Recently, I met a professional who was highly capable and experienced in his field, but he said sometimes he goes blank during an interview. So what do you do if you go blank? I will share with you 3 strategies on how to handle this situation.

Strategy No. 1

Ask, “Is it possible if we can come back to this question later?”

Experienced interviewers understand that you may be nervous and answers do not come to mind right away. Ask politely if you can come back to this question later and remember to take a note of the question. Sometimes, the interviewers might forget to come back to the question so I would suggest to only use this strategy once during an interview.

Strategy No. 2

Bring a pen and notebook into the interview.

Ask politely if you can take brief notes during the interview, if required. Most interviewers that I know would be comfortable with this, but ask, just in case. Sometimes interview questions are grouped together and 2-3 questions are asked all at once. After you listen to all the questions, you might have forgotten the initial questions asked. It is very handy to have pen and paper there so you can jot down keywords to help you recall the questions and ensure you answer each question.

Strategy No. 3

Ask the interviewer if you can have 30 seconds to think about the answer.

“I would like to give you the best answer, can I please have 30 seconds to think about this?”

Usually, interviewers understand that sometimes you need a bit of time. I would suggest using this technique once or twice only within an interview. If you use this all the time, it may put you in an unfavourable position.

And for those who think that the question is a challenging one, this technique allows you a bit of time to think about whether your example has the best outcome. The examples that come to mind may not be the right example, so I encourage you to stop, think for a moment and choose the best example.

I am really passionate about helping people succeed in their careers. If you know of anyone who requires interview coaching, or if you are interested, feel free to contact me at leonie@myfocus.com.au.

Why Invest In Interview Coaching?

If you like this article, please click the like button help your network in their careers.

Thank you kindly,

Leonie Lam
Career Advisor | HR Consultant | Trainer