How to Bounce Back from Job Interview Rejection

Job rejection shock is a hard fact of life. It doesn’t matter how good a candidate you are, one or more rejections are inevitable. Even in good times organizations usually have a number of candidates to choose from and in today’s job market supply clearly exceeds demand.

What are your options now? What do you do when facing rejection? Take these simple steps and come away from the experience wiser and better equipped to manage your next job application and interview.

Contact the employer immediately

Phone or email and ask politely for constructive feedback. Ask questions like, “Where did I fall short of the requirements?”,”Can you give me some advice that will help me with any future applications?” Avoid sounding defensive but rather focus on the future and suggest to the company that they can assist you by providing you with honest feedback. Listen carefully to their answers, thank them for their time and input and make good use of their advice.

Conduct an audit of your job interview keeping their feedback in mind. Ask yourself these questions:

Did I do my homework ?

Did you find out sufficient information beforehand about the organization and the job. Did you know all about the job you were interviewing for – the tasks, responsibilities, skills and abilities it involved?. How much detail did you have on the organization? Did you know your strengths, weaknesses, selling points, suitability? Was the position a good fit with your skills and abilities?

Did I make a good first impression?