Most interview nerves are not about the questions. They are about the getting there, and the money it costs, and not knowing what to wear. Those are all solvable the night before, and solving them is the difference between arriving ready and arriving rattled.
Bring: your ID, two printed copies of your CV, your matric certificate or any certificates they asked for, a pen, and a small notebook with your two questions in it. Bring the originals and the copies if you have both. Do not bring a bag full of every document you own.
Wear: clean, plain, and a small step smarter than the job itself. For a shop or a warehouse, a plain collared shirt and dark trousers is right. You do not need a suit, and a borrowed suit that does not fit reads worse than a clean shirt that does. Whatever you choose, decide the night before and check it is clean then, not in the morning.
Arrive fifteen minutes early. Not an hour, which is awkward for everyone and leaves you standing outside getting anxious. Work out the route in advance, including how long you might wait for a taxi, and add that in.
Your taxi breaks down and you are going to be twenty minutes late.
What happens: They have spent twenty minutes wondering whether you are coming, and by the time you walk in the lateness is the whole story. In a country where transport fails constantly, the failure is not the problem. The silence is.
What happens: This is the correct move and it can genuinely leave a better impression than arriving on time, because it shows exactly the reliability they were trying to test.
I cannot afford the taxi fare to get there
Ask. Phone or message the contact on the invitation and ask whether an online or telephone interview is possible, and say why plainly. Many employers will agree, especially for a first interview. Some large employers and some government programmes reimburse travel, so it is worth asking whether they do. This is a real problem, not an excuse, and asking is not shameful.
What if I do not own smart clothes?
Clean and plain beats smart and borrowed. A plain t-shirt with no writing, dark trousers and clean shoes is acceptable almost everywhere below management level. Ask around your family and neighbours before you spend money you need for transport, and if you are working with a Department of Employment and Labour centre, ask them, some run clothing support.
I get very nervous and my mind goes blank
Arrive early enough to sit down for five minutes before you go in. Take the notebook out and read your three prepared stories. If your mind blanks during a question, it is entirely allowed to say "give me a moment to think about that" and take it. Interviewers are used to it and it reads far better than a panicked non-answer.
Before you move on
- Pack ID, two CV copies and certificates the night before
- Decide and check your clothes the night before
- Save the contact number in your phone before you travel
Check what you know
4 questions. Have a look at what this lesson asks.
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