10 Body Language Don’ts That Will Torpedo Your Interview

I’ve been reading Lou Adler’s Hire With Your Head. Adler has a good section detailing how ten nervous traits can be interpreted negatively by the interviewer. Here’s the list of nervous traits, along with the corresponding negative interpretation.

1. Shallow responses can be interpreted as being not very intelligent, no sense of humor, or lack of judgment.
2. Sweaty palms can be seen as being weak, soft, or nerdy. Definitely not someone you’d want making a presentation to a customer or executive.
3. Twitching can show that a candidate is nervous, uncomfortable with people, and possibly not a team player.
4. Too chatty can be perceived as being dumb and superficial.
5. Lack of confidence can appear mislabeled as passive.
6. No eye contact can be interpreted as untrustworthy.
7. Saying stupid things can demonstrate that one is a real jerk, a weak team player, or insensitive to others.
8. Lack of warmth can be seen as arrogant.
9. Superficial questions shows that a candidate has wrong priorities or no character.
10. A dry throat, strained voice, or coughing can show that one lacks confidence, is unprepared, or doesn’t possess insight.

Photo credit: Freddie Peña