If you are a final year student reading this, you shall be indebted to me for writing this post. If you are a recruiter reading this, well…This is why I haven’t revealed my real, unemployed name on my blog. Final year students are looked upon by their faculties as people who know their responsibilities, won’t do anything to tarnish the reputation of their colleges, will grab hefty pay packages which add on to the glowing record of the placement committee.

Now, it’s not an easy job when the placement coordinator, your parents, your seniors, your friends, your neighbours (one going through a nasty divorce and one in jail for stabbing one of his colleagues....wow, if they had been nicer to me when I was a kid, maybe I could have fought their cases!!) throw free advice at you, even if you don’t want them. Like:

1)      Smile, but don’t smile showing your teeth. Just stretch your lips slightly. But don’t beam. Or don’t grin. It should come from the eyes, not from your teeth.

2)      Don’t fiddle with your hair. Don’t rub your nose. Body language experts say that means you are lying or you aren’t completely sure of what you are saying. Don’t shift in your chair. Don’t change your posture. Don’t nod a lot. Just shake your head slightly.

3)      Don’t blink a lot. If they offer water, take it, but don’t gulp loudly. If you have a cold, don’t sniff.

4)      Be polite. Greet everyone with a ‘Good Morning’. Check your watch, if it is good morning or afternoon.

5)      If they ask you, your reading habits, don’t tell them you read Mills and Boons, the Twilight saga or Harry Potter. (Now, this is too much)

6)      Don’t make fun of your faculty with them (???)

7)      Don’t discuss what they asked inside, with your batchmates. Lie to them.

8)      No need to take up a job outside your hometown. You can save the rent and food by staying at your hometown. (And who is going to earn and become independent? My father-in-law??)

9)      Don’t message in front of them (WHY? WHY? WHY would I want to jeopardize my own career by forwarding Rajnikanth jokes to people during my interview ?)

10)  Don’t tell them you blog and crack jokes (I have proudly said I blog, and even cracked jokes with the panel- Yes, if the panel looks strict, you must sober down- but both were well appreciated by them!!)

What do people think? You are just going to get in the room, jump on the table and do belly dancing? You becoming a lovesick, brainless loser if you read Twilight? Or you are a kid if you read Harry Potter? You are so stupid that you are going to rant about your college problems or your hostel toilet which leaks sometimes? The most rotten advice I’d gotten was to take the side of the company I am representing even if they are doing something which is very harmful to the public. My argument was that I can take their side, but I would also try to look for some other options which would not harm the public in anyway. India has a lot of population, but this is no excuse to harm people and mint money.

I’m one for becoming completely honest and being yourself when it comes to interviews. What’s your take?