--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When you do an interview with me, you're…" description: "\"When you do an interview with me, you're talking to a cheap imitation of the person that I really am. There's no magic in my words, it's just me talkin..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/062/john-mayer-1620_imitation_when-you-do-an-interview-with-me-you-re_2786248.jpg" --- # When you do an interview with me, you're talking to a… ![“When you do an interview with me, you're talking to a cheap imitation of the person that I really am. There's no magic in my words, it's just me talking.” quote by John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/062/john-mayer-1620_imitation_when-you-do-an-interview-with-me-you-re_2786248.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/062/john-mayer-1620_imitation_when-you-do-an-interview-with-me-you-re_2786248.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/062/john-mayer-1620_imitation_when-you-do-an-interview-with-me-you-re_2786248.jpg) > “When you do an interview with me, you're talking to a cheap imitation of the person that I really am. There's no magic in my words, it's just me talking.” [John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker claims authenticity in interviews, emphasizing that words are merely a reflection of self, not magical. **In simple terms:** Words are a simple reflection of self. Key Takeaway Prioritize genuine self‑expression. Themes authenticity self‑reflection communication Mood introspective direct Type personal philosophical When to use this quote - media appearances - public speaking Key Concepts interviews personal branding honesty Questions to Reflect On - How to balance authenticity and performance? - What makes words feel magical? A Different Perspective May downplay performance art. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cheap Imitation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cheap-imitation-411615/) [Imitation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imitation/) [Imitation Person](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imitation-person-1382845/) [Interview](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interview/) [Interview Talking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interview-talking-3346282/) [Interviews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interviews/) [Magic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magic/) [Persons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/persons/) [Talking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/talking/) ## Related quotes > [There comes a moment during a job interview when you're still talking, but you might as well take off your shoes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-james/there-comes-a-moment-during-a-job-interview-when-you-re-still-talking/) [Bill James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-james/) > [We have lost the good old British spirit. Instead we have American journalism and black-shirted buffoons making a cheap imitation of ice-cream sellers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oswald-mosley/we-have-lost-the-good-old-british-spirit-instead-we-have-american/) [Oswald Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oswald-mosley/) > [The Christian church has set up a religion of pomp and revenue in pretended imitation of a person (Jesus) who lived a life of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/the-christian-church-has-set-up-a-religion-of-pomp-and-revenue-in/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [“That is to say, mimesis, unlike the explicit imitation of one person by another, is never something that one agent does to another, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-r-garrels/that-is-to-say-mimesis-unlike-the-explicit-imitation-of-one-person-by/) [Scott R. Garrels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-r-garrels/) > [When you do interviews, you have to talk about yourself - and I like to find out about other people. I am so familiar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-mathis/when-you-do-interviews-you-have-to-talk-about-yourself-and-i-like-to/) [Johnny Mathis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-mathis/) > [In most cases, the best strategy for a job interview is to be fairly honest, because the worst thing that can happen is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-most-cases-the-best-strategy-for-a-job-interview-is-to-be-fairly/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We didn't want to do any more interviews. The more we talked, the worse things got.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-pilatus/we-didn-t-want-to-do-any-more-interviews-the-more-we-talked-the-worse/) [Rob Pilatus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-pilatus/) > [I have done interviews in the past, and they cut everything out except for the outrageous line, and then they take it out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lemmy-kilmister/i-have-done-interviews-in-the-past-and-they-cut-everything-out-except/) [Lemmy Kilmister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lemmy-kilmister/) > [I was burned so many times that I stopped giving interviews. In other words, if my words ended up in print, they were twisted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-garrison/i-was-burned-so-many-times-that-i-stopped-giving-interviews-in-other/) [Jim Garrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-garrison/) > [I am repeatedly asked in interviews exactly 'what's wrong' with me, and I always give them the same answer; I don't identify the name…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stella-young/i-am-repeatedly-asked-in-interviews-exactly-what-s-wrong-with-me-and/) [Stella Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stella-young/) > [I did a radio interview for a station in Connecticut or something, and it was the worst interview ever. It was all yes and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/macaulay-culkin/i-did-a-radio-interview-for-a-station-in-connecticut-or-something-and/) [Macaulay Culkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/macaulay-culkin/) > [I'm very quiet. I can go a whole week without talking, so doing interviews is really awkward for me!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-leung/i-m-very-quiet-i-can-go-a-whole-week-without-talking-so-doing/) [Katie Leung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-leung/) > [I do interview senior candidates at the home office or many of our hotel or restaurant General Manager candidates. My two favorite questions are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chip-conley/i-do-interview-senior-candidates-at-the-home-office-or-many-of-our/) [Chip Conley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chip-conley/) > [I never do formal interviews. I don't use a tape recorder. I take notes but occasionally.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-finkel/i-never-do-formal-interviews-i-don-t-use-a-tape-recorder-i-take-notes/) [Michael Finkel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-finkel/) > [I'm not really a big fan of doing interviews.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-wright-phillips/i-m-not-really-a-big-fan-of-doing-interviews/) [Bradley Wright-Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-wright-phillips/) ## More by John Mayer > [I'm getting to a point where everything is becoming streamlined in my life. I'm learning how to stand onstage for two hours and play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mayer/i-m-getting-to-a-point-where-everything-is-becoming-streamlined-in-my/) [John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) > [I'm a good man with a good heart had a tough time, got a rough start But I finally learned to let it go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mayer/i-m-a-good-man-with-a-good-heart-had-a-tough-time-got-a-rough-start/) [John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) > [I just sort of lost my head for a little while.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mayer/i-just-sort-of-lost-my-head-for-a-little-while/) [John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) > [Anybody who's made it will tell you, you can make it. Anyone who hasn't made it will tell you, you can't](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mayer/anybody-who-s-made-it-will-tell-you-you-can-make-it-anyone-who-hasn-t/) [John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) > [I have these accidents, these mistakes, these self-inflicted wounds, and then I tear my head to shreds about it for days.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mayer/i-have-these-accidents-these-mistakes-these-self-inflicted-wounds-and/) [John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) > [Who I am as a guitarist is defined by my failure to become Jimi Hendrix.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mayer/who-i-am-as-a-guitarist-is-defined-by-my-failure-to-become-jimi/) [John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) > [I knew what I wanted to do when I was 13 and I had to go through four years of high school to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mayer/i-knew-what-i-wanted-to-do-when-i-was-13-and-i-had-to-go-through-four/) [John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) > [We're supposed to lose our friends to time, at an age when we're ready to agree to the terms of having lived a long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mayer/we-re-supposed-to-lose-our-friends-to-time-at-an-age-when-we-re-ready/) [John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) > [I need to learn how to start saying no. Like when someone says ‘please stop choking me.’](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mayer/i-need-to-learn-how-to-start-saying-no-like-when-someone-says-please/) [John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) > [By the time I recognize this moment, this moment will be gone. . . But I will bend the light, pretend that it somehow lingered on](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mayer/by-the-time-i-recognize-this-moment-this-moment-will-be-gone-but-i/) [John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) > [Everybody is just a stranger, but that's the danger in going my own way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mayer/everybody-is-just-a-stranger-but-that-s-the-danger-in-going-my-own-way/) [John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) > [Ninety-nine percent of my life is still completely common. I do have a golden helicopter. I fly it to Malibu. But other than that,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mayer/ninety-nine-percent-of-my-life-is-still-completely-common-i-do-have-a/) [John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) > [I really don't want to be a hunk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mayer/i-really-don-t-want-to-be-a-hunk/) [John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) > [I get recognized somewhere in between like local meteorologist and national meteorologist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mayer/i-get-recognized-somewhere-in-between-like-local-meteorologist-and/) [John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) > [I mean, I’m quite happy. I’m happy in all aspects of my life. I'm very happy in all aspects of my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mayer/i-mean-i-m-quite-happy-i-m-happy-in-all-aspects-of-my-life-i-m-very/) [John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) [Explore all 222 John Mayer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) ## More Imitation quotes > [Imitation is the first instinct of the awakening mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/imitation-is-the-first-instinct-of-the-awakening-mind/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [every being is unique.god neva creates carbon copies,he alys creates originals.he is truly a creator.he neva repeats.but man goes on living in imitation.we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/every-being-is-unique-god-neva-creates-carbon-copies-he-alys-creates/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“You go into extinction by being obsessed about becoming something else and then travelling in the wrong car while your real self keeps waiting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/you-go-into-extinction-by-being-obsessed-about-becoming-something/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [Obviously I don't play the same way as Peter, but I could do a passable imitation of Peter Green; if you gave me a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-moore/obviously-i-don-t-play-the-same-way-as-peter-but-i-could-do-a/) [Gary Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-moore/) > [“Imitation and custom are the spring of almost all human action. The cause of it is that men fight shy of all and any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/imitation-and-custom-are-the-spring-of-almost-all-human-action-the/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [The method of not erring is sought by all the world. The logicians profess to guide it, the geometricians alone attain it, and apart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/the-method-of-not-erring-is-sought-by-all-the-world-the-logicians/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [We have lost the good old British spirit. Instead we have American journalism and black-shirted buffoons making a cheap imitation of ice-cream sellers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oswald-mosley/we-have-lost-the-good-old-british-spirit-instead-we-have-american/) [Oswald Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oswald-mosley/) > [It is not the imitation that makes sons; it is sonship that makes imitators.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/it-is-not-the-imitation-that-makes-sons-it-is-sonship-that-makes/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [“most expensive originals have cheap imitations.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/most-expensive-originals-have-cheap-imitations/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [I said breathe. Not do a fish-out of-water imitation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/i-said-breathe-not-do-a-fish-out-of-water-imitation/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [“Don't envy what people have, emulate what they did to have it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-fargo/don-t-envy-what-people-have-emulate-what-they-did-to-have-it/) [Tim Fargo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-fargo/) > [Acquiring knowledge is a form of imitation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/acquiring-knowledge-is-a-form-of-imitation/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A tragedy is the imitation of an action that is serious and also, as having magnitude, complete in itself . . . with incidents…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/a-tragedy-is-the-imitation-of-an-action-that-is-serious-and-also-as/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [It is not imitation that makes sons. It is sonship that make imitators.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/it-is-not-imitation-that-makes-sons-it-is-sonship-that-make-imitators/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [I propose not our enemies as an example for our general imitation, yet, as their navy is the best regulated of any in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-paul-jones/i-propose-not-our-enemies-as-an-example-for-our-general-imitation-yet/) [John Paul Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-paul-jones/) [Browse all 737 Imitation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imitation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When you do an interview with me, you're talking to a cheap imitation of the person that I really am. 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