Top mistakes during telephonic interviews and how to avoid them


Hunting for a job, are you? Well, best of luck to you. Finding a good job takes a lot of effort, and most of it is making a good impression during your interview. You know well that an interview is the most crucial part of the job process, and you must give more than your 100 percent. A lot of times, people prefer taking interviews over the telephone, as it is more time-saving and quick. If you have a telephonic interview lined up, avoid making the top common mistakes people make during telephonic interviews. Treat it with the same seriousness as you would in a face-to-face interview.

Top mistakes during telephonic interviews and how to avoid them

Common mistakes to avoid

Here are some common mistakes that people make in telephonic interviews.

Getting distracted:

Whether you are an amateur English speaker or not, distractions can cause you to lose your train of thoughts and you will end up fumbling and trying to remember what you want to say. If you have learnt to speak English only recently, or are still learning, you should avoid getting distracted during a telephonic interview. Focus on what you are saying, try to use the correct words and make your answers accurate and precise. 

Not focussing on the tone of your voice:

Spoken English is not only about knowing when to use the right words and having an extensive vocabulary, it is also about how you speak, the tone of your voice, which words you stress on and when you take a pause. For you to make a good impression solely based on your communication skills, you need to be alert about the tone of your voice throughout the interview. An ideal tone should be pleasant, clear and thinking pauses that aren’t too long.  

Not putting extra efforts at being polite:

When you have a face-to-face interview, there are many ways that you can show that you are a polite and well-mannered person. You will knock on the door before you enter, you will smile, shake hands, wait for the person to ask you to take your seat, etc. With a telephonic interview, you need to convey everything just with your voice. Therefore, start with greeting the person, and asking how they are doing. Example, “Good Morning. How are you doing? I am glad we could connect over the phone.’ Also, give the other person some adequate time to respond and wait for them to finish before you start speaking. Don’t cut them off mid-sentence if you need to state a point. Also, at the end of the interview, thank them for their time and say, “It was a pleasure speaking to you.”

Not paying attention to pronunciation:

On a telephonic interview, you need to be extra careful that you put forth your points precisely and say exactly what you mean. Just like the game of Chinese whispers, a lot can be misunderstood or conveyed incorrectly if you have, say, disturbance in the line, background noise, faulty phone connection, etc. So be careful to enunciate properly and confirm that the person has understood exactly what you want to convey. The key is to be very brief and to-the-point as possible, and to speak clearly and calmly so to avoid any misunderstandings.

Using too many filler words:

It is easy, and likely to happen, that you get distracted during a telephonic interview. And when that happens, you kind of lose a track of what you were saying, and then you either take pauses or use filler words while you try to catch your thought. The only way to avoid this is finding a spot and taking you phone there. Another tip for avoiding filler words is to prepare for your interview ahead. Read up on the topic and conduct mock interviews to prepare for the kind of questions you might get asked. When you know what you need to say, chances are that you won’t be using filler words.

Be prepared and give your best – that’s the only way of acing a telephonic interview. All the best!

- By Chander Madan

Related topics:

1. How to introduce yourself impressively in an interview?

2. Smart Answers to Tricky Job Interview Questions

3. Smart tips to succeed in an interview

4. How to conduct an ideal interview conversation?

5. Simple tips to ace a job interview



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