Hiring ( or:  staff recruitment ) is not an easy task when you are managing a team. A lot of things await approval for further discussion in the first meeting with a candidate. If you, being the hiring manager are nervous or ill prepared, then many things can go wrong that might cost the job to the prospective candidate.

You can certainly avoid the common mistakes while interviewing which most hiring managers overlook. Sometimes it’s not only the candidate who suffers, it can also be you who might land in trouble if the candidate knows the way out.

Here are some common mistakes that you must avoid while interviewing.

1. Talking too much

Many interviewers easily switch to bragging about their personal life stories, job experience or personal feelings for the company while briefing on the background of the company. At the end of the conversation, the candidate might not have anything to lose but you certainly still do not know anything worth knowing about the candidate.

2. You are reluctant to ask tricky questions

While it’s good to over empathize a job candidate, it is also not worthy to throw only softball questions throughout the interview. This mistake is repeated too often when the candidates are favored for reasons such as possessing a pleasant personality or their physical appearance. It will be better if you start asking the same set of tough questions to all the employees and get some surprising blooper.

3. You easily fall for the “horns effect”

If a candidate arrives impeccably dressed, gives you a firm handshake, and gives you a perfect first answer, you might start thinking about closing the hiring process. This is not always right; you must carefully evaluate each answer and be logical. Many people get swayed with a best first impression. Same goes for the contrary, an ordinary looking candidate might possess superpowers that go unnoticed in the first impression.

4. You invade the privacy of candidates

Never attempt to invade the privacy of candidates. Such questions don’t help you to hire the best one. Questions about children, marital status, family planning, sexual preferences, ethnic background or age never lead to a successful meet up with the candidate.

5. You stress out the candidate

Many hiring managers are accustomed to asking high-tech questions to trap the candidate to assess their emotional intelligence. It is good to assess the EI of candidates while interviewing but too much pressure can frustrate them. Moreover, if you finally select the candidate for the job, he or she might never be able to gain confidence in you because it is you who made the relationship rocky.