How do you leave a lasting impression on a potential employer during a job interview that goes beyond your work experience? Your self-presentation holds the key to the solution. Body language is extremely critical in job interviews. How you carry yourself can say a lot about what image you will cast in the workplace.
Use these positive body language tips to set yourself up for job seeker success and land your next opportunity.
Importance of Positive Body Language
Psychologist Albert Mehrabian’s research is widely referenced when discussing how critical body language and nonverbal communication are in our interactions with others. Mehrabian pointed to three crucial elements that affect how others see us:
- Body language accounts for 55%
- Tone of voice accounts for 38%
- Spoken words account for 7%
With Mehrabian’s research revealing body language as the top indicator of how we are perceived, keep these following tips in mind during interviews.
Positive Body Language Tips
1. Don’t slouch.
Having poor posture is not only bad for your body, but it’s bad for your interviews. It gives the impression that you are lazy, uninterested, and bored. Make sure you sit up straight with your shoulders relaxed. This shows you are alert, attentive, and involved in the conversation.
Along with great posture, make sure you’re sitting properly. It’s good to sit up straight with your legs or ankles crossed or with both feet planted on the floor with legs together. Your hands should be placed in your lap or on the table with your fingers intertwined. If you’re not used to sitting this way, practice in the mirror so it becomes second nature to you in the interview process.
2. Make eye contact.
Wandering eyes distract interviewers. When you listen to someone, make sure you maintain eye contact with them but avoid being aggressive by staring them down. Demonstrate your attentiveness by nodding your head to show you’re listening. If you glance down while jotting notes, make sure to reconnect by looking up often. Making eye contact helps you gain trust while letting the interviewer know you are engaged in the conversation.
3. Don’t fidget.
It’s important to control your nervous habits such as toe-tapping, fidgeting, finger-tapping, or wiggling. These are obvious signs of nervousness, but they can also be very distracting. Also, you want to exhibit signs of confidence. Interviewers understand that candidates may be nervous during interviews, but they also want to know that you can pull it together. To help calm your nerves, try taking a few deep breaths before you go into your interview or even if you’re already in the room.
What if your interview is remote?
Positive body language is still important for virtual interviews. Read this Express Blog article, How to Avoid Costly Mistakes in Virtual Interviews, for tips regarding body language for virtual interviews.
Practice Makes Perfect
Remember, your words aren’t the only thing speaking for you in an interview. Your body language can be louder and sometimes it says what you don’t mean to say. So, practice these tips the next time you’re in an interview and see the difference it makes. You’ll feel more confident and project your professionalism.
