Robert de Niro on Interviewing

Attitude is everything when it comes to a job interview. Somehow with job interviews the harder you try, the worse they turn out. Not sure why that is. But if you try too hard, it comes across as you are trying too hard. Companies can smell a disingenuous candidate a mile off, so relax and enjoy it.

Several years ago I read an article in a magazine about celebrities and their Big Breaks -- when they got them, how they recognized them, and how they handled them.

The writer asked Mr. De Niro about his Big Break -- which Mr De Niro said was the audition for the role of Travis Bickle in Taxi Driver (strange, I know, since Mr De Niro had previously won an Oscar for his role in Godfather II).

I'm not a movie buff, but the story goes that every great young actor in Hollywood was dying for the part. And a ton of great actors auditioned. But Mr De Niro strolled in for his audition, read the part, and nailed it.

So the article's writer asks Mr De Niro "Were you nervous?"

"Nope," replies the star. "I never got nervous before auditions. Ever."

"Why's that?" asks the interviewer.

"Because I didn't have the part when I arrived. What's the worst that could happen? I'd leave without the part. The way I saw it, every audition was pure upside. All opportunity and no risk."