The “I Blew It!” Post-Interview

You did your homework, got to the top of the resume pile, were called for an interview, made a stellar impression, and it all seemed to be going great. The department manager gave you all the cues that you are a “shoe in” for sure.  They will be wrapping things up in a matter of a couple weeks.  You shake hands goodbye and  leave the building filled with excitement and anticipation.

You get home and fire off an eloquent “thank you” that same day.

A couple weeks come and go.

You fire off an email reiterating your interest in the position….

Two more weeks with no response…..

And then you find yourself crying out “I blew it! I don’t know how, but I blew it!  I didn’t get the job! What did I do wrong???”

Sound familiar?

Why is it that we always go for our own jugular, blaming ourselves? What if they blew it?

It’s easy to feel rejection during the job seeking process. There’s no room for speculation if you have the rare fortune of receiving an actual rejection letter.  But the truly frustrating situation is when it all seems to go ‘from hero to zero’ the moment you walk out of the interview.

That dreaded dead air space of no post-interview communication whatsoever.

Think through your interview experience carefully one more time. Walk through the communication exchange. Do you feel confident about everything said and done?  Then unless you picked a great big green goober out of your nose prior to shaking the interviewers hand on the way out, or something equally awful, there is no reason to assume the lack of post interview communication is because you blew the interview.  There are many other possible reasons why you haven’t gotten to that next step of the process yet.

Consider just some of the real alternate possibilities besides “you blew it” for starters.

Shortly after the company’s hiring team had their great interview with you:

1. The company put a freeze on hiring until further notice.
2. The decision was made by someone above the interviewer to hire from within.
3. The decision was made by someone above the interviewer to hire the CEO’s kid.
4. The original plan to expand operations, develop the new department and positions was derailed or delayed.
5. Budget cuts eliminated the ability to fill the position entirely.

Without a doubt, the polite, responsible, and “right” thing to do is to not leave a candidate hanging. But that isn’t always taken into consideration. Who isn’t overextended these days? And not all companies have a culture that includes that kind of courtesy to their job candidates. Truthfully, in any or all of these situations, the last thing on anyone’s mind at that company may be to follow up with job interview candidates, especially if it’s to say they’ve been usurped.  Perhaps the company works under a “hire by committee” format , or crap is hitting the fan in the office. And in that case, do you really want to work in that kind of environment??  If you are certain that your stellar interview was in fact, stellar, then all you can do afterwards is continue to do your best to keep that positive connection going:

• During the interview, ask the interviewer for a timeframe when they expect to reach a decision. (let’s say they will reach their decision in 3 weeks), and get his “agreement” for you to keep in touch regarding status.
• Send that eloquent thank you on the interview day.
• If you can come up with a compelling, question or statement about the company or position, email it to the interviewer halfway to that 3 week decision date—further demonstrating your interest in the company and position.
• After that 3 week decision deadline, reach out via email first thing in the morning, and ask if you are still being considered for the position. Include the heads up that you will also follow up with them by phone at XXX time (should be late that afternoon or before noon the following day).
• Call them at XXX time with a short message reiterating the content of your email (your interest in the position and status of where you stand in the hiring process).
• If there is no response in a week, email the interviewer again, reiterating a key point you saw eye to eye on and how interested you are in the position. Include the heads up that you will also follow up with them via phone on XXX date–make that phone call date a week later.
• Call them on XXX date. If you get voicemail, be prepared to leave a short, well stated message including your interest in the position and a request for an update on the process.
• Wait another 2 weeks. If there is no response, make the phone call, reiterating your interest in the company and position, ask if the position is still available.
• Wait another 2 weeks, email the interviewer again, asking for an update on if the position is still available and the status of the hiring process.
• If still no response, make a note to email the interviewer in about 45 days, checking in to see if they have placed someone yet, how the chosen candidate is working out—and do they have any new positions coming open any time soon?

If your interview was with an HR “minion”, your efforts could end up not making much if any difference.  But if your interview was truly with the decision makers, these steps will remind them why they felt you were a good fit.

Keep your head in the game, and keep the communication going. Not hearing back on an interview that went well doesn’t automatically mean you “blew” it. Always remember there is only one you, and you have great value! Rejection is not always about you—it could very likely be about them. Always be positive and at your best!

PR Brady AdVentures is ready, reasonable, and available to help you with your job search process. Message me today. Feel free to share with others who may find value and interest in exploring limitless possibilities with PR Brady AdVentures.