Job Interview and scared to say the least...help!

[wellshivermetimbers]

Tomorrow afternoon at 1pm i have a job interview and i am quite scared. I have had panic attacks for years now and sometimes i think so much about the interview before the day it arrives that i just suffer from the 'expected' anxiety when i am actually being interviewed. This interview is a first for me because it is for a job i haven't applied for. I will tell you the story.

I sign on at the Job Centre every other Thursday and last weeks sign on was just another typical sign on except for one thing. The girl who i saw last week at the Job Centre said there is this new scheme for people who have been out of work for over 6 months (I have been for 18 months). The scheme is that some companies working in conjunction with the Centre can give guaranteed interviews to people but there is no guarantee of a job after. The Job Centre employee there and then phoned a company up, gave them my details and said i have an interview on the 21st (tomorrow). I on the one hand think this is good that the Job Centres are positively trying to find you work but being the sufferer of anxiety i am, i still have concerns.

Concern#1 - Unlike most jobs where you actually seek out the job and read the job description and so by the time you have sent off an application form, you have a solid idea of what the employer is looking for, i haven't got that with this job interview. I know its for an admin position but thats it and i have been left no contact number for the place i am going to be interviewed tomorrow and there is no website for the place either. Through research i know it is an admin job in a care home but thats as much as i know. Therefore usually people are concerned enough when they know what the employer is looking for and have had afew weeks to prepare answers whereas i don't know what i am going to be asked and have only had a week to go through things in my mind. As it interviews weren't hectic enough eh?

Concern#2 I have an issue with travelling on public transport and if i was successful with this interview and started work there it is almost 9 miles away from where i live and is a 2 bus journey. I have had to get off buses after 2 minutes so i am worried about that.

Concern#3 This concern is a general feeling of being overwhelmed by everything. I am finding time is going so fast and it is making me more and more edgy about tomorrow, my travelling and the actual interview itself. I am a 27 year old guy but i admit i am scared.

Can anyone give me any words of help or suggestions before the big day tomorrow? Any tips of how to limit panic would be so greatly appreciated.

My heart keeps skipping beats aswell and that is worrying me aswell as everything else. Is that normal at this time? Half of me reasons with the skipped heartbeats thinking it must be because i am anxious and the other half says my skipped heartbearts happening at this very moment in time will cause me damage...irrational thoughts i do hope!!

thanks in advance people and god bless you all!

Dave
Birmingham
UK

[Veronica H]

:bighug1:Hi Dave...the dreaded 'what ifs' have got hold of you and I promise that the event is never going to be as bad as this anticipatory anxiety suggests it will be.
The employer will be used to the jobcentre referring people in this way and since you have not been given much information and this is short notice, will not be expecting you to be over prepared. Can you look them up on the internet?
Go with the flow in the interview. Stay in the moment and if you feel panic rising then let it flash through you but don't fight it. This is an inner struggle and although we think people notice they rarely do.
As for the bus, take something to distract you...ipod? Book. Take a bottle of water as your mouth will probably get a bit dry. You can do this. Good luck anxiety buddy and let us know how you get on.:flowers:

Veronica

[lonewolf]

I have been there man. This might sound crazy but don't think. Go into it open minded. You know in your heart this would be good for you to do not only if you get the job but the interview itself. If you get through the interview you will feel like you have achived something.

The basic questions will be... why do you want this job. what can you offer. your good points bad points. previous experince. BLAG IT the thing is you dont know them they dont know you, you will have the interview if you dont get the job you most prob will never see them again. Think of it as a good test for yourself.

Think positive and just go for it.

[PoppyC]

Hi
I agree with the previous 2 posts in some ways, however, I also do not think it is fair considering how you are affected by anxiety, to be expected to go along, if it is going to make you feel really anxious.
What about freedom of choice??? Its fine if you found a job yourself that you felt that suited your capabilities and was convenient for you to travel to, but to be given any old job to get you off benefits, in my opinion is wrong. You have worked previously - it is not like you have never worked and just claimed benefits all your life without any valid reason not to work. You need time to prepare properly for the interview but that is just me - how I would feel.
What is the rate of pay? Will this position leave you better off working or not, taking into consideration travel expenses?
An admin position in an old peoples care home doesn't sound too bad, but what would happen if it was cleaning toilets for a living???:scared15: - No offence to anyone who cleans - I mean it as in just cleaning toilets only. :unsure:
Are you forced to accept the position should it be offered to you...let me guess if you turn it down for your own personal reasons, then the DWP stop benefit. I can see that it is a good thing in one way - helping people back into work - but what about peoples freedom to choose??? this is more a case of forcing someone into work.
You have a right to find employment yourself and not let someone else make that decision for you. I take it this is just another stupid scheme by the Goverment to make it appear that they are getting people back into work, when in reality all it will be, is you are going along to a job interview, when there may be no chance of work.
The only good thing that can come out of an interview is if you get the job, otherwise you can end up feeling demoralised. That is just my opinion though.
Do the DWP know what you suffer with. Have you just been claiming JSA? not Incap Benefit? or ESA?
Did you tell the benefits advisor about how you feel?
I do feel that the DWP should help people to find work and encourage positively but not to take away the individuals right to choose.
As someone who suffers with anxiety myself, I know it is important to keep pushing ahead and not letting it get to you, but that can be easier said than done. You should not force yourself into a situation if it makes you feel very anxious.
Ok rant over lol
Let us know how you get on. I wish you all the best with your anxiety and getting through the interview.

[Veronica H]

I agree poppy. I presumed that Dave would have no choice but to attend. I hope you got through it Dave.

Veronicax

[wellshivermetimbers]

Hi guys,

Just thought i would give you all a status update seeing as though you have all been so kind with your words of encouragement and advice. I went to the interview yesterday and as per usual it was NOT as bad as one conjours up in their minds beforehand. To me my main concern was walking into the unknown so to speak. I had had no information to go on to prepare for the interview and this was for a very good reason. The girl at the job centre who referred me for this position as i was eligible for it because i had been out of work for over 6 months. The scheme was called the FJF (Future Jobs Fund) and how it works is if you have been out of work for over 6 months, some jobs under the FJF are available for the unemployed. It is, as i assume you have guessed, a joint scheme between the job centre and the government to get people back to work. I went to my 1pm appointment at the proposed location and i got there at 12:30 and was seen at 12:35. It was so casual it made me feel stupid for overthinking and over dramatising the whole thing, Well the girl at the job centre used the word interview and of course, that conjours up the usual anxious emotions in anyone, let alone anxiety sufferers.

As opposed to an interview, i would call it more of an assessment of the skills i have previously gained and whether they would stand me in good stead for this specific admin role i was going for under the FJF scheme. I sat down in a meeting room and across the table from me was another FJF representative going through an assessment with another individual. It wasn't a quick fire set of questions and people studying your body language whilst someone else makes notes and a third person asks you interview questions as is so often the case with job interviews. It was basically just a case of the FJF rep looking through my CV, noting the skills i had and then a simple verification of my national insurance number and that was it.

This information is then passed on to the employers looking to employ new people and then they choose whether they want you to come in for an actual formal job interview based on what they have seen of your skills.

So now i guess i am still nervous when it comes time for the next stage interview if i am fortunate enough to get to that point but doing what i did yesterday, facing what is a huge trial for alot of us panic attack and anxiety sufferers filled me with a feeling of accomplishment and self worth and i was very proud i faced the challenge head on, even with the level of anxiety i was experiencing.

Thank you all for being so kind again and i do hope i can count on you all again if it is needed, as you know you can me!!

God Bless you all

Dave
Brum
UK

[Maj]

Well done Dave, you got through it!! We always imagine it to be worse than it actually is. Good luck with the next stage.
Myra:hugs:

[Veronica H]

:yesyes::flowers::bighug1:Well done Dave. I am glad you made it, and you know where we are if you need a cheerleading squad for the next stage.

Veronicax