It's ironic that people who want the job will be nervous and might interview poorly but people that are only interviewing for experience or just don't care will do better.
When she left that job 10 years later, her boss noted, that "one of the things she learned from her was that it was ok to hire someone who shows up 45 minutes late to their interview.."
I guess it's possible that the jobs I wanted are at more prestigious companies and therefore are more picky and the interview is just harder to pass. But I suspect it's not just that, and psychology plays a part too.