You are facing the interviewer and feeling like things are moving along nicely when all of a sudden the interview takes a turn for the worse. What has just happened? You may have hit one of the interviewer’s pet peeves, one of those things that automatically trigger a negative response. Here are some of the pet peeves of interviewers, along with tips on how to avoid them.

Sweet smell

Preparing for an interview is not like preparing for a date. I had one interview with a woman who doused herself with perfume (the same perfume my ex-girlfriend used to wear) right before stepping into the small interview booth. The perfume was overpowering and brought back bad memories.

Tongue-tied

“My number one interviewing pet peeve is an applicant who won’t talk,” says the interviewer of client services at a software company. “I try to ask open-ended questions and prod for longer answers, but no luck. I’ve even mentioned to a few that I need more information so I can get an idea of where they are coming from — still no luck. I always end the interview saying, now it’s your turn to ask questions, and still no luck; they don’t have any. Oh well — next!”

Draw the line

“Candidates who ramble on are the ones who get to me,” says the interviewer. “Last week, I was interviewing a candidate and asked her a question. She talked for 45 minutes straight. I had to say, ‘Let’s wrap this up’. I stood up while she continued to talk. I walked to the door of the office and opened it. She left, but continued to talk while walking out of the door.” The lesson? Candidates should stay focussed, and answer the question asked in less than two to three minutes.

Spot on

“Typically, candidates are simply too intimidated by the process,” says another interviewer. “Asking, clarifying or replying to follow-up questions shows that the candidate is confident and thinking about the whole picture instead of enduring an interrogation.” It is important for candidates to think analytically and logically while answering questions. He should prepare before hand the likely questions he may be asked and brush up on his field of study. It helps to speak with people who have appeared for interviews at the company to which you have applied.

All eyes

People who do not make any eye contact during an interview irritate the interviewer. “I realise some people are shy, but to never look at me once — they look down, around, everywhere, but not at me for the entire interview. I find that extremely annoying. I also tend to distrust someone who will not look at me when I’ve asked a question.” If you are uncomfortable looking into someone’s eyes, look at his “third eye”, just above and between the person’s two eyes. Never try to avert the interviewer’s eyes as you may end up losing a job offer.

Magic word

“Poor communications skills really get to me,” says the interviewer. “What I mean by this is not merely their language fluency, but more about the use of language. Slang words and streetspeak just don’t have a place in business environments. Also, candidates who say ‘um’, ‘like’ and ‘uh’ between every other word lose my attention very quickly.”

Honesty counts

One major complaint among recruiters is when a candidate is not completely truthful. Small lies are all too common in the world of recruitment. This includes not being completely forthcoming with relevant information, embellishing accomplishments, hiding jobs or leading the process on with no intention of ever following through. Building trust during the interview is the key to getting an offer.