview to concentrate on your breath to calm your nerves.

• Add light physical activity like stretching or yoga into your routine on the day of your interview. Helping to release muscle tension can make you feel physically more relaxed which can lead to being more ready mentally.

3. Visual Rehearsal:

• Visualize yourself completing a successful interview. Imagine that you conduct the interview from start to finish in a calm and composed manner. Our brains do not know the difference between imagination and reality.

• You could also take a moment to think about a loved one or a pet to fill yourself with positive feelings before the interview.

4. Mock Interviews:

• Conduct practice interviews with a friend or mentor to reduce anxiety about unexpected questions.

• Record your answers to potential questions and as you listen to your responses, take note of places where you can highlight your transferable skills that would be applicable for the role.

5. Grounding Techniques:

• Use grounding exercises (like the 5-4-3-2-1 technique for coping with anxiety) to stay present and calm before the interview.

• Ground yourself in your body in discrete ways such as curling your toes or flexing your fingers.

6. Pre-Interview Routine:

• Establish a calming routine before the interview such as listening to soothing music or taking a short walk.

• Take stock of all the items you need to bring with you to the interview such as copies of your resume, a photo ID, laptop computer or a flash drive.

7. Self-Compassion:

• Remind yourself that it is okay to be nervous and that everyone experiences some form of anxiety when it comes to the interview process.

• Give yourself permission to fail. Even if you freeze up or forget half of what you went into the interview intending to say, you are still likely to learn something along the way that you can use in your next interview.

You Are Ready: The Best Cure for Interview Anxiety Is Knowing Your Worth

Once you have engaged in some of these strategies, you can let go of the feeling that you must be perfect. That is just not how the hiring process works for most people.

As you walk through the door or sign into the virtual waiting room, take a moment to remind yourself that you have done all the preparation you can possibly do and then pat yourself on the back. Tell yourself that this is simply one possible opportunity out of many. Think of the next hour as an opportunity to learn about your industry, the role and yourself.

Keep in mind that an interview is not a one-sided assessment. Every interview offers an opportunity for you to do some judging of your own. You can focus less on being "good enough" and more on deciding whether the company, department or manager are really the best fit for you.

Armed with this level of confidence, you can focus on the value that you can bring to the role and present yourself as the knowledgeable, polished professional you are. Best of luck out there!