Five things to never say during a job interview

As a headhunter, I heard recruiting officials complaining about what they did not like hearing when they were interviewing a candidate.

This applies at all levels, for all types of roles and in all sectors. Here are some key phrases that really discourage employers.

1. Work-life balance is very important

It would be nice to say for someone who is looking for service jobs, blue-collar roles or low-level white-collar jobs (administrators, office roles).

Essentially, jobs with no career milestones, no goals, a serious goal of upward mobility and career progression and not requiring highly committed and long-term staff.

For a waitress job, it would be enough for me to specify the number of hours / days I would like to work, and that would be all. My employer does not care what I do with my free time or my degree of commitment or work, because it is highly substitutable and less complicated work, where many people can play the role and where it does not. There is no shortage of worker roles.

However, for those seeking to create a career and to gain the long-term trust of an employer, especially in the business world, a big disadvantage is to let your employer know that you have already performed a check before even starting work.

For these roles, (1) the competition of candidates is fierce, (2) the requirements and requirements of the role are high and (3) the expected level of commitment of the candidate is equally aggressive.

For a global technology company, for example, there are deadlines and crucial projects that people have to join, and that could change at any time.

If a person does not want to play as a team and sacrifice their balance between work and personal life during difficult times, with project deadlines that are often almost impossible, trade as a whole could suffer. In these roles, a person who cares a lot about work-life balance will simply not fit the business and professional demands.

In roles like mine, sales and recruiting, we need to focus primarily on the career. The balance between work and home life is second only to the needs of the customer and the business.

For the high earners associated with white collar jobs and sales jobs like ours, we can never stop. When we recruit producers or any type of employee into our organizations, we are fleeing those who are not income-oriented and who are more lifestyle oriented.

2. I prefer to do something else

Sometimes employers will ask you what your future will look like.

In answer to a question about long-term career goals, the quickest way to send an employer to the race is to discuss anything other than the career / job / role you occupy. Do not sell against the current role by saying that you prefer to do something else.

For example, a candidate may answer that he wants to experiment, learn and possibly hold another job instead of progressing in the role for which he is being interviewed. Or they could say that they would like to grow, develop and become a leader in the role for which they interview.

According to you, who is most likely to be hired?

3. The word & # 39; no & # 39;

This one concerns more the mentality of the word "no" than that of the "yes".

Even if you do not know how to do something or if you are not interested in something, an interviewer looks for a candidate with a growth-oriented mindset rather than a limitation. Therefore, this question is more related to the attitude.

If a candidate does not know how to do something, he must still describe his adaptations, his learning, or have done something similar or transferable that will predict the success of his new effort or his new opportunity.

The positive energy and potential that accompany a state of mind of "yes" are also more appealing to most employers who are looking for candidates who accept challenges rather than fearing failure.

4. Too many "we", not enough "I"

In other words, focus on the team's dependence rather than on personal achievements.

Today, companies are looking for autonomous, self-managed and organized teams capable of succeeding in a team thanks to their individual abilities.

So, even though team direction is important, employers want to know how you can succeed on your own and achieve your own accomplishments.

Be careful – in an effort to appear humble, many candidates downplay their personal achievements and individual actions undertaken to achieve success.

Instead of saying "I", they rely too much on "us" because of their personal promotion discomfort. Even if they are really good candidates, they end up selling themselves short.

Conversely, candidates who are really at worst tend to overestimate their abilities and credit, which is why people sometimes have horrible colleagues and bosses in roles they do not seem to deserve.

5. Inappropriate language

This includes hostile, pejorative, pessimistic, arrogant or abusive language. It goes without saying that no employer wishes to initiate an imminent lawsuit.

Jokes about religion, race, sex, sexual orientation or anything that might be a sensitive topic for others, even if discussed casually, will spoil your chances of getting a employment.

The solution is to find business cultures that fit your style. If you like to swear and joke freely, it's easier to work in a sales culture than in a tight and regulated office environment. However, most business cultures will remain intolerant to crossing social boundaries.

As a candidate, even if you have your own agenda, you are afraid to share it, sometimes being too easy to read can hurt your chances of getting a job.

Understand where your employer comes from and your interviewer's point of view. Next, formulate the right strategy for your communication style and attitude.

Choose and rotate the elements of your personality to highlight or minimize to place you in pole position to win.

– Dandan Zhu is managing director and founder of Dandan Global Group.