You’ve made it to the most important interview of your life and you want to impress the interviewer with your poise and self-confidence, as well as your qualifications.

Then something awful happens. You burp. Outloud. Can you respond in a way that will not detract from the positive impression you are hoping to make?

Following are some not-so-hypothetical situations and suggestions on how to make the best of them.

Situation 1: I’m late! I'm late! For a very important date. You’ve allowed plenty of time to make it to your interview. But there’s an accident on the freeway and traffic comes to a standstill right in front of you! Or, you find the address, but all the parking garages are full and you can’t find a place to park. You know you cannot get there in time.

What do you do?

Get to a phone as quickly as you can. Call the interviewer, briefly explain the situation, and say that you will get there as quickly as humanly possible. When you arrive, apologize for causing any inconvenience and briefly reaffirm the reason for your lateness. Then, move to the business at hand. A lengthy blow-by-blow account of your adventure is not necessary or helpful!

Don’t assign blame or denigrating the “idiots” who caused/contributed to the situation.

(By the way, because you never know what may go wrong, we suggest that you always give yourself at least a 30-minute cushion. You may need it!)

Situation 2: Sufferin’ succotash! You want the position a lot, so you are very enthusiastic in sharing information about your skills and abilities. You open your mouth to say something else and out comes a spray of saliva.

Relax! First of all, it’s possible that the interviewer hasn’t seen. At the first opportunity (while the interviewer is looking elsewhere), surreptitiously swipe the dribbles off the interviewer’s desk with your hand.

If the interviewer has noticed, just say “I'm sorry!” and wipe it off.

Spit happens!

Situation 3: Doh! You’re feeling good. Confident. The interview is going well. Then, the interviewer asks you a question and you have absolutely no idea what to say. You can’t just not answer the question, so what can you do?

First, don’t try to “wing it.” You can dig a hole for yourself very quickly. Honesty is the best policy. Admit that you don’t have an answer. This is the safest course.

If the question is one that you’d like to think about, it is perfectly fine to say, “I need a minute to think about that,” and then give your answer. If you need a little more information in order to respond, you may request that as well.

Situation 4: I can’t believe you asked that! Although many interviewers are well-versed in what are and are not appropriate and legal lines of questioning, sometimes candidates are asked for information that should not be requested. Like, “Are you married?” or “How tall are you?” or “How old are you?”

Handling these questions requires tact and diplomacy. You do not want to alienate the employer, but usually you do not want to share inappropriate information either.

You can answer the question. Or you can offer an answer which addresses the interviewer’s concern while not sharing personal information.

For example: to the question, “Are you married?” your response could be “I assure you that nothing in my personal life will interfere with my ability to fulfill my responsibilities.”

If asked the illegal question “What country are you from?” you may respond, “I am authorized to work in the U.S. on a full-time basis.”

If an interviewer persists with an illegal line of questioning, you may ask, in a respectful way, “May I ask how this relates to my ability to do the job?”

Situation 5: Not me! Your name is Karen and the interviewer just called you Jane. How do you gracefully correct him or her?

Remember, an interviewer probably talks to a large number of people, and could easily become confused.

Take the gaffe with tact and sensitivity (and even humor). Then approach it directly.

Say something like, “My name is Karen, but since I live in a house with seven other women, I'm accustomed to answering to almost anything!”

Or, refer to yourself by name. “As I read the description of this position, I said to myself, ‘Karen, this sounds like the perfect job for you.’ I’m excited to be talking with you about it!”

To head off this problem, be sure to say your name clearly when you first shake hands with the interviewer.

Situation 6: I can’t believe I said that! You are interviewing with ABC company, a world famous widget maker. You wax enthusiastically about the newest widget wonder on the market. The interviewer stops you saying that you’ve been extolling the virtues of one of his company’s competitor’s widgets.

Big no-no! You should have done better research.

So, how do you pull this one out of the fire?

There is no way to hide this faux pas. Go to damage control!

Apologize for your confusion and move on. You could say something like, “How embarrassing! My research wasn’t as thorough as I thought it was.”

Situation 7: Just call me klutz. The interviewer gives you a cup of coffee and just as you’re sitting down, the coffee spills on the floor.

Accidents happen and how you handle the situation can make you a memorable job candidate!

Apologize and acknowledge your total embarrassment. Then offer to help in the clean up.

As in any other such uncomfortable situation, remain as poised as possible — and do not let this ruin the interview.

Situation 8: When nature calls. Every person you’ve talked to at this day-long interview has offered you coffee or a soft drink. And now it has caught up with you — in the middle of an interview.

How do you gracefully excuse yourself?

Go with the direct approach: “Would you please excuse me for a moment while I run to the men’s/ladies’ room?”

Situation 9: May I introduce. . .ummm You finished the interview and the interviewer has walked you back to the reception area. One of your friends is there and you would like to introduce the interviewer, but suddenly your mind goes blank. You cannot remember the interviewer’s name.

Try this: “Have you two met?” Usually one or the other person will initiate a handshake and say his or her name. Generally, the other person will say his or her name in response.

If this doesn’t work, smile graciously at the interviewer and say “I’d like you to meet my friend, Susan. She is also a marketing major.” With any luck, the interviewer will then hold out his hand and say his name.

If not, continue with the small talk until you can gracefully exit!

Life — and the interview trail — is full of little surprises and potentially embarrassing situations. You will get through them by dealing with them honestly, gracefully and a with a sense of humor.

Remember, interviewers were job candidates once, too!