1.
Make a list of your best "selling points"
for the position.
What
qualifications, skills, experience, knowledge,
background, and personality traits do you
possess that would apply to this particular
job? Write them down and look for opportunities
to work them into your answers.
2.
Develop your own list of probable questions.
In
addition to any sample job interview questions
you find through various resources, you
absolutely must develop your own list of
probable questions based specifically on
the job for which you are applying. Put
yourself in the hiring manager's
shoes… what kinds of questions would you
ask to find the best person for this job?
3.
Write down your answers to likely questions.
Study
the job announcement carefully. (If you
don't have one, get one!) Note the phrases they use when
describing the desired qualifications. You'll
want to target these as much as possible
when developing your answers. For example,
if the announcement says they want someone
with "strong customer service skills,"
make sure you include strong customer service
skills in at least one of your answers.
That will make a better impression than
saying "I helped customers."
4.
Review and edit your answers until you feel
they are just right.
Read
them over and over until you are comfortable
that you know them well. Don't
try to memorize them; don't
worry about remembering every word. Practice
saying them out loud. If possible, have
a friend help you rehearse for the interview.
TIPS
FOR THE JOB INTERVEW
1.
Give Examples in Your Job Interview
Make
use of this old marketing tip: "Facts
tell but stories sell." During a job
interview, you are selling yourself. Whenever
possible, answer questions with a short
story that gives specific examples of your
experiences. Notice I said "short."
You don't want to ramble or take up too much time; you want
to be brief but still make your point.
For
example, imagine two people interviewing
for a job as a dog groomer. The interviewer
asks, "Have you ever dealt with aggressive
dogs?" Candidate Joe answers, "Yes,
about 10% of the dogs I've groomed had aggressive tendencies." Candidate
Mary answers, "Oh yes, quite often.
I remember one situation where a client
brought in his Pit Bull, Chomper.
He started growling at me the moment his
owner left, and I could tell from his stance
he wasn't
about to let me get near his nails with
my clippers. I think he would have torn
my arm off if I hadn't
used the Schweitzer Maneuver on him. That
calmed him down right away and I didn't
have any problems after that." (NOTE:
I know nothing about dog grooming; I made
up the Schweitzer Maneuver for illustrative
purposes.)
Don't
you agree that Mary's
answer is better? Sure, Joe answered the
question, but Mary did more than that—she
gave a specific example and told a quick
story that will be remembered by the interviewers.
In
today's
job market where there are dozens of highly
qualified candidates for each opening, anything
you do that will make you stand out and
be remembered will greatly increase your
odds of getting hired.
2.
Keep the Interviewer's
Perspective in Mind
While
many questions asked during job interviews
appear to focus on your past accomplishments,
keep in mind this important tip – they may
be asking about what you did in the past,
but what they really want to know is what
you can do NOW, for THEM.
The
key is to talk about your past accomplishments
in a way that shows how they are relevant
to the specific job for which you are interviewing.
Doing advance research about the company
(such as at their website or at www.hoovers.com)
and the position will be extremely helpful.
Here's
another example with our fictitious job
seekers, Joe and Mary. The interviewer asks,
"What is the most difficult challenge
you've
faced, and how did you overcome it?"
Joe answers, "In one job I was delivering
pizzas and I kept getting lost. By the time
I'd
find the address, the pizza would be cold,
the customer would be unhappy, and my boss
was ready to fire me. I overcame this problem
by purchasing a GPS navigation device and
installing it in my car. Now I never get
lost!"
Mary
answers, "In my current job at Stylish
Hounds, management ran a special promotion
to increase the number of customers who
use the dog-grooming service. It was a bit
too successful because we suddenly had more
customers than we could handle. Management
would not hire additional groomers to help
with the workload. Instead of turning customers
away or significantly delaying their appointments,
I devised a new grooming method that was
twice as fast. Then I developed a new work
schedule. Both efforts maximized productivity
and we were able to handle the increased
workload effectively without upsetting our
customers."
Joe's
answer shows initiative and commitment (he
bought that GPS gadget with his own money,
after all). But Mary's
answer relates specifically to the job they
are applying for (dog groomer). And Mary
had done research about the company and
discovered it was about to significantly
expand its dog-grooming operations. So she
used an example from her past that addressed
an issue the interviewer was likely to apply
to a future situation in his company. See
the difference?
Here's
one more example. Joe and Mary are asked,
"What's
your greatest accomplishment?" Joe
answers, "I won two Olympic Gold Medals
during the 2000 Olympics in the high-jump
competition." Mary answers, "I
was named Stylish Hounds'
Dog Groomer of the Year in 2003 for increasing
productivity in my section by 47%."
Joe's
accomplishment is unquestionably spectacular.
But remember the interviewer's perspective. He might be impressed, but he's thinking "What's
in it for me? What does being a world-class
high-jumper four years ago have to do with
helping me to increase sales in my dog-grooming
department?" Mary's answer is much less spectacular than Joe's, but it is relevant to the position and indicates
that she has what it takes to be successful
in this particular job. It tells the interviewer,
"I have what you're
looking for; I can help you with your specific
needs."
Looks
like Mary has a new job!
3.
Tell the Truth in Interviews
Last
but not least, tell the truth. It's
sometimes very tempting to "alter"
the truth a bit during a job interview.
For instance, say you quit instead of being
fired. Besides the fact that lying is unethical,
the risk of being discovered as a liar far
outweighs the perceived benefits of hiding
the truth.
If
you are thinking about telling a lie during
the interview, ask yourself these questions:
"What is the BEST thing that could
happen? What is the WORST thing that could
happen? Is the best thing WORTH RISKING
the worst thing?"
In
this instance, the best thing would be getting
the job. The worst thing would be getting
discovered as a liar, which could lead to
getting fired, which could lead to unemployment,
which could lead to more job searching,
which could lead to another interview, which
could lead to the stress of deciding whether
to lie about just getting fired, and so
on… a cycle that can go on indefinitely.
Is all that worth getting the one job, perhaps
on a temporary basis?
Always
consider the consequences of your actions.
Following is a summary of what you need
to do to prepare for effective job interviews.
