The Historical Thesaurus of the Oxford English Dictionary (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
I love to interview candidates. So when a friend asked me to help her with some open positions, I was happy to pitch in my time.
Granted, the positions we were trying to fill weren’t rocket scientist positions, but I noticed a trend with every candidate I talked to. When asked to give me three words that best describe themselves, the most prevalent answers were, “outgoing”, “friendly”, and “fun”. Throw in the word “like” used after every other word and it was enough for me to draft this blog. Excuse me a moment while I retrieve my soapbox.
To all the job seekers out there: REMOVE THESE WORDS FROM YOUR INTERVIEW VOCABULARY!
Outgoing
Probably the most over used word by candidates when asked to describe themselves. Of course you’re outgoing. If you weren’t, you probably wouldn’t be sitting in the interview. To tell the interviewer that you are outgoing is like telling them you breathe oxygen. It requires absolutely no thought at all and really tells us that you are incapable of creatively describing yourself. Whomever told you to always use this word to describe yourself has given you bad information and you should repay them by slapping them across the mouth. Instead try using “extroverted”. At least we’d know you put some thought into that one.
Friendly
Definitely one of the second most over used words. It ranks up there with, “hard-working” or “loyal”. Dogs are friendly and loyal. Are you a dog? No? Then don’t compare yourself to one. Instead try “sociable” or “neighborly”.
Fun
Not exactly a word an interviewer wants to hear. You may be fun with your friends outside of work, but to tell the interviewer you’re fun is the same as saying, “I like to goof around a lot.” We don’t care if you are fun. We only care if you are the right fit. In most cases, being fun isn’t a criteria in the job description. Instead try “witty” or “pleasant”. At least we won’t think that you’re planning parties during your orientation.
Like
You know, like, when you hear someone, like, speak and they like really keep using the word like, as like a way to like convey a thought or like something to it? OMG! If this doesn’t scream, “I’m really immature and don’t have a basic comprehension of the English language”, I don’t know what does. Seriously, this is a problem. If it’s nerves causing you to add the word “like” after every other word, then you really need to practice in front of a mirror before you speak to anyone or just stop talking altogether. “Like” shares the space with “ya know” and “um” as the most used words to fill gaps of awkward silence during a conversation. If you went through speech class in high school or college and still use these words in every sentence, I would strongly suggest you get your tuition or tax dollars refunded. There are no words to replace them. Remove them completely and get comfortable with the fact that it’s okay to have silence during a conversation.
The Rant 