I have had my fair share of awkward interviews. The one that stands out most in my mind was a group interview. Nine other interviewees and I showed up to the designated coffee shop at the tail end of winter. My mom had just dropped me off and I was dressed in my nicest and most professional skirt and dress shirt, ready to blow everyone away. Then the interviewer announced that we were to travel a ways down the rode to a park for the interview. It had just started to drizzle and there was still a little snow on the ground. I had to carpool with another girl to get to the location and then shiver at the picnic table we all sat at for the interview. After refusing it a couple times, I finally gave in an accepted my interviewer’s jacket. Needless to say between my teeth chattering and guilt over making my interviewer freeze I didn’t think I would get the job. However, I did! My bosses later said that me being such a trouper and making the extra effort really made me stand out.
Sometimes interviews are not just hard for interviewees, but for interviewers as well. It is very likely you will end up in an interview with an inexperienced or taciturn interviewer. Handling something like this can be very intimidating but Lifehacker writer, Lily Zhang, gives us some tips to navigate the awkwardness and get a bad meeting back on track.