How to Prepare for an Interview

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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Most job applicants don’t know how to prepare for an interview. Nor do many feel the need to adequately prepare for the most important step in the hiring process. Job candidates just show up and rely on their instincts during the interview. This approach puts them at a tremendous disadvantage to those who do prepare thoroughly. There are five common misconceptions that govern this reluctance to put in the effort to improve interviewing preparation skills. Let’s look at each of these misconceptions and compare them with current realities.

1. My interpersonal communication capabilities are excellent. This may be the case, but the communication skills you employ in your daily business activities are quite different from those you will need to perform well in an interview. In an interview you need to, without hesitation, match your past accomplishments to the hiring manager’s priorities. These priorities unfold dynamically during the course of the interview. Candidates who have prepared success stories in advance are in a much better position to deliver a well thought out response.
2. I’ve had many interviews over the course of my business career. You may have been part of many interviews, but if you don’t know how to prepare for an interview you have just been reinforcing bad habits. If you will perform good interview preparation you will set yourself apart from the competition. This is a great advantage in today’s tight job market.
3. I overachieve in my current position. The skills you use daily to excel at your current job are quite different than those needed to convince a potential employer that you are the best candidate for a job. When you gain insight by doing research on a company you can anticipate their questions and formulate engaging responses. This insight will also allow you to formulate thoughtful questions to ask and  provide the basis to create your success stories that will give you the confidence to ace the interview.
4. The interviewers are well prepared and have excellent interviewing skills. This is far from the truth, 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. These facts give the prepared candidate an opportunity to control the flow of an interview by asking prepared questions that lead the hiring manager through a conversation the candidate wants to have. The prepared candidate gets to leave the impression of a highly qualified professional. This is a tremendous advantage over those job applicants who just wing it.
5. The most qualified candidate gets the job in most cases. The hiring decision is made on the perception of who the best candidate is not the reality. So the candidate who has prepared thoroughly has a much better opportunity to leave the impression that they are the most qualified of all candidates.

Getting an interview, a significant accomplishment, is only one step in getting a job offer. To close the deal you must employ better interviewing skills than your competition. Knowing how to prepare for an interview is a skill that will provide the edge needed to convince the hiring manager that you are the candidate best suited to help the company.

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