<p>OK, it seems that when an employer picks up a resume with 2 Masters degrees from top universities in technical subjects, they assume that the applicant is a complete genius. Then they invite me for an interview and are sorely disappointed when I cannot think on my feet, at least to their standards, despite even my best efforts at an extensive preparation.</p>
<p>I graduated from High School with a 3.9 and 2190 SATs. I basically sacrificed my free time to receive the best grades and test scores I could. Being as someone who suffers from ADD, I’ve probably easily spent at least 2 or 3 times more hours than the average person with similar stats. </p>
<p>My study habits and work ethic got me through college and graduate school and earned me a respectable resume, at least for entry level positions. Although the economy has been quite a challenge, I’ve been able (or maybe just lucky) to score an occasional interview every other week or so since graduating in May.</p>
<p>I’ve not fared well in most interviews where I’m expected to answer difficult questions (esp. technical questions, despite my technical degrees) on the spot. Even having read many books on interviewing under the sun and practicing countless brain teaser questions, I always seem to lock up. I’ve probably been on 20+ interviews this year and have not been extended an offer (yet), with maybe half of them due to my “inability to think on my feet.”</p>
<p>Does anyone have any advice how to improve my interview skills especially when being put on the spot?</p>
<p>Do you have a friend or a relative who is a professional that might be used to giving interviews? Perhaps you could ask them if they had some free time to do some “mock” interviews with you, asking you difficult questions right off the bat to give you some practice.</p>
<p>Do you have a difficulty with public speaking as well? You might want to look into something like Toastmasters or another function where you’d be force to speak in front of other people, often times with minimal preparation.</p>
<p>I don’t have any easy answers. I now work in a field where thinking on my feet is required and I do it pretty damned well but it was a trait acquired over years of evolution as a person, not something that could be picked up in a week’s coaching or reading “Thinking on Your Feet for Dummies.”</p>
<p>A lot of times it’s not so much thinking on my feet as it is reading the conversational cues and understanding where someone is going before they get there. </p>
<p>Thinking back, sometimes you have to start talking before you have the complete answer, feeling your way along as you go…you may not be able to do that. Being candid and, if you have to pause, say “Let me consider that for a moment.” Overly deliberate may not click with some people but it’s probably better than ineffectual.</p>
<p>Even if the questions are technical in nature, the process is a lot more social than you might think at first.</p>