How do you avoid getting interview burnout?

Anonymous

January 12,2022 at 7:22PM UTC

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How do you avoid getting interview burnout?

I'm in the process of job applications (the startup I was working for didn't get funding, so I've got a month to find a new job before my salary runs out...) and I've been lucky enough to land a few initial interviews. While I used to do hours of extensive work and research before interviews, now, when I get another one for a job I'm not super passionate about (but that is a job) I'm getting close to winging it... It's just demoralizing to put in all that time, over and over again, for a 30 minute zoom call (where they spend half the time telling me stuff about the company that I meticulously researched already!) and then wait weeks to hear how it went, all the while doing it all over again for another one... Any tips on how to keep it fresh, and to keep my attitude positive?

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Gina VegasJanuary 12,2022 at 8:29PM UTC
I think what your should do is lay down what and how you want your demands met and don't give anything until they are met
Valerie CurtisJanuary 12,2022 at 10:42PM UTC
Unfortunately, there are a lot of unprofessional "professionals" in roles they are not trained or equipped to do. I can assure you that the recruiters on the other side are sing the same song about feeling like a parrot. Hence, the Great Resignation.
Eva SteortzJanuary 13,2022 at 3:22AM UTC
Keep it fresh: Change up your research strategies. Don't always just read the website and annual report for instance: look for executive interviews on YouTube or google the company name plus "news" and read recent articles. If it's a role you are super interested in, try networking on Linkedin with someone who works there- see if they will give you some insights.
Keep it positive with some reframing: Consider the research you are doing a learning exercise and never a waste of time. Meeting people is never a waste of time. Going for a role you really want is never a waste of time. Practicing your interviewing is never a waste of time.
Good luck. Cheering you on!
AnonymousJanuary 13,2022 at 1:24PM UTC
I found in my recent job search that it wasn't very useful to prepare in-depth for the first interview beyond having a really good pitch for why you are the right person for this particular job, and a couple of good questions about culture and the company overall. My experience is often that the initial 30-minute Zoom isn't even really with the decisionmaker and sometimes not even with the person who can tell me much about what the day-to-day work of the job and the team are. You want to show that you are committed and enthusiastic and have the qualifications they need to make a contribution; if you think about it as wanting to make sure they are interested in another conversation as much as about actually getting the job, that might help.
MARI S PHONASA, CPSM & CPSDJanuary 13,2022 at 4:23PM UTC
I am going through the exact same situation currently.
Thankfully I am working a contract role as a "bridge" employment until I can land my next full-time role and starting to get that "interview burnout" myself. I have gone as far as 2nd and 3rd round interviews, completed a case study for a start-up company only to not be selected. I agree with others who have commented already about reframing your thinking and think of it as wanting to make sure they are interested in another conversation for that next round or considering it as practice, practice, practice. I too get impatient when they are recapping the company overview and/or merely reading from a script. I try to share what I know about their company in my own words, and spruce it up with flare, enthusiasm and curiosity. Demonstrating your desire and excitement of joining their team goes a long way. Boosting their ego by complimenting about something on their website or their core values, or anything also goes a long way. Expressing to them how I would be a good to their team also gives me practice in self-promotion, which I struggle at and continually work towards perfecting. I really liked the advice of changing up the research to other than their website. I too try to find recordings about their company on YouTube, Podcast, Glassdoor, LinkedIN, etc.
Don't get me wrong, there are times when I just wing it and I try to limit it to the roles I know would be a long shot or where I did not meet more than half the requirements. I have been applying non-stop since Oct 2021 and started this contract role Nov.2021.
Keep it up and I wish you the best of luck in finding your dream role.