While you wait to hear back after an interview make sure to AVOID doing these 5 things!

1. Checking in aggressively. I know the wait can be VERY stressful and nerve wracking, but giving into those nerves is not a good idea. Make sure to not seem overly anxious and reach out too many times. The first time should be a followup [thank you] (https://www.jobcase.com/conversations/3a2695c7-ced7-5bea-af4e-8789f758e97b) to the employer, and then once more if you haven’t heard back after the given timeline they provided. If for example they say something like, “We will have a decision made in 7-10 days," avoid reaching out again until after the 10th day. This will help you avoid seeming overly anxious and bothersome.

2. Saying you have another job offer when you really don't. Yes you may be eager to move the process along and get a decision, but avoid creating a fake offer hoping that it'll push the employer to move faster. There's a good chance that the employer will tell you something like, "We can't expedite things on our end and don't want to prevent you from taking another offer, so we'll remove you from consideration on our end." Telling the employer that you have another offer won’t necessarily push them towards you. In most cases, it will indicate that you are pressuring them or you just aren't interested. They may call your bluff!

3. You stopped applying and interviewing for other jobs. No matter how well your interview went, no matter how perfectly suited for the job you are, and no matter how enthusiastic your interviewers appeared to be about you, never repeat NEVER assume that you have the job in the bag. Always continue your search until you have a letter of hire that is official.

4. Agonizing and obsessing over the potential job. You keep asking yourself, “Well WHY haven’t they called yet???” If you find yourself replaying the interview over and over and analyzing emails they sent you need to take a step back. It’s hard when we are so close to the finish line, but remain positive and take your mind off of it for a bit. Seek out other opportunities while you wait so you can spread your focus around rather than concentrating (or obsessing) on that one job. The hard part is over so allow yourself sometime to wait and think about your next upcoming job interviews.

5. Disappearing off the face of the earth Employers understand that you have a life. You certainly don’t need to put yours on hold as you wait to hear back, but if you are going to take a trip or be unavailable for more than a couple of days, (and you're at the finalist stage of interviewing) you should let the employer know! Send them a quick email and notify them that you’ll be away for a few days and the best method/times to contact you. Otherwise, you risk them contacting you randomly with an offer or for another conversation, not hearing back, and then they will assume you're no longer interested. They will then move forward with another candidate instead of you.

Wondering why you might not have heard back yet in the first place? Check out [this post] (https://www.jobcase.com/conversations/38bbf4bb-0159-58ad-b80d-1a244e9348da).