How to Portray Confidence in an Interview — Even if You Are Painfully Shy

John Krautzel
Posted by in Career Advice •


Even shy people need jobs, which is why people who have trouble readily relating to others need to show confidence in an interview. Confidence comes from a variety of factors, including body language, attitude and comfort level with the people around you. Shy people can overcome any lack of confidence with a few tips.

Practice ahead of time to become more comfortable with the job interview. Rehearse your handshake, smile, posture and interview answers until they become second nature. You know you've hit the mark when your responses flow as if you are a seasoned professional.

Ahead of the interview, imagine yourself succeeding. Play the interview over in your mind as a way to generate positive feelings toward the experience. When you think you already have the job, you walk into the room with a confident look.

Focus on one person at a time during the interview. Shy people generally do better with one-on-one interactions as opposed to groups. If you sit in front of several people, focus just on the person who speaks so you feel more comfortable.

Take a deep breath and pause before you answer a question. This does two things. First, it helps you relax. A deep breath also makes it appear as if you thought about your answer before you spoke. While you breathe, make sure you actually formulate your answer in your mind in those few seconds.

Focus on the positives, no matter what question comes up in the interview. A positive attitude goes a long way toward making the other people in the room feel comfortable with your personality.

Sitting up straight in the chair helps your body exude confidence. Sit with your shoulders straight, your feet on the floor and your hands at your sides. This presents your posture as big and open rather than small and closed. Your posture helps people gauge your personality.

Showing confidence to strangers in an interview does not have to become a nerve-wracking burden ahead of your face time. All you need is a little practice and you should do fine.

Photo Courtesy of StockImages at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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  • Nancy Anderson
    Nancy Anderson •

    @Nathan thanks for your great comment. Great idea to "practice" with your friends. Looking at each person as you are telling your story is a great way to learn how to do a panel interview. You never know, when going for an interview, whether it's going to be with one person or several. Many times I have gone to an interview expecting to just talk to one person only to find out that I am interviewing with three. Of course maybe it's best that the company didn't tell me that because it would have caused more interview stress and anxiety. Another idea for you is to video tape yourself. Have one person record while another asks you questions. This could be a great eye opener! I know it was for me. I speak with my hands and that's all you could see in the video were my hands moving as I was explaining something. Very seldom do I speak with my hands now. So it's a learning process. Best of luck on your next interview.

  • Nathan L.
    Nathan L. •

    Shouldn't only focus on one person. Best practice is to at least glance at the other people in the room who are also listening in. This is a way to really show confidence, even if you're shy. You can practice this when talking with friends. When it's your turn to tell a story within a group of friends, listen to yourself speak and keep doing this to get comfortable with how your voice sounds when you have the floor / spotlight and no one else is talking. This was the hardest thing for me to get past, but these things helped and now some say I'm over confident.

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