How to recover after a not-so-great dev job interview

So you're not feeling good after an interview you just did - now what? No matter how much preparation you do, some interviews just go horribly. So it's up to you to decide how to react and what next steps you want to take. The following tips can get you through any setback after a bad interview.

Step back

Take some time to reflect on what actually went wrong in the interview. It's important to cool down any frustration or anger you felt immediately after the interview. Avoid over-analyzing the details of each answer.

Because of minor mistakes - like being too vague about your weaknesses or forgetting to mention an experience on your resume - it doesn't make sense to think too much about it, nor does it make sense to tell your interviewer after the fact.

Do a factual damage control

However, if you made a mistake that seriously affected the interviewer's decision (e.g., you failed to mention your only relevant work experience in the role you were interviewed for), you should at least consider an attempt at damage control draw.

The easiest way to do this is usually to add a few extra sentences in your follow-up email after the interview.

First, determine exactly what the interviewer should take away from your message and then find a precise way of formulating it. Try to avoid sounding like an apology: just add new information to what was discussed during the interview and don't disclose an error.

Worst-case scenario, if you were having an incredibly bad day at the interview (maybe you were sick) it might be worth asking for a second chance. The worst that can happen is that you are denied the opportunity. But then make sure your second interview is miles better than the first.

Learn from your mistakes

Perhaps most importantly, a bad interview is a good learning experience, as each mistake can help you be better prepared for future interviews. The following tips can help you use your mistakes as lessons for future interviews.

Analyze your mistakes: First, identify all the mistakes you made and then determine the root cause. Perhaps your mistakes were due to nerves, which is usually reflected in your answers not actually answering the question. On the other hand, if you weren't prepared for the interview, there may be times when you didn't have solid answers or forgot to mention relevant experiences.
Practice makes perfect: If your problem is weak nerves, practice is your friend. Ask a friend or family member to tease you with questions so you can more comfortably answer them in the real interview. Also practice your answers to the most common interview questions - e.g. B. why you are looking for a job, why you are passionate about the company and your strengths and weaknesses. Since many of these will likely come up in the interview, at least some solid answers are assured.
Be honest with yourself: If you weren't adequately prepared for the interview, ask yourself if it was because you didn't invest enough time beforehand or if you prepared for the wrong questions. It can be frustrating when you've spent a lot of time preparing for an interview, only to find it drifted off in a completely different direction. However, you can use this experience to better assess the types of future questions. If you just haven't spent enough time preparing, ask yourself why. If you weren't motivated at all, maybe you should have just postponed the face-to-face interview.

No matter how uncomfortable you feel after a bad interview, it's important to remember that whether you ask the same employer for another appointment or use your mistakes to develop your skills for the future, it's never going to be your last chance to optimize. And if you are a developer or IT technician, your chances are generally not bad at work 😊