when interviewing...

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qwe7791

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I've recently done some mock interviews and discovered that I tend to forget the question after I put thought into answering the question.. I know it's terrible, and I was wondering if anyone has any tips to prevent this. thanks!
 
relax and focus. remember that it's a conversation as much as an interview.

make an attempt outside of interview situations to have conversations and remember questions. probably a good way to do this is to meet new people and try your best to remember their name the first time you hear it. usually people are too nervous or distracted when they meet someone new and don't actually pay attention to their name. practicing that can really help.
 
I've recently done some mock interviews and discovered that I tend to forget the question after I put thought into answering the question.. I know it's terrible, and I was wondering if anyone has any tips to prevent this. thanks!

Maybe you're being a little too long-winded? Maybe your answers are being too complex?
 
Repeat the question in your answer.

+1

This is what I do and what some schools actually expect you to do. Check out UWSOM website on interview tips. Repeating the question is key and will knock off points if you don't do it.

Example:

Interviewer: "tell me about the first time you failed to meet expectations."

Applicant: "the first time I failed to meet expectations? *pause to think about answer* The first time I failed to meet expectations was..."

In this example notice how you actually repeat the question twice. By saying the question aloud before thinking, you begin to focus your mind. After the pause, you repeat the question in the answer to make sure you haven't altered it in your mind.
 
You might be using too much back story before actually answering the question. Try to keep your answer suffice and to the point. I fell victim to this at two different interviews. I started leading up to the answer, not by much, just a few sentences or so, and for some reason a word clicked and I just went in the opposite direction, totally off track. After I finished talking, the interviewer said, "Wow okay, that's amazing, but why *repeated the initial question*?" I joking told him that I did that on purpose and he laughed it off; I then proceeded to answer the actual question. I got accepted 6 weeks later.

But OP, try not to think too hard about the question and get to the point so this doesn't happen when it counts. And if it does happen, it isn't a deal breaker as I'm sure many interviewees are guilty of it as well.

Good luck 👍
 
how often should I repeat the question in my responses because it may seem overbearing if used for every question?
 
Well, I do it for every question. Most interviews are not full of questions. A lot of it is small talk and stuff. Of course every question is not as in depth and would require this. If they ask, "do you play sports" you would just say "I play soccer and ultimate frisbee" and not repeat the question. But the bigger ones I would do it.
 
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