Bài đọc 2
I will never forget my first job interview. I was twenty-two, had just graduated in economics, and was applying for a position as a junior analyst at a bank in Ho Chi Minh City. I had spent a whole week preparing, and I was sure I was ready. I was not.
The problems began before I even entered the building. I had planned to take a bus, but it was so late that I had to jump on a motorbike taxi in the rain. I arrived ten minutes early, but my shirt was wet and my hair was a mess. While I waited in reception, I tried to dry myself in the bathroom with paper towels and only made things worse.
The interview itself started well. The two interviewers asked about my studies and my reasons for applying, and I gave the answers I had practised. Then one of them asked a question I had not expected: "Tell me about a time when you failed at something." My mind went completely blank. I could not think of a single example, and after a long, painful silence, I said that I had never really failed at anything. As soon as the words left my mouth, I knew it was the wrong answer.
I did not get the job. A week later, however, I received a kind email from one of the interviewers, explaining why. She said my technical knowledge was good, but my answer to that question suggested that I was either not honest about my weaknesses or had not reflected on my experiences. Employers, she explained, are not looking for people who never fail, but for people who learn from failure.
That email was more useful than any book about interviews. For my next interview, I prepared stories about real difficulties I had faced and what I had learned from them. I also left home an hour earlier and took an umbrella. I got that job, and I have now worked there for six years.
Today I sometimes interview graduates myself. When nervous candidates struggle with a difficult question, I remember my own disaster and try to give them a moment to think. And I always tell them that their first interview does not have to be their best.