When it comes to building buildings, it’s a very good idea to try for perfection. But when it comes to selling yourself in an interview, shooting for perfection can be a mistake.
In this short post, Pete provides some useful advice to consider the next time you present to a selection committee.
For more useful advice, check out our Shortlist Interview Coaching here.
Perfection is not the goal. In fact, the pursuit of perfection is often the problem.
I say that as someone who makes mistakes — constantly. If you watch my videos, you’ll notice edits. Every cut usually means I messed up a line, restarted a sentence, or had some random noise interrupt the flow.
That’s normal.
And yet, I’ve worked with countless professionals — especially in AEC interview preparation and business development coaching — who believe anything less than perfect is unacceptable.
One wrong word? Problem.
A sentence that trails off? Problem.
A moment of uncertainty? Problem.
But here’s the truth: perfect isn’t relatable. Human is.
When I’m not in front of a camera — when I’m in a live room doing shortlist interview training, group presentation coaching, or business development training — I restart sentences all the time.
I pause. I rephrase. I adjust.
And no one cares.
In fact, those moments make the interaction more real. More connectable. More trustworthy.
In AEC presentation skills and interview skills training for professionals, I see this over and over again: teams believe the winning formula is flawless delivery. But the teams that truly connect in shortlist interview coaching and project interview preparation are the ones that feel authentic.
The pursuit of perfection becomes especially dangerous in high-stakes settings:
When you’re obsessed with being perfect, you get stuck in your head. You monitor every word. You tighten up. Your confident presence disappears.
And ironically, the desire to be flawless creates stiffness — which makes you less effective.
In networking training and business development communication training, we often remind teams that clients don’t hire perfection. They hire people.
They hire partners they trust.
They hire teams they feel comfortable with.
If you allow yourself to be an imperfect human — to occasionally search for a word, restart a sentence, or laugh at a small mistake — you become more accessible.
That accessibility strengthens your AEC interview skills training outcomes far more than robotic precision ever could.
If you’re someone who believes perfection is the goal and anything less is failure, I want to invite you to experiment.
Allow a moment of imperfection.
Let a sentence restart.
Don’t apologize for being human.
In business development coaching, sales pitch coaching, and presentation support work, the professionals who grow the fastest are the ones who stop trying to eliminate humanity from their delivery.
Because humanity is the point.
Be prepared. Practice. Rehearse. Absolutely.
But when you step into the room — whether it’s shortlist interview training, project interview preparation, or a networking conversation — allow yourself to be imperfectly human.
And see what happens.
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