Jobs
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Interview
Tips 
Great Interview |
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Great interviews arise from careful
groundwork. You can ace your next interview if you:
1. Enter into a state of relaxed concentration.
This is the state from which great basketball players or Olympic
skaters operate. You'll need to quiet the negative self chatter
in your head through meditation or visualization prior to sitting
down in the meeting. You'll focus on the present moment and
will be less apt to experience lapses in concentration, nervousness,
self-doubt and self-condemnation.
2. Act spontaneous, but be well prepared. Be
your authentic self, professional yet real. Engage in true conversation
with your interviewer, resting on the preparation you did prior
to coming to the meeting. Conduct several trial runs with another
person simulating the interview before it actually occurs. It's
the same as anticipating the questions you'll be asked on a
final exam.
3. Set goals for the interview. It is your
job to leave the meeting feeling secure that the interviewer
knows as much as he or she possibly can about your skills, abilities,
experience and achievements. If you sense there are misconceptions,
clear them up before leaving. If the interviewer doesn't get
around to asking you important questions, pose them yourself
(diplomatically) and answer them. Don't leave the meeting without
getting your own questions answered so that you have a clear
idea of what you would be getting yourself into. If possible,
try to get further interviews, especially with other key players.
4. Know the question behind the question. Ultimately,
every question boils down to, "Why should we hire you?"
Be sure you answer that completely. If there is a question about
your meeting deadlines, consider whether the interviewer is
probing delicately about your personal life, careful not to
ask you whether your family responsibilities will interfere
with your work. Find away to address fears if you sense they
are present.
5. Follow up with an effective "thank
you" letter. Don't write this letter lightly. It is another
opportunity to market yourself. Find some areas discussed in
the meeting and expand upon them in your letter. Writing a letter
after a meeting is a very minimum. Standing out among the other
candidates will occur if you thoughtfully consider this follow
up letter as an additional interview in which you get to do
all the talking. Propose useful ideas that demonstrate your
added value to the team.
6. Consider the interviewer's agenda. Much
is on the shoulders of the interviewer. He or she has the responsibility
of hiring the right candidate. Your ability to do the job will
need to be justified. "Are there additional pluses here?"
"Will this person fit the culture of this organization?"
These as well as other questions will be heavily on the interviewer's
mind. Find ways to demonstrate your qualities above and beyond
just doing the job.
7. Expect to answer the question, "Tell
me about yourself." This is a pet question of prepared
and even unprepared interviewers. Everything you include should
answer the question, "Why should we hire you?" Carefully
prepare your answer to include examples of achievements from
your work life that closely match the elements of the job before
you. Obviously, you'll want to know as much about the job description
as you can before you respond to the question.
8. Watch those nonverbal clues. Experts estimate
that words express only 30% to 35% of what people actually communicate;
facial expressions and body movements and actions convey the
rest. Make and keep eye contact. Walk and sit with a confident
air. Lean toward an interviewer to show interest and enthusiasm.
Speak with a well-modulated voice that supports appropriate
excitement for the opportunity before you.
9. Be smart about money questions. Don't fall
into the trap of telling the interviewer your financial expectations.
You may be asking for too little or too much money and in each
case ruin your chances of being offered the job. Instead, ask
what salary range the job falls in. Attempt to postpone a money
discussion until you have a better understanding of the scope
of responsibilities of the job.
10. Don't hang out your dirty laundry. Be careful
not to bare your soul and tell tales that are inappropriate
or beyond the scope of the interview. State your previous experience
in the most positive terms. Even if you disagreed with a former
employer, express your enthusiasm for earlier situations as
much as you can. Whenever you speak negatively about another
person or situation in which you were directly involved, you
run the risk (early in the relationship) of appearing like a
troubled person who may have difficulty working with others.
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