By Goretti Kimani
A story is told about a giant that was struck by a nail on the foot. He bragged about how big and powerful he was, and how harmless the tiny nail was. He continued on his journey only to collapse after sometime in pain and exhaustion amid loud jeers.
This fable is true of many job seekers today. Ignorance and lack of attention to detail has cost many would-be successful job seekers their much desired and well deserved jobs and promotions.
Many people take great care of the seemingly serious things before and during a job interview, while disregarding the little but extremely important issues. Though no one is likely to comment on many of these small mistakes, the damage to your image is unquantifiable, and often irreparable.
Accompanying tie
For instance, having a smart suit is great, but the lack of an accompanying neat shirt and necktie messes everything up. Some people exhibit clumsiness in nearly every area of their life. They will walk into an interview room with muddy shoes and proceed to deposit their filthy load on the spotless clean floor and have no qualms about it. Yet others wear recycled socks to the detriment of everyone’s comfort, especially on a hot tropical afternoon.
Others will not prearrange their documents beforehand and will end up wasting valuable time as they search for certificate or testimonial. Yet others will produce creased or even wet documents, and not show any emotion about it. Women are more likely to commit this mistake, especially when they use their handbags to carry documents, rather than have a dedicated folder for the same. Amazingly others carry their documents in all manner of paper bags, including the black ones that make one look more in a market place than at a job interview.
Some men have this peculiar habit of folding their documents into their socks or breast pockets and proceed to give the excuse of frequent pick pocketing for their uncanny behaviour. Others exhibit nasty habits such as nose picking, ear picking and loud yawning. Yet others will belch and spit as they talk loudly during the interview. And others will spot charcoal black finger nails.
Other people exhibit casual time consciousness. They think that they don’t have to apologise for what they assume is petty lateness.
Talking too much
