How to Prepare for an Interview

Interesting, dependable, original and relevant.

Think back to your last interview. Do you believe that you left a memorable impression? One that would have the interviewer remember you over the other half dozen candidates that were interviewed. In today’s highly competitive job market it is those candidates that create a lasting impression that receive the job offers.

In preparing for an interview you must plan ahead and then implement an interview strategy that does leave a memorable impression. The impression that you create is what comes to mind when the interviewer thinks of you. Most candidates leave a neutral mental picture of themselves, one that doesn’t separate them from the crowd.

Your goal is to leave a positive memorable impression. If you do the interviewer will think of you as interesting, dependable, original and relevant. It’s in the how you prepare for an interview that will allow you to convey this positive mental image of yourself. Let’s look at each characteristic and how you can ensure that you convey a positive image.

DEPENDABLE – You can convey dependability in a number of ways. The most important is by the first impression that you make. Were you on time, appropriately dressed, appearing friendly and confident? If you have prepared well for the interview and know what to expect you will be confident. Dependability is also influenced by your ability to back up what is on your resume with appropriate success stories. You need to be who you said you were and then some!

INTERESTING – You need to do your best to make the interview flow like a conversation instead of an interrogation. This can be done by relating success stories about yourself and asking thought provoking questions about the hiring organization. Relate interesting pieces of information about yourself that do not appear on your resume.

ORIGINAL – What do you bring to the table that others don’t? Be prepared to offer ideas on how you would approach the job that demonstrates original thinking. You can discuss an action plan for getting started and/or you can relate success stories from previous positions that demonstrates your creativity. Set yourself apart from the competition.

RELEVANT – You can be dependable, interesting and original, but if you are not relevant to the hiring manager and the organization your success rate will be slim. You must convey that you fit culturally, personality wise and have the necessary job skills. As you uncover information through your questioning you must offer information about yourself that makes you relevant for the position.

It is very difficult to leave a positive memorable impression if you arrive at the interview unprepared. It’s not only about learning how to prepare for an interview, it’s about actually doing the preparation work for each and every interview that matters.

So to leave that memorable impression you need to make it part of your interview preparation. Prepare in advance the success stories you will relate. Emphasize interesting things about yourself that are not on your resume. Plan how you will convey how you are relevant to the organization. And finally, give some thought about the first impression you make as you walk through the door. If you make these interview preparations you will come out ahead of your competition.

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Anticipating interview questions and preparing answers for these questions is an important success step if you want to come out on top in the interview process. Many if not most job candidates are under prepared when they sit down for an interview. Those that take the time to prepare interview questions and answers have a decided advantage over their competition.

For example, many job candidates are caught off guard by the question “Tell me about yourself?”

In reality this is a question you want to be asked. It is an invitation for you to deliver an unedited commercial about yourself, one that you have prepared and practiced in advance. What could be more beneficial to the impression you are trying to make than to deliver a precise message about the value you can bring to an organization. In constructing your answer it is important to adhere to the following points;

1. Reinforce the value you will bring to the organization. Deliver new information that is not already in your resume or cover letter. Or present your value in a new context so that the hiring manager gains further insight into your substantial abilities. You want to stress that you are results oriented, so give an example.




2. Relate something interesting about yourself that is not work related. You want the hiring manager to understand that you are a fine and interesting person. So describe a non controversial activity that you like to participate in outside of work.
3. Give your answer with energy and enthusiasm. By delivering your message with conviction you will convey that you are passionate about what you do and what type of person you are. This energy will insure that your answer is not perceived as “canned”.
4. Practice your delivery. Your answer should be no longer than one minute. You do not want to ramble. Make your point and let the interview continue. It is important that you practice your delivery out loud, either to another person or a mirror. Get some feedback as to the content and delivery of your message. Is it memorable? This practice will also help you add the enthusiasm to your answer.

Preparing and rehearsing answers to common interview questions will allow you to approach each interview with the confidence needed to convince the hiring manager that you are the right person for the job.

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In our previous post we discussed that learning how to prepare for an interview is not about applying a magic formula that works every time. The goal in preparing well for an interview is to give yourself a competitive advantage and increase the number of job offers resulting from successful interviews. There are eight steps to successful interview preparation. Today let’s look at steps 5-8.

Step 5 – Create Your Success Stories. Once you have created a portfolio of success stories you will decide which ones to use for each person you are interviewing. Those selected should match you to the needs of the position you are interviewing for. A success story should have the following format; describe a situation or opportunity, explain what you did, and then talk about the specific results achieved. Explaining the results achieved is what is important. Most people describe responsibilities or skills but don’t relate them to results.

Step 6 – Prepare Questions to Ask. Based on your research formulate 15 -20 questions that you can ask during the interview. Asking thoughtful questions will set you apart from the competition. By asking questions you can also influence the flow of the interview. Ask questions that will then open the door for you to tell an appropriate success story. You are showcasing your intellect, interest in the job and level of preparedness with this step.

Step 7 – Practice Your Interviewing Skills. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that because you’ve been on many interviews you don’t need to practice. You may have been on many interviews but if you don’t know how to prepare for an interview you have just been reinforcing bad habits. A key step is to practice your interviewing skills. For the best results, work with a partner who can provide feedback to you. But even practicing by yourself has great benefits. Say your success stories and prepared answers out loud. Get them down pat so that in the interview you are answering without hesitation. You will project a confidence that will make a strong impression.

Step 8 – Prepare to Make a Great First Impression. Dress the part, exude confidence and treat the interviewer with courtesy and a smile. By doing a complete interview preparation your confidence will shine through. You will be able to interact without hesitation clearly establishing yourself as a desirable candidate.

Implement these steps along with the steps learned in Part A to increase your interview success rate. Learning how to prepare for an interview is a competitive weapon in today’s tight job market.

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Learning how to prepare for an interview is not about applying a magic formula that will result in a job offer every time. Preparing for an interview is following a series of proven steps that if implemented well will provide a competitive advantage over other job candidates. The reason that these techniques work is that most people put in minimal preparation and are in react mode during the interview. Those that take the time to prepare will clearly stand out above the rest. Master the following eight steps and you will be well on your way to improving your interview success rate.

Once you have gotten an interview (no easy task) its time to prepare. Today let’s look at the first four steps.

Step 1 – Research the Company. Find out about the company and position you are interested in. Learn about the company’s culture, its products and services. How well are they doing financially and who is the competition. Don’t just visit the company’s website, search for articles and news items about the company. Visit a financial site to get relevant data. Talk with people who work there, former employees or with customers. This is the foundation for the doing the other steps effectively and it is often totally ignored or done haphazardly.

Step 2 – Know the Interview Logistics. This is knowing the who, what, when and where of the interview. Learning who you will be interviewing is the most important. Many times you will interview with multiple people during one visit. In order to prepare effectively you need to know their title, role in the company and role in the hiring process. Ask what the format of the interview will be. Is it a group interview or a series of one on one interviews. The when and where might seem obvious, but many companies have multiple locations or multiple buildings in a campus location. Not knowing exactly where to be at the stated time could cause you to be late. You don’t want tardiness to be your first impression.

Step 3 – Analyze Your Resume. Your resume will be the basis that the interviewer will use to formulate questions to ask you. You need to be able to answer in detail any questions about the information that is on your resume. Also review your resume for questions that may come up, i.e. gaps in your employment history, a short job stint or a job change that may appear to be a demotion. You should be able to provide answers to these types of questions without hesitation. Uncertainty will raise red flags in the interviewers mind.

Step 4 – Prepare Answers to Common Questions. Most hiring managers have received no training on how to get the most out of an interview. They are also very busy with their jobs and put little effort in preparing for an interview. Because of this they tend to ask a series of common interview questions, such as “tell me about yourself?” Preparing creative answers to these stock questions will differentiate you from other candidates. A good reference resource to help formulate your own answers is The Ultimate Guide to Job Interview Answers.

Remember, it’s not usually the most qualified candidate who gets the offer, it is the one who has interviewed the best. So thorough interview preparation can set you apart from the competition and land you the job offer you want.

In the next post we will review the remaining four steps necessary in how to prepare for an interview.

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