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Most IT professionals are trying to prepare for the challenges they’ll face as they interview for IT jobs.  They prepare for the technical and non-technical questions that their IT recruiters anticipate.  They prepare so they won’t be late for their interviews, even if there’s bad traffic or bad weather.  (Because lateness is a cardinal sin to hiring managers and IT staffing firms).  They practice with family members, friends, or technical recruiters so that their nervousness can’t overwhelm them.  But here’s a challenge that you may not even recognize as a challenge: a very friendly interviewer.

How is a friendly interviewer a challenge?  Your IT recruiting agencies probably won’t warn you about this.  Nor do most tip sheets for interviews.  In fact, this sounds like a nice thing.  The truth is, though, a friendly interviewer can make you feel comfortable enough that you make a couple key mistakes.

One of the worst mistakes you might make with a friendly interviewer is losing your professionalism.  You want to make sure that, while you’re not overly stiff or unpleasant, you don’t forget to be your best, most professional self.  Never curse or tell inappropriate jokes.  Even if you have a great connection with the interviewer, they still aren’t your friend in that moment.  Don’t treat them like a friend.  Treat them like somebody you must impress.

The second mistake, one that IT staffing companies find is easier to recover from, is talking too much and/or getting off track.  Again, this is all about remembering that your interviewer is somebody to impress.  Stay focused in your answers.  Highlight the important points and relay that you have the qualities and technical background to succeed in the job.  When you go off on a long tangent about one thing (especially something irrelevant, like small talk) you are losing time to strengthen your candidacy.  Don’t let a friendly interviewer tempt you to spend 20 minutes talking about your hobbies! It’s important to remember that your IT recruiting firms don’t want you to totally skip small talk.  Some small talk is important because it shows that you are a pleasant, easy person to work with.  But your IT recruiting companies won’t hear that you got the IT job unless you keep your eyes on the prize in your interview.