7 Important Tips to Speak Eloquently during a Job Interview

Understandably, lots of candidates get really nervous about their job interviews and they struggle to get the words out and they struggle to create really comprehensive answers that are going to help them to pass their interview.

In this article, you will seven (7) really important tips that will help you to speak eloquently during your job interview and also increase your confidence levels too.

7 Important Tips to Speak Eloquently during a Job interview

Below are those important seven tips on how to speak eloquently/fluently during a job interview:

• Tip 1: Compose yourself before your interview

It is very important that you try to compose yourself before your interview. A lot of people get flustered just before their interview because they are so nervous about what the questions are going to be and how they are going to perform. It is that anxiety that hinders them answering the questions correctly.

It is very important that you compose yourself and you try to calm yourself down. A few minutes before your interview is due to start, whether it’s a face to face interview or online is to take a number of deep breaths in through the nose and out through the mouth before your interview.

This will serve the purpose of relaxing your mind. Your mind need to be as calm as possible immediately before the interview. Take deep breaths in and out through the mouth and do that a few times before your interview starts. It will make a big difference to your performance on the day.

• Tip 2: Slow down Your Responses

This is one of the most important tips that is under use by all interview candidates, and that is to slow down when you are responding to the questions because you are going to be nervous and anxious. There is a tendency to rush through your responses and then you are not going to come across as somebody who is confident and somebody who is composed.

Whenever the interviewer asks you question, pause briefly before you answer it and consider carefully what it is you want to say. Try and slow down your responses and you will come across as someone who is articulate, professional and above all, confident.

• Tip 3: Practice Mock Interviews

This is a very important step that is going to make a big difference to how you communicate with the interviewer during your real interview. That is to make sure you practice a number of mock interviews before the real thing, and you can also practice your answers.

You can get them sounding perfect and this will help you to calm nerves before the interview. It will also help you to articulate your responses in a confident and professional manner.

Make sure you check out those questions and the answers below. Get somebody to ask you all of them, before you go along to your real interview. These questions are:

• Tell me about yourself.
• Why do you want this job?
• Why do you want to work for us?
• Why should we hire you?
• Where do you see yourself in five years?
• How would you deal with conflict in a team?
• Why did you leave your last job?
• What are your strengths and weaknesses?
• What can you bring to the position that others can’t?
• Tell me about a time when you provided excellent customer service
• Do you have any questions for us?

Make sure you check out those questions and the answers and also practice a number of mock interviews before the real thing, how to speak fluently.

• Tip 4: Have an Answer for “Tell me about yourself”

Before you go along to your interview, make sure you have your answer to the question, “Tell me about yourself” already prepared, because by doing so, this will help to increase your confidence levels for the rest of the interview.

The interviewer is going to say to you, tell me about yourself right at the very start of your job interview. If you have an answer already prepared and it is fluent, then it sets you up with confidence for the rest of your interview.

A great way to structure your answers to the common interview question, “Tell me about yourself” is to use the format SEAT as a team.

You start off and you tell the interviewer the skills and qualities you have that are a match for the job description.

• S stands for the skills and qualities you have that are a match for the job description.
• E stands for the experience you have that is relevant to the role. Now, if this is your first job interview and you have no prior work experience, then you can talk about your educational qualifications.
• A is for achievements i.e what achievements have you gained in life so far.
• T is the type of person you are. Tell the interviewer the type of person you are and what you will do in the role if they hire you.

Make sure that you have your answer already prepared for the common interview question, “Tell me about yourself’.

• Tip 5: Do not Expect Perfection

Do not expect to be perfect during your interview, it is not possible. Interviewers will allow for nerves and that’s a good thing for you and that will help you to remain calm and speak fluently during your job interview.

• Tip 6: Avoid One-Word Answers

Avoid one word answers to interview questions. The way that you will be able to build a rapport with the interviewer is to speak more. The more you speak in a controlled and calm manner, the better you will be able to build a connection with the interviewer.

If the interviewer says to you, describe yourself in one word, don’t just say professional, you should say I am professional.

“I say that because I have a track record of carrying out different tasks and projects to a very high standard in previous roles, and I believe this will help your organization because I can come into the position and I can make a fast and immediate impact by carrying out all my duties on time and to the correct standard.”

Make sure you avoid one word answers when responding to the interview questions.

• Tip 7: Have A Plan If You Cannot Answer

At some stage during your interview, there is a possibility that you will not be able to answer a question. If you can’t answer one or two questions during the interview, it is not the end of the world. Try not to worry about it because we don’t want that to impact on the rest of your performance during your interview.

But it is very important that you have a plan in place of what you’re going to say and do if you cannot answer a particular interview question and you have two options;

1. is to ask the interviewer if you can come back to that question later on in the interview, because that then gives you time to consider a suitable response.
2. is to tell the interviewer that you don’t know the answer, but you will get back to them later on in the day once the interview has finished.

This gives you a chance to go home, research your answer and then email the interviewer with your response. Make sure you have a plan in place of what you are going to say and do if you cannot answer a particular interview question.

More Important Tips to Speak Eloquently during a Job interview

Another really important tip that will help you speak eloquently/fluently during your job interview is to only use words that you are comfortable saying. For example, if you are trying to use a word during your interview that,

1. you are not sure what it means,
2. you cannot pronounce it correctly, then avoid using that word.

Use simple words, simple words, to describe your qualities, your skills and your attributes and examples of good words to use, that are easy to pronounce, include

• Professional: You can say that you are a professional person during your interview. Always remember to try and back up your claims with evidence of where you have been professional in previous roles.
• You might decide to say that you are a driven person. You are somebody who learns things very quickly and you can also work at pace within the job role that you are applying for.
• Other really good simple words to use during your interview include the fact that you are a loyal person. You will always represent their brand in a positive manner and you will be a positive role model for their company over the years.
• You could say that you are a hard-working individual, you are innovative, and that you are commercially aware. Being commercially aware is a great phrase to use during an interview. Being commercially aware tells the interviewer that you fully understand that in order for their business to be successful, you need to work to very high standards.

Finally, make sure you only use words and phrases that you are comfortable of pronouncing and using.