How to Stay Positive During a Job

Interview
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BY ALISON DOYLE

Updated April 07, 2018

There are a number of reasons why you might be in a bad mood during an
interview. Maybe you’re frustrated with your job search, or don’t really believe
the job for which you’re interviewing is a great fit. Maybe you simply had a bad
morning or you’re just feeling down because you’re afraid you won’t get the
job. It can be difficult to stay positive for your job interview.

It’s okay to be in a bad mood, but no matter how negative you are feeling on
the day of your interview, it is important not to let it show.

A positive, friendly attitude goes a long way in impressing an employer.

Employers want to hire people that appear upbeat and likely to get along with
their bosses, coworkers, and clients. Even if you are well qualified for a
position, a negative attitude can hurt your chances of getting the job.

Here are tips for conveying a positive attitude during an interview – even if
you’re not actually feeling that positive.

7 Tips for Keeping It Positive During a Job Interview

1. Dress the Part

When you look good, you feel good. Keep this in mind when selecting your
interview outfit. Take the time to iron your shirt and slacks, polish your shoes,
get your hair cut – whatever will make you feel confident walking into the
interview. Knowing you look your best may improve how you feel. Be sure
to dress correctly for the interview – business attire is best.

2. Think Positive
If you go into an interview thinking that you won’t get the job, or that you’ll get
hired and be miserable, it will be hard for you to convince the employer
otherwise.
Therefore, before you walk into the employer’s office, take a few minutes to
remember a time when you were successful – whether it was a time when you
got a job you wanted, successfully ran a volunteer event, or simply played a
great round of golf.

Walking into the interview with a positive image of yourself will help you to
convey a confident attitude to the employer.

Hopefully once you are involved in a conversation with your interviewer, you’ll
hit your stride and answer the questions with confidence.

3. Focus on Posture
Posture is an important nonverbal form of communication that conveys how
you feel about yourself. If you slouch, avoid eye contact, or turn your body
away from the interviewer, you may come across as apathetic or lacking in
confidence.

Instead, stand up straight (or sit straight) with your shoulders back, and look
the employer in the eye. This posture will make you appear confident even
before you say a word.

4. Be an Active Listener
If you’re feeling negative during an interview, you might become so bogged
down in negative thoughts that you struggle to focus. Practice active
listening to make sure you stay focused on the interviewer and understand
what she is saying.

Look the interviewer in the eye while she is speaking, ask clarifying questions,
and rephrase what she says to ensure understanding (“So, what you’re saying
is…”). Active listening demonstrates that you are engaged and interested in
the job.

5. Convey a Can-Do Attitude

Even If you feel like you are not a perfect fit for a job, you do not want to
emphasize that during the interview.

Before the interview, draw up a list of your qualities and experiences that
relate to the job requirements as stated in the job listing. This way, if the
interviewer asks why you’re a good fit for the job, you have a number of
reasons and examples handy.

Even if the interviewer asks you if you have experience with a task of which
you know nothing, admit your lack of experience, but emphasize your interest
and enthusiasm in learning something new. While having the skills necessary
for a job is important, a positive, can-do attitude goes a long way.
 6. Smile
Smiling, even when you’re not feeling happy, can actually brighten your mood.
So even if you are feeling disheartened about your job search, walk into and
out of the office with a smile. It will put both you and your interviewer in a good
mood.

7. Don’t Overdo It
Of course, being aggressively friendly can also be off-putting for an
interviewer. The interviewer wants to see that you are a real person – and real
people do not smile all of the time. If you use this advice in moderation, you
will come across as positive and confident, without being overwhelming.

Pretending to be in a good mood might be a little easier if you’re well prepared

for your interview. Take some time to research the company so you’ll have a
few questions to ask your interviewer. Also, review these top job interview tips.

Show a positive attitude …

"We all know that employers want to select people who have a positive attitude and I know I have one. Unfortunately, I've
had feedback to say that I don't come across that way, so what should I be doing?"

Angela R's confidence had taken a knock over this. When you see yourself a certain way, and then find out that others see
you differently, it can be a shock if that difference is negative. So how can you ensure that you portray a positive attitude at
interviews?

Angela suffers from the same problem as many of us; she is generally optimistic, and therefore positive, but is an individual
who takes things seriously, likes to think carefully before answering questions and then replies in a well-structured and
logical way. All of those qualities are likely to be positively valued by an employer, so why would she be perceived as not
having a positive attitude?

What's the problem?

It's important to recognise that there are two potential problem situations when being interviewed:

 Portraying a negative attitude.

 Not showing a positive attitude.
Whilst the latter is simply a missed opportunity to show the best of ourselves, the former is invariably disastrous.
 We all recognise a negative attitude when we see one. It's characterised by general pessimism flowing from the words, "No,"
and, "I don't think so," or, "That'll never work," or, "That's a lot of trouble," often coupled with an attitude of, "Why would
I / What's in it for me?" Even five minutes with a negative person can be waaaaay too much to bear, so who'd want one
locked into a key role inside their organisation, constantly poisoning the atmosphere and depressing everyone around them?

If an interviewer doesn't see your positive attitude, the worry is that they might have a negative individual on their hands, so
it could just be safer to steer clear of you. At the very least, you'd be missing a major opportunity to stand out from your
peers.

So the message for you (and for Angela) is clear - make sure to show that you have a positive attitude.

How do you portray that positive attitude?

1. Engage firmly. Make eye contact with the interviewer, listen attentively, smile, 'like' them.
2. Show the real you. You do want to look professional, but you're not a robot. Relax, show emotion.
3. Be confident. You might be nervous but you can still show confidence in your own abilities. Value your past
experiences and future capabilities. Believe in yourself. If you don't, why would anyone else?
4. Lighten the mood where you can. Yes, it's an interview and you do need to take it seriously but a bit of gentle upbeat
levity now and again gives everyone a lift from what is a pressured situation for both sides.
5. Never criticise, never complain. EVER! Even if your last boss was a humourless, power-crazed, misogynistic, baby-
eating monster who ended up doing time for sacking absolutely everyone and bankrupting the organisation, let it go.
Running people down, banging on about how hard done-to you were and criticising colleagues for causing your
unfortunate failures is the surest way to show that dreaded negative attitude.
6. Agree with the interviewer. The words, "No, that's actually wrong," should never come from your mouth. Even if it is
wrong, work around it gently. If you can show that you agree often with what the interviewer is saying, you will be seen
as positive.
7. Actually be positive. Talk about what you CAN do, not what you can't. Never say anything negative about yourself at
any time.
Let's dig into that last point in more detail.

Positivity through belief

To portray a highly positive attitude that you can use to stand above your peers, I have some very strong advice.
When discussing the role you're aiming for, if you're not sure whether you'll be able to do something or not because
your past experience is a tad thin in that area - just say you can and plan to worry about it later.

Isn't that madness? Aren't you setting yourself up for failure?

No. The whole of your working life will engage you in unknown situations. You've spent God knows how many years
learning at school, college or university how to analyse and solve problems. Have confidence that you'll be able to do just
that in a real job and facing a real situation at that time. You're not a vegetable; you're a sentient learning adaptive being.

To really hammer your positivity home, recognise that nothing shows a positive attitude better than, "I can do that,"
whatever it is.

Believe utterly, at the very deepest level of your being, that you can do absolutely anything that you choose to set your mind
to, even if it's way outside of your comfort zone, field and experience. Believe absolutely that the limitation would never be
whether you can do something or not, it's just down to how long it might take you and whether that would be practical in a
real-world situation.

Here's an example that used to get me through. Earlier in my career, I believed, utterly, that if push came to shove, I could
single-handedly design, build, launch and man an alternative Saturn V space rocket that would take me to the moon and
back. It might take me a while from where I'd be starting from (slight understatement there), but if someone else can do it,
why not me? I could learn to design. I could learn the manufacturing techniques. I could train to a required fitness standard.
etc. etc.

The limitations might be time and resource, but never my capability.

So, when someone says, "Can you do ..", your answer must be, "Yes, of course!" Not, "Maybe," or, "No," or, "I don't think
so," or, "I'm not sure," or, "Perhaps," or, "Well, can I have a look at it first?"

If you can believe and show an interviewer that, whatever the problem, you could solve it eventually, you're well on the way
towards being congratulated for having a highly positive can do attitude that would be an asset to the organisation.

Think you can do that? :)

Jon Gregory, Editor

For more detail on this subject, read “Winning That Job: A kill or be-killed guide to job-search and interview
preparation.” You can pick up it up as an e-book or paperback here on Amazon >>>