Managing Organizational Behavior 2nd Edition by Timothy Baldwin,Bill Bommer,Robert Rubin

Exercise 15

Minimizing Your Chances of Choking in a Pressure Situation
You are under consideration for the biggest job of your life. You just found out that you have made it to the fi nal three candidates and will be asked to come to the company headquarters where you will be evaluated in a panel interview (multiple interviewers shooting questions at you), a half-hour presentation, and a leaderless group discussion where company executives will observe your performance.
Like any normal person, the opportunity excites you-you want it so much-but the process scares you to death and you are fearful that you will choke and lose your chance. The cold reality is that many people, even superstar thletes, choke in the situations that matter most-so your fear is hardly unwarranted or irrational. You talked with your father and he said, "Hey, don't worry about it, just go and do your best," but that was not very satisfying and does little to calm your nerves. So what should you do to prepare? What type of preparations and strategies give you the best chance of avoiding choking?