Bad interview

I found out about a new position at work and applied for it. I got an interview, but it did not go well.

I heard about the job on one day, did some light Q&A with the team members the next day and then had a technical interview the following day. I wasn't looking for a new job, so I didn't think a technical interview was on my horizon. The interviewer asked if I needed some time, but I thought waiting a day or two would just make me feel more anxious, so I said let's just do it immediately. That was a mistake. A little bit of review would have helped immensely.

The interviewer asked questions about basic things, like object construction and destruction, which I often take for granted when writing code. My focus is often on higher level details, like what would be the next best feature to develop for a client. Reminding myself of the basics would help me on interviews and would also help me write better code.

I also didn't have the right approach for answering questions. For questions that I knew the answer to, I didn't really explain things from first principles well. For questions that I didn't know the answer to, I just admitted I didn't know the answer. I think it would have been better to say something like,

"I don't remember the syntax and rules for this, but if it we assume it worked like this, then we could do this or that."

This would have let the interviewer know that I could think through problems and could move a problem along after googling for minor details. Instead, I allowed myself to get stuck in the mud too many times.

I think the final issue I had was that I simply got tired. I hadn't gone on an interview, or even taken a test, in years. The interview lasted about and 1.5 hours. After about an hour or so of talking, explaining, and thinking, I simply got tired. I felt like giving up on some questions a few times instead of digging deeper and deeper, even if I had more knowledge to share.

I doubt I got the job. That sucks, but that's completely my fault. I think with a little better preparation, I could've done a lot better.

I'm sad that I messed things up, and sad to have to continue on with my current job (I had already begun to daydream about moving on). The positive outcome is that I still have my current job, and learned (the hard way) how to do better on an interview.

Another opportunity will probably arise. I hope I turn this experience into a lesson that improves my interview skills for the next one.