working title

Interviews

Filling out applications and sending in resumes becomes a form of habit. It doesn’t take much skill once you’ve got it down. It’s just lather, rinse, and repeat. The only anxiety that comes with the application process is the waiting to see if you’ll get a phone call or email asking for an interview. If you do get that communication, then the real anxiety sets in, knowing you have to meet with someone and either wow them into giving you a job or fail miserably. It seems those are the only options in your mind when you’re in the job search process.

The conundrum of an interview is that you want to present your best qualities while hiding your worst, but you can’t really lie. If you falsely represent yourself, you could get into a lot of trouble later (for instance, you claim to be bilingual to get a call center job, then scramble to learn French in a weekend. Not a good sign.) You wrack your brain trying to come up with every possible question you might be asked, and interviewers know this. They’ve worked hard to come up with new original questions that are supposed to trick you into exposing your real personality.

I hate interviews.

I need to explain that I’m an introvert, and I’ve actually begun explaining this at interviews. The problem is, most Human Resources people and those in charge of deciding whether or not someone gets hired, are extroverts. Simply put extroverts do not understand introverts. They think there is something wrong with someone who is not outgoing and talkative. In most situations they feel the need to “correct” this defect in an introvert.

They’re wrong.

Being an introvert is a personality type, not a flaw. Some people get energy from being in social situations, talking to others give them a charge. For introverts, the opposite is true – we recharge by spending time alone. Being overly social is exhausting to us. It’s not that we can’t be friendly or social; in many cases, we can be quite social. We just need some downtime, too, and often we can be quiet in social situations.

Being an introvert and being shy are not the same things. Because I am introverted, it doesn’t mean that I can’t be aggressive. This is what I feel I need to explain to interviewers, because in the past, I’ve represented myself as being outgoing and talkative, and then after one day on the job, coworkers find that not to be the truth. Honestly, I need to get to know someone first, then they won’t get me to shut up. Seriously, ask my husband! He’ll tell you how when we first met, I barely spoke, but now he wishes for some peace and quiet.

As an introvert, I am not naturally good at small talk. This is something I have had to work on for years. During an interview, I answer a question as succinctly and accurately as I can. I’m not good at rambling, and I don’t see the point in giving multitudes of examples to explain what I mean. If I say I’m efficient and good at multi-tasking, I don’t see why I have to explain what that means or give examples.

My husband often suspects that I have Asperger’s Syndrome. I just don’t understand why the world needs to make itself so complicated.