How You Can Gain Confidence Before Your Internship Interview

When you're confident in an internship interview, other people can't help but notice. Your confidence radiates outward, and it blasts your interviewers in the face like the bright glow from the sun. 

There aren't many better feelings in the world than feeling confident. 

Because your confidence is so noticeable by others, it's especially important to improve your confidence as you head into an interview. So, as you prepare for your tech internship interviews, you should want to consciously think about how you can become more confident.

Plus, being confident at anything will improve your overall performance in that thing.

If you're confident when playing golf, you'll perform better. If you're confident when taking a test, you'll perform better. And, if you're confident heading into an interview, you'll perform better.   

Let's look at three things you can do to take your confidence to another level ahead of your internship interview.

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Be Authentic In Your Internship Interview

It's important to understand who you are and who you aren't. If you pretend to be someone you aren't, it can be easy to fall out of character. 

If this happens, you will come off as a fraud and not genuine.

The best way to avoid this is to be yourself.

Sure, there may be things you have to do for an interview that you wouldn't do outside of an interview settings, but your personality shouldn't change.  

With this said, your personality will most certainly evolve over time. We tend to act very similar to the people we surround ourselves with, so this is something else to keep in mind. 

As for your internship interview, don't pretend to be someone you're not. By being yourself, your interview will be much less stressful. 

Being Nervous Is Normal

First, understand that being nervous is completely normal. Even the most experienced actors, speakers, and athletes are often nervous before a performance or event. 

By understanding that being nervous before an interview is normal, you won't be caught off guard or think you're "different." 

One technique I like to use when I'm nervous is deep breathing. While in the lobby awaiting your internship interview (or out in your car before you head inside), take a minute or two to practice deep breathing. 

If you have an Apple Watch, there is a Breathe app you can use to guide you through the process. Without an Apple Watch, just close your eyes and take about 6-7 deep breaths per minute. 

Doing this will slow your heart rate, and it will ease your nerves. 

Complete Mock Interviews

Practice makes perfect, right? The more you do something, the better you'll become. 

This is why it's so important to find as many opportunities as possible to practice the interview process. 

Whether you reach out to the career center at your college or you're in a professional fraternity that offers this type of service at a career event, you need to go all in. 

Do you know any business owners or hiring managers? Maybe a friend of a friend or a friend of a family member? If so, ask them if they'd be willing to do a mock interview with you. 

The toughest questions in an interview tend to be questions that focus on your soft skills. So, this is why mock interviews will still be valuable even if you have someone non-technical practice interviewing you. 

One final thing on mock interviews...

When you practice, make sure you practice like you want to perform in your real interviews. This means you should dress like you would for your real internship interview, and you should have all of your resources ready (i.e. notebook with a pen, a bottle of water, etc.). 

And, don't treat the mock interview like a joke. You should want to treat it seriously since you'll perform in the real thing the same way you perform when practicing. 

Reduce Stress By Planning Ahead

You ever notice how when you wake up in the morning and have something bad happen, it can ruin the rest of your day? This compound effect of "badness" seems to come once the first bad thing happens.

Maybe you spill coffee on your shirt, you stub your toe on a chair, or you get into an argument with your roommate or a significant other. Any of these things can lead you down a negative path for the rest of your day.

The same type of negative compound effect can happen if you don't effectively plan ahead.

What could possibly go wrong before the interview even starts?

• You could take a wrong turn and end up late for your interview.
• You could forget your notepad and pen/pencil.
• You could show up for your interview at the wrong time.

These are only a few of the many things that could happen.

And, if any of these things happen, it doesn't matter how much you've prepared for your interview, it will be tough (although not impossible) to regain your composure.

Because of this, you should want to minimize the likelihood of any of these things happening by planning ahead. 

• Make a checklist of what to bring to your interview. 
• Double and triple check the time of your interview.
• Give yourself 2x to 3x the time you think you need to get there. If you arrive early, just sit in your car or the lobby and wait.

The Bottom Line

It's hard to be confident when you're not adequately prepared for an internship interview. And, it's hard to remain confident if you show up late or forget to bring something along with you.

So, make a plan to complete as many mock interviews as possible and plan ahead for interview day. 

By doing these two things alone, you'll position yourself for a successful (and positive) interview experience. 

The best of luck in your interview—although, I know you don't need any "luck".