Most of the time, the problem is not the number of jobs available, or the industry you work in, the problem is YOU!

There are certain common interviewing mistakes that everyone knows to avoid. Some of the common mistakes we all know about include giving a great handshake and maintaining good eye contact, etc. However, those mistakes are NOT the primary reasons job seekers aren't getting job offers or promotions.

In 16 years of job development and recruitment, I can't think of one single person who did not get hired because he gave a poor handshake.

Here are 3 of my 25 INTERVIEW MISTAKES to AVOID:

1. Before Your Interview: Make sure you do not arrive at your interview 1-2 hours before the scheduled time without getting permission from the hiring manager. When you arrive at an interview 1-2 hours early, you are getting off to a bad start!

Here's Why: You are forcing the hiring manager to change his schedule to accommodate you. Think about this, no one wants to have someone sitting in their lobby for hours waiting to be interviewed.

Also, arriving this early could be misunderstood as having poor time management skills. The last thing you will want the hiring manager to think is that you do not have good time management skills. Pay careful attention to this if you are applying for a management position.

2. During Your Interview: For the most part, people tend to hire who they like. If you are able to get the interviewer to really like you, and enjoy talking with you, you will greatly increase your chances of getting hired.

Avoid talking too much, being arrogant or boring. Engage in a conversation with the interviewer, and if you feel comfortable enough, ask him questions about his work history or his feelings about his company. You can gain a lot of valuable information by doing this.

3. After Your Interview: Did you know that it is perfectly fine for you to check your own references? That's right! Call your references and ask them what they are going to say about you.

People like to believe that everyone will have something great to say about them. Believe it or not, almost 20% of job offers are either retracted or not extended at all because of bad references!

Take heed! Even though employers are required to only verify employment, they say and do a lot more! So, check your references and make proper adjustments.

What's the point of going on interviews if you are going to continue to mess up? There are a series of different mistakes made by job seekers in professional and non-professional categories.

The professionals or executive level job seekers struggle quite a bit with interview mistakes involving personality issues, arrogance, and a lack of effort on their part to set up interviews for themselves.

The non-professionals tend to make interview mistakes centered around their appearance, ability to sell themselves, poor follow up, and yes... not setting up interviews for themselves.

4. BONUS Interview Tip: One of the most effective strategies to getting a job fast is arranging your own job interviews. It is so important for job seekers to be aware that they have to take the initiative and learn how to set up interviews for themselves. At all times, always be open to getting help during your job hunting process and seek counsel from experienced professionals who care about your success.

Be wise when deciding which recruitment firm to use, and which career counselors to take advice from. It's time to learn from others' mistakes and get hired or promoted in record time!

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