How do you recover if your interview story doesn't go as planned?

Unfortunately, when we have a job interview and we make mistakes in the answers, it is very difficult to back out. If we realize at the time we can clarify to the interviewer that we have misunderstood the question and thus be able to answer again, but if we realize after the job interview there is no way to correct the situation. There are many candidates and very little time to choose the best one. What I can say is that this will be a lesson learned for the future. We learn more from mistakes than from triumphs. Next time we will write the questions first and respond with serenity and confidence.

Know your story in all its aspects before you go down the road of the interview. You should be able to adapt the narrative to the feedback you are receiving from the interview. Above all, do not lie! I have interviewed people who started to embellish, and as they became excited related they had done work I personally knew was done by others.

Pausing to recoup and remember the point one wants to highlight could help in such situation. If one has already highlighted the key point, then one could pivot to the next point. The ability to quickly redirect and gather one's thoughts is very valuable skill in business operations. It is very easy to get lost in the story so few seconds pause is a good way to redirect focus and get back on track.

You should have a few core messages central to your professional beliefs you can fall back on. One I have used to focus when the interview is going off on a tangent about small issues is "I believe that mission definition is the key. You have to define the mission, what we want to do, and then build the team and training to accomplish this." As you gain experience by having an interview that wondered, think about the line that could have regained focus and add it to your tool kit.

There is nothing wrong with saying something like "do you mind if I refocus for clarity?" or "If I understand the question, you are asking (fill in the blank).

If you bring up a past failure (call it a challenge) try to illustrate the successes this led to between that failure and today. Demonstrate how you have already implemented the lesson learned in your work.

Have the flexibility (and humility) to know the story you are telling may be endearing and engaging or of little interest to the interviewer. Be prepared to exit the story line with a transition or conclusion at any time based on the feeling or feedback you are receiving.

Is your “interview story” the truth? If not, you’re already on the wrong path. Sometimes you chase the bear; sometimes the bear eats you.