I once walked into what I thought was a one-on-one interview, but it turned into a panel of five people firing questions rapid-fire style. No introductions, no warm-up—just straight into “Tell us about a time you failed.” It felt more like an interrogation than an interview. I held my ground, but it definitely shook me. Ever had an interview catch you completely off guard?

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The weird interviews I remember were ones where the person interviewing me was totally lackadaisical. There was one where I got the job but during the interview we just made small talk about sports and where we lived and went to school and that sort of thing. The weird part was that I figured I wasn't really in the running for the job so I didn't really focus on it too much myself, I just went along with the pointless small talk. So I was kind of shocked when I got the job, but it all worked out pretty well.

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Sometimes those laid-back interviews catch you off guard, but maybe that’s the point—seeing how you’re just yourself when the pressure’s off. Small talk can tell them more than tough questions sometimes. Glad it worked out for you in the end!

I absolutely hate panel interviews to begin with. I am so sorry that happened to you. They really should have told you that in advance.

Right? Panel interviews are tough enough without surprises like that. They definitely owe you a heads-up.

Even worse than the panel interview is the group interview. I worked for a cmpany that INSISTED on it. (I would do the first interview as a group, then do one-on-one interviews).

One of the upsides of Covid is, it did away with the group interview,

Group interviews always felt like a pressure cooker—awkward and chaotic. Glad Covid put an end to those for a while at least!

Every time there’s a panel interview it throws me off. Great job handling it! Did they call you back?

Panel interviews are a curveball for sure. Glad you handled it well! Did you end up getting a callback?

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