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Shameless Self-Promotion Is a Good Thing in Job Interviews


Unless you're a full-blown narcissist who loves to talk about yourself all the time then chances are that job interviews make you a little uncomfortable. New research published in the Journal of Applied Social Psychology suggests that an abundance of self-love might just be the key to impressing interviewers.

In most social settings it's generally frowned upon to say a bunch of nice things about yourself, but in job interviews it's not just expected, it can help you nail down the job. Most people tend to back down their self-love when they're challenged by an interviewer, but narcissists actually ramp it up a bit. Researcher Peter Harms explains:

When feeling challenged, [narcissists] tend to double down. It's as if they say 'Oh, you're going to challenge me? Then I'm not just great, I'm fantastic.' And in this setting, it tended to work.

It shouldn't come as too much of a surprise that those who can self-promote score better in job interviews, but it's a good reminder that being humble in an interview is never a good idea.

How Do I Love Me? Let Me Count the Ways, and Also Ace That Interview | ScienceDaily

Title image remixed from StockLite (Shutterstock).