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If you鈥檙e not actually interested in winning a project, here are some tips for your next interview.

Go in cold and wing it

Competitors may have taken time to understand who鈥檚 on the interview panel and what they care about, and even anticipate possible questions or concerns. That鈥檚 fine for folks who have time, but why bother when you can wing it instead?

Perhaps an interview team is assembled and briefed on the project scope and its role in the project. Maybe responses were practiced for possible specific questions. But if not, don鈥檛 sweat it. See what happens on the spot.

Sure, it might appear as unpreparedness, but they鈥檒l appreciate that you鈥檙e too busy to really put the work into it. It shows you are in demand and should be taken seriously, because you don鈥檛 have time to do more than grab people and make an appointment.

And if you forget to see where the interview is taking place, just apologize for being late. After all, you鈥檙e busy and they should be lucky you鈥檙e taking time to show up at all!

Be sure to talk a lot

This is really about you and when you think about it, there aren鈥檛 enough hours in the day to say all the things you want to say. It鈥檚 important not to leave any gaps or awkward silences. Keep a steady stream of words coming from your mouth.

If you notice the panel fidgeting, shuffling papers or looking bored, that just reflects poorly on them. Ignore them and keep talking.

鈥淕ood鈥� questions are overrated. So is 鈥済etting to the point.鈥� If it takes a little longer to make a point, well then it takes longer.

They want to hear from you. It鈥檚 a performance, not a dialogue. You鈥檙e not there to make friends or engage them in some aspect of the project that they care about. If they have a question, let them e-mail it to you or set up another time.

Don鈥檛 directly answer the question

Here鈥檚 what I don鈥檛 get: Let鈥檚 say you know what you鈥檙e going to say and even rehearsed it. Then you get a question that is similar but not exactly the one you prepared for. You give your pat answer and then later learn 鈥測ou didn鈥檛 answer the question.鈥� Really?

You can鈥檛 win. If you prepare your stock response, you don鈥檛 get points for preparing. And if you don鈥檛 have a stock answer, you get penalized for preparing. That just supports my point: Don鈥檛 prepare.

Maybe you sat in on a workshop where they told you to 鈥渓isten carefully鈥� to interview questions, and perhaps even repeat them back. How dumb does that make you look?

Maybe someone told you to ask whether you answered the question. But it鈥檚 time to move on to the next question, which you already have an answer for.

Lie if you have to

This might seem like a bad move, but people don鈥檛 really want to know the truth. If you are asked whether you have specific experience with a building product, just say 鈥測es.鈥� You can always do your homework later.

Interview panels are like sharks looking for blood. Don鈥檛 show any weakness or give them any reason to reject you. Sure, there are things you could have anticipated fielding if you had time, but you don鈥檛 have any. Honesty is not the best policy.

Appear uninterested

It worked when you first started dating, and it works with interview panels. The more that you show you鈥檙e not interested, the more interested they become. This may seem counterintuitive, but trust me, your indifference to winning this project communicates confidence and a certain take-it-or-leave-it attitude that owners find irresistible.

The firm that interviewed before you probably communicated how much it understands this project, how it hand-selected the right team and anticipated challenges. Perhaps it even provided some drawings or visuals to show how much they really want this job. But frankly, it鈥檚 just another job. Treat it that way.

Interviews don鈥檛 have to be stressful. If you don鈥檛 prepare, don鈥檛 take them too seriously, make it all about you, fib if necessary and communicate that your time is worth more than anyone else鈥檚, your chances of not winning the next project are outstanding.

Leo MacLeod is a new business coach and a strategic consultant. Contact him at [email protected].