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Does it really matter which day of the week I go on a job interview? In a word .. absolutely. Let me repeat that just so we're clear. Which day of the week you go to a job interview matters a great deal. Let me ask you this. What frame of mind are you in on any given Monday morning? I thought so, and it took you about a nano second to know your answer. Unless you're the workaholic who's been waiting for Monday to arrive since you left work on Friday, you're just like the rest of us, the Monday blues is a very common human condition. You simply are not sharp on Monday, and neither is the interviewer. It's simply being human, a programmed behavior pattern long since scientifically proven to be amazingly accurate. Friday is also equally bad. You may be in a great frame of mind on Friday, but again the interviewer may not be totally there mentally. We're all just a little distracted on Friday. And that distraction makes for a bad interview. If I'm interviewing you, you want and deserve my 100% attention. The interviewer's brain left the building, and is on weekend time, again a human behavior. Just because I'm in a good mood on Friday doesn't always translate to a good interview.

The best days of the week for anything business related, are Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Monday and Friday work well only when dealing with people we already know and have a strong working relationship with. Otherwise avoid Monday and Friday where possible.

In my years as a broadcast executive, I would never schedule these interviews on Monday, as I had too many of my own fires to put out, and I knew I would not be up to the task of a good interview session. I never booked Friday's, as it was my floater day to tie up loose ends etc. Conducting a good interview is hardly a loose end!

Any time you are given a choice, always pick Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday. And the best of all days is by far Thursday afternoon. Again human conditioning. Tomorrow is Friday, as a result, I'm in a great mood Thursday afternoon.

All of this is psychological I know, but we are all human beings, and thus all affected in a similar way. Whether you are the interviewer or interviewee, we are all equal when it comes to how we react to which day of the week it is. You say, none of this is very professional, and I'll agree with you, but I'll bet you'll avoid Monday interviews from here on in.

Best Always,

Mike Perras, P.Mgr

Mike Perras is a former broadcast executive, freelance journalist, business consultant and college teacher. You can write to him at mikeperras@hotmail.com or visit [http://www.extremelistening.com] for more Job Search tips. If you would like to share this article with others, please feel free to do so.

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