Does The Early Bird Really Get the Job?

You may have landed that job if you interviewed at 9 a.m. this morning. What’s so magical about 9 a.m.? Nothing, really. But if you are a morning person, you are probably the most alert, charming, and energetic at that time of day, and it will come through in the interview. If you can barely drag yourself out of bed before 10 a.m., however, the 9 a.m. interview time slot can sabotage your best efforts to stay awake and put together a coherent sentence.

Everyone has his/her own body clock, ticking away, and that includes you and the interviewer. Your daily schedule is very different from the busy, overworked hiring manager bouncing from meeting to meeting. In addition to her body clock that can influence concentration and energy levels, she has to cope with emergencies, employee problems, clients, budget meetings and anything else the day throws at her. Matching body clocks, energy or stress levels are more important than time of day. When scheduling your next interview, here are five things to consider:

1. What is your best time of day? When are your energy levels high, concentration clear and enthusiasm peaked? If possible, request an appointment at your best time. You can always say you’re not available when you’re at your worst (which is true, because you’ll probably be sleeping!)

2. What’s the traffic like at the time of your appointment? If you get stressed out in traffic or the route between you and the company becomes gridlock after 3 p.m. every day, opt for an early appointment.

3. Look for clues that reveal your interviewer’s best time of day. If he rattles off a list of meetings or appointments in the afternoon, groans, and then suggests he squeeze you in at the end of the day, make your apologies and suggest another time. Matching your peak energy levels may energize the interview as well.

4. To Eat or Not to Eat. If you get a buzz after your morning latte and then crash two hours later, an 11 a.m. interview could be a disaster. A trip to the Olive Garden for the endless pasta bowl may put you to sleep just in time for your 1 p.m. interview. Food and beverages can affect your body chemistry. A growling stomach can be just as distracting as a carbohydrate induced stupor.

5. Never on a Monday (or Friday)? Monday’s at the office are usually catch-up from the last week. On Fridays, people are scrambling to accomplish all those things they didn’t get done during the week. Body clocks side, the normal stress of those days may be a huge distraction and make it difficult to make a positive, lasting impression.

When do you like to schedule an interview and why? Let me know in the comments.

Mary Nestor-Harper, SPHR, is a consultant, blogger, motivational speaker and freelance writer for phillyjobs.com. Based in Savannah, GA, her work has appeared in Training magazine, Training & Development magazine, Supervision, BiS Magazine and The Savannah Morning News. When she’s not writing, she enjoys singing Alto II with the Savannah Philharmonic Chorus and helping clients reinvent their careers for today’s job market. You can read more of her blogs at phillyjobs.com and view additional job postings on Beyond.com.