An interviewer has an impression of you before you sit down. It forms in about a tenth of a second (Willis & Todorov 2006; Todorov, Pakrashi & Oosterhof 2009), and it answers two questions: can this person be trusted, and how strong are they (Oosterhof & Todorov 2008). Your face can speak to both.
The look to walk in with
- A slight closed smile. The same person with a broad smile was rated warmer but less competent than with a slight one (Wang et al. 2017; Li et al. 2021). Against no smile at all, smiling raises rated competence (Reis et al. 1990).
- Eyes fully open. More open upper lids raised perceived intelligence (Talamas et al. 2016).
- Brows not lowered. Faces that merely resemble anger are judged less competent as well as less warm (Zebrowitz, Kikuchi & Fellous 2010).
- Chin level. Level faces were rated best or equal as leaders; a chin tipped down cut trust (Torrance et al. 2020).
This is the competent look. For a role built on trust, use trustworthy: a mild smile that builds slowly.
The greeting
Smile as your eyes meet, and let the smile build. In a mock job interview, a smile that built and faded slowly was rated higher than the same smile switched on fast, which did no better than no smile (Krumhuber et al. 2009). A quick lift of the brows with it is how people greet each other at the start of contact (Grammer et al. 1988).
While you listen
- Look at their eyes for about 3 seconds at a time, then glance to the side, not down (Binetti et al. 2016; Mason, Tatkow & Macrae 2005). More eye contact read as more credible and more composed (Burgoon et al. 1985).
- Do not let your chin drop while you think: tipped down, the face reads as dominant (Witkower & Tracy 2019).
- Blink without hurry: more blinking read as more nervous (Omori & Miyata 2001).
When you make your case
A raised chin with a small smile reads as pride in something earned; without the smile, the same head reads as superior (Tracy & Robins 2007; Mignault & Chaudhuri 2003). Use it for the sentence that needs it: confident.
On video, and across cultures
What counts is the angle against the line from your face to the lens. A laptop on a desk looks up at you, which is the same as raising your chin; a phone held high looks down at you, the same as lowering it. Put the lens at eye height. More in video calls. Where smiling makes a face look less intelligent, as in Japan and South Korea, keep the smile faint (Krys et al. 2016): by region.
Practise before the day
Open How I Land and choose “competent” after “Be seen as”. Your camera shows your face with the look drawn on it, and one instruction at a time tells you what to move. When it fits, hold it for five seconds to remember the position.
Free. Nothing is recorded, stored or sent.
Your face is one part of an interview. It does not replace the rest, and it cannot promise an offer.