Expert Interview Coaching: Mindset and language skills for your next job interview

Welcome 

Why I Launched My Interview Coaching Service

Welcome to the first blog for my new interview coaching service! I created this service because most interview coaching available today doesn’t go far enough to help you secure the role you’re aiming for. My approach is unique—focusing on the critical elements often overlooked, empowering you to perform in high-stakes interviews.

So, What’s Missing in Typical Interview Coaching?

Many coaching services recycle freely available advice, like STAR techniques or competency-based question frameworks. While rehearsing answers or refining your CV can help, they miss two vital components: mindset and language. When you’re invited to an interview, the employer already believes your skills and experience are a potential fit. I’ll assume you’re qualified for the role—if not, the interview is likely a waste of everyone’s time.

That said, having the right experience isn’t enough. Preparation is key, but it’s about practicing the right things. Let me share a personal story: for years, I struggled to improve my golf game despite hours of practice. The problem? I was practicing the wrong techniques. Then, I attended Pete Cowan’s golf school in Sheffield, UK, where the focus was on body mechanics in the golf swing. Pete Cowan is one of the world’s top golf coaches. My game transformed rapidly by having the key insights and practicing the right things. In this regard interviews are no different—practicing generic responses won’t cut it. You need the right strategies to produce the right result.

Interviews Are Like First Dates

Think of an interview as a first date. You need to dress appropriately, highlight your best qualities, show interest in the other person, and make a lasting impression. But here’s the catch: you’ve got to relax and enjoy the process of meeting someone new. At a first date you’re evaluating whether this is someone you’d like to get to know and spend more time with. Interviewers aren’t just evaluating your skills—they’re judging whether you’re someone they can work with, trust, and rely on day-to-day.

Consider this: would you trust a doctor or solicitor who seemed nervous or overly arrogant? Probably not. Now, think about the qualities that draw you to others—calm confidence, assuredness, authenticity, and approachability. These are what make you stand out in an interview. It’s not about perfection; it’s about being on-point and the best version of you.

Like it or not, an interview is a sales interaction. You’re selling your experience, ideas, and potential to enhance the organisation’s success. Don’t be put off by this—selling doesn’t mean being pushy. My philosophy is that the most effective salespeople are understated, genuinely invested in success of others, and able to demonstrate their ability to deliver results.

Mindset

Your mindset is the foundation of a successful interview. If self-doubt, anxiety, or overthinking clouds your thoughts, projecting confidence or articulating your worth becomes difficult. I coach practical mindset techniques that train your neurology ahead of time and help you stay calm and focused under pressure. These strategies ensure you enter the room feeling composed, ready to tackle tough questions, adapt to unexpected challenges, and recover smoothly if you stumble. For example, visualisation exercises where you mentally deconstruct memories to recall and access detailed information effortlessly and then frame things positively in a pressurised setting. Also, re-imagining past negative experiences so that they no longer serve as unhelpful triggers for nervousness or anxiety (hint - this is a big one for a lot of people).

It’s about unlocking the mental clarity needed to answer tough questions, handle curveballs, and leave a lasting impression. By mastering your mindset, you’ll leave the room feeling as you entered, happy that you showcased your best self.

Language

Demonstrating your value in an interview requires more than reciting achievements—it’s about delivering precise, relevant examples with maximum impact. You should be aligning your ideas with the company’s objectives, and using the right influencing language is a big help: knowing how to engage with the unconscious decision-making processes of the interviewers when presenting your narratives. For example, I teach you to control your delivery—using measured pacing, subtle pauses before key points, and mirroring the interviewer’s tempo to easily build rapport.

My coaching helps you in using language that resonates with interviewers. Recognising the language and phrasing of the business and then utilising this in your own wording will help create the synergy you need for good rapport. Weaving their terminology into your answers goes a long way—e.g., if they prioritise “innovation,” you might describe how you “innovated a process” rather than “improved” it. These simple techniques create synergy, making you appear not just qualified but like a natural fit for their team. By using these techniques, you’ll be able to easily position yourself as someone who brings value to the organisation.

These things ensure your messaging lands.

I hope this is helpful. In future blogs, I’ll dive deeper into mindset techniques and language strategies, and more general tips to ace your interviews.

Thanks for reading.