Learn Turkish: Mülakatta daha sakin olayım. - Let me be calmer in the interview.

Olayım uses the optative mood, which translates to "let me be" or "I should be." While olacağım ("I will be") is a factual prediction, olayım sounds more like a personal goal, a wish, or a gentle reminder to oneself before the interview.

How exactly is the word olayım formed?

It comes from the verb root ol- (to be) + -a (the optative suffix for back vowels) + -y- (a buffer letter to separate two vowels) + -ım (the first-person singular "I" suffix). Together, they create the meaning "let me be."

How do you say "calmer" in Turkish, since there is no exact equivalent to the English "-er" suffix?

Turkish simply uses the word daha (more) in front of the adjective to make it comparative. So, "calmer" is expressed literally as "more calm" (daha sakin).

Why does mülakat take the locative suffix -ta instead of the standard -da?

Mülakat (interview) ends in t, which is a voiceless (hard) consonant. Because of consonant assimilation (often remembered by learners as the "Fıstıkçı Şahap" rule), the suffix -da (in/at) must harden into -ta to match the hard ending of the root word.