Interview Body Language- Tips to Improve

Whether right or wrong, 90% of interviewers form an instant impression about you, subconsciously, the moment you enter the room and take your seat. Impressions regarding your economic, social and educational level, your trustworthiness, how sophisticated you are, chances of success in the job, and even your moral character. This means that you could be selected or rejected within the first five minutes of your interview.

Research has shown that the impression you create is based on the following:

Dressing and Grooming                  55%

Your Behaviour (Body language) 38%

What you Say                                   7%

Given below are tips to improve your interview body language:

1. Eye Contact. Make sure you make good, strong eye contact with your interviewer. Not doing so will mean you are either under- confident or hiding something. If you are still struggling to do so, look between his eyes. He will not be able to tell that you are not looking him in his eyes. Practice on a friend.
2. Smile Once in a While. This shows that you are confident and in control, enjoying the interview process and are basically a cheerful person, someone who will lighten up a department. For this, you need to practice smiling a strong and sincere smile in front of the mirror first and then test it on a close friend.
3. Sit Erect but Relaxed. Don’t appear too relaxed. Don’t sit too erect or it will appear that you are tense and feeling the pressure. Sitting slouched indicates that you are bored or disinterested in what has happening or have a bad body language. Sitting while leaning slightly forward gives the interviewer the impression that you are attentive and interested in what is going on. Practice.
4. Keep an Open Body Language. Don’t sit with your arms folded. If you are a man, sit with your legs slightly apart, palms resting on your thighs or clasped in your lap or resting on your chair’s hand rests. An open body language indicates that you are receptive and listening carefully. Practice with a friend and ask him to tell you what you are doing with each part of your body.
5. Eyes Should Sparkle. Get a good night’s rest. If you make good eye contact but your eyes appear dull and you have bags under your eyes then the whole purpose is lost. This is the most important event in your life. Don’t lose the moment.
6. Show Interest. Show that you are positive. Show that you are actively participating in the interview. Nod your head to show that you are listening and are interested. Don’t yawn, even if what he is explaining is boring.
7. Breathe Deeply Before Interview. This is the best way to relax. You also get more oxygen into your brain to help you think clearly.
8. Take a Sip of Water. Taking a sip of water helps you buy time and collect your thoughts, give you a tiny break and, maybe, even review all your prepared answers. But do it casually, otherwise it could be taken as a sign of nervousness.
9. Handshake. This should be practiced to perfection. A weak, limp handshake, gives the impression of a weakling who is unable to deal with opposition. A very strong handshake gives an impression that you are overbearing, may not be a good listener and may not be too democratic.

 The important thing is to mirror the interviewer i.e copy his body language. You will be able to communicate more effectively because both of you will be speaking the same silent body language. This will place you ahead of all your competitors in the race to get that one dream job.