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Ten Ways to Make Your Interviewer Love You

6. Don’t be a Liar Liar
Studies show that employees lie frequently in the workplace. Lying won’t get you one. In a job interview even a slight exaggeration is lying. Don’t. Never stretch your resume or embellish accomplishments. There’s a difference between speaking with a measured confidence and engaging in BS. One lie can ruin your entire interview, and the skilled interviewer will spot the lie and show you the door.

7. Don’t Be a Bad Comedian
Humor tends to be very subjective and while it may be tempting to lead your interview with a joke you’ve got to be careful about your material. You probably will know nothing about the sensibilities of your interviewer, let alone what makes them laugh. On the other hand, nothing disarms the tension of a job interview like a little laughter, so you can probably score at least a courtesy chuckle mentioning that it’s “perfect weather for a job interview!”

8. Don’t Be High Maintenance
If you start talking about the ideal office temperature, the perfect chair for your tricky back, and how the water cooler needs to be filled with imported mineral water, chances are you’ll be shown a polite smile and the door, regardless of your qualifications. Nobody hiring today is going to be looking for someone who’s going to be finicky about their workspace.

9. Don’t Be a Minute Man
At every job interview, the prospective hire is given the chance to ask questions. Make yours intelligent, to the point and watch the person across the desk for visual cues whether you’ve asked enough. Ask too many questions about off-target matters and you’ll be thought of as a Minute Man, destined to waste the company’s resources with insignificant and time-wasting matters.

10. Don’t Be a Switchblade
Normally the Switchblade is thought of a backstabber, often taking credit for someone else’s work. In an interview setting, the Switchblade can’t help but “trash talk” his former employer. If you make it seem like your former workplace was hell on Earth, the person interviewing you might be tempted to call them to find out who was the real devil.

By Jonathan Littman and Marc Hershon for Not Just the Kitchen

First published October 2009

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I was a tech recruiter for years. Have to say that most of this is common sense. As for asking about salary in a first interview: ALWAYS! this shows that you are serious about the position and about your future. An employer may wonder why you don't mention salary - it is an obvious reason why you want a job, so why ignore the elephant in the room? But there is a tactful way - towards the end of the interview, when you are normally given a chance to ask questions (95% of all interviews tend to end with "so, do you have an questions?" I always liked to open with that - "so, what do you know about the position and company and do you have any questions?") you can say somethings like "I'd like to discuss the salary". There is nothing wrong with that. It shows that you are serious, want to make sure you are not under selling yourself, and not taking a position that you might later gripe about not getting a chance to negotiate your numbers on.

I agree, Neha. Being yourself is number one in my book for job interviews. Your sincerity will come across and your interviewer will appreciate your honesty.

Hey, there are some jobs where knowing pop culture trivia is required. I aced an interview once because I told the interviewer about my stance on celebrity babies as the new little purse dogs.