I have analysed 50+ graduates in Australia who landed their first full-time role. Here are the 3 most interesting interview stories I have heard.
All three have one thing in common. I will save it for the end.
1. The Star Wars keychain
A mentee walked into an interview with a bag that had a small Star Wars keychain on it. The interviewer noticed it, was also a big Star Wars fan, and the two of them spent 5 minutes talking about which trilogy is best before the interview even started.
Hired.
The keychain was not a plan. It was just something he owned. But it gave the interviewer something specific and human to grab onto, and the whole tone of the interview shifted from that moment.
2. The Knicks fan
A grad had watched the New York Knicks win a huge NBA playoff game the night before his interview. The next day, when the interviewer opened with "How are you today?", he answered honestly: he was happy, because his favourite team had just won.
The interviewer's eyes lit up. He was also a Knicks fan. The rest of the interview was warm from the first minute.
Hired.
He could have said "I'm good, thanks" like every other candidate. Instead he gave an honest, specific answer, and it happened to land.
3. The empty wine bottle
This one is mine. I was interviewing for an alcohol ecommerce company over Zoom. Before I joined the call, I put an emptied wine bottle just in view of the camera.
When the interviewer asked how I was, I said I had been really nervous, so I drank the whole bottle to calm my nerves. Obviously a joke.
The interviewer laughed. Really laughed.
Hired.
Was it a risk? Yes. Did I know the company culture supported that kind of humour? Also yes, they were an alcohol brand, playful and irreverent was on-brand for them. That is why the calculated part matters.
If you want help crafting your own edge before your next interview, book a free 15-minute call.
The thing all three had in common
All three of us showed the interviewer what we were like outside work.
Not a certification, not a case comp win, not a resume bullet. A hobby, a team, a small quirky object we carried around, a joke that fit the brand. Something human that the interviewer could latch onto and remember later that day when they were talking to whoever makes the hiring decision.
Interviewers do not remember the candidate who nailed all the questions. They remember the candidate who left them thinking "I liked that person." That is what your Star Wars keychain, your Knicks fandom, your wine bottle joke actually is. Proof that you are a real person and, on top of being able to do the work, you are also fun to spend time with.
How to use this in your next interview
Do not force a random object into your bag hoping the interviewer notices it. That is not the point.
The point is: before your interview, think about one specific real thing about you that is easy to bring up in the first 60 seconds. A hobby you actually do. A team you actually follow. A book you are actually reading. Something so genuine that if the interviewer asks a follow-up, you can go 5 minutes deep without pretending.
If it lands, the tone of the rest of the interview shifts. If it does not, you still answered the question. There is no real downside.
For more on what Australian employers actually test for in interviews (and why fluent English alone is not enough), read: Why International Students Fail Australian Job Interviews (Even With Good English).