Often when you’re in an interview, the pressure is on to perform. Unfortunately, in your excitement to sell yourself, you can forget to be human.

Salespeople will tell you that in order to close the deal, stop focusing on the sale at the end, and start paying attention to the person and the conversation going on in front of you.

What that means is there is more to a good interview than concentrating solely on “appropriately” answering  the questions and trying to get to the end of the interview without messing it up. Karen Burns talks about the need for focusing more on the conversation and less on closing the deal.

You do not want to sound like you’ve rehearsed a speech or a crammed for a test. Rather, as Burns suggests, become a part of the conversation with the back and forth sharing of information.

Trust me, I know that during an interview, your mind is racing. You’re simulataneously focusing on how you’re answering questions, on anticipating questions that might be coming, and on what information you should offer about yourself if asked. However, when I think back on my experience as a job seeker, it’s clear to me that my best interviews were those where I was both at ease with myself and where I engaged in conversation with the hiring manager.

Does that mean you should entirely wing your interview? Absolutely not, but bear in mind that in order to be successful and land the job you want, you need to practice being an active participant in the conversation.

Burns suggests rather than sitting idely while the hiring manager does all of the talking, you should be asking your own questions (interviewers really want to hear your thoughts!) and speaking with confidence. Be mindful of your confidence, though; while you should definitely know the lingo of the job for which you’re interviewing, it’s important to not go overboard. Buzz words are good. Buzz paragraphs? Bad.

Once you are past the initial case of nerves, the conversation should be second nature. Of course you want to sell yourself as best as you can for the job, but you also want to intelligently and confidently communicate with the person interviewing you. The bottom line is that it’s important for you to be at ease because when you are relaxed, you are more focused and able to share information.

Image credit: Jose Rivera