Trying For A Second Chance After A First-Interview Flop

By Vickie Elmer

You blew it. The interview was beyond bad and yet you know you'd be a blazingly bright hire for the job.

So what do you do if you really messed up on the first interview yet you feel you're well-qualified for the job? Keystone Associate's Pennell Locey tells of a woman who wrote afterward a refreshingly honest follow up: "I walked away from the interview knowing I had not done my best. Here's three things I wish I had said about myself. I would love to have a chance to try again." You have to be very candid, authentic – and very clear on why you deserve a second shot, said Locey, a senior consultant at the career management and outplacement company. The woman ended up landing the job.