And nothing. The hiring manager only sits and stares at the job candidate, not uttering a word. The job candidate waits and sweats. And waits and sweats.

And waits and sweats a little more.

For five minutes, the hiring manager sits and stares and the job candidate waits and sweats.

In another interview, the hiring manager treats the job candidate like a hostile witness he's cross-examining on the witness stand. Every question implies guilt. Every answer provided is put under scrutiny. The hiring manager will yell, invade personal space and ocassionally use a profanity.

Both real-life situations are examples of hostile interviews.

Hostile interviews can be quite unnerving. If you've ever sat for an extended period waiting waited for someone else to speak, it can be quite surreal and nerve-racking. And if you've ever had someone grilling you like you're a captive with information, then you've felt the white-knuckly pressure. In hostile interviews, the hiring manager's job is to make you sweat - and see how you react to their tactics.

How would you handle a hostile interview? Successful job candidates know:

Be prepared. You prepare for situational and other types of interviews. And, if you've read The Daily Machete for any length of time, you've probably also conducted mock interviews to improve your performance. Do the same with hostile interviews. Get people to grill you. Have them act out of accordance with normal professional behavior. By doing so, you will prepare yourself for hostile interviews.

Understand. Hostile interviews are part of the hiring process for some types of jobs. In human services, for instance, staff are often faced with hostile and unruly clients. As such, it almost makes sense for employers to put job candidates through their paces with hostile interviews. By doing so, they're able to better see how prospective employees handle pressure.

Keep your cool. Hostile interviews aren't about you - they're about the job you're applying for and the employer to which you've applied. As such, remember not to take the hostility personally - because it's not. Don't let the hostile nature of the interview cause you to retaliate with anger, nor to respond by cowering in fear. Maintain your composure and understand hostile interviews are part of the process, as mentioned above.

IN THE CARAVAN: Succeed at hostile interviews by preparing, keeping your cool and understand it's just part of the process.