Powerful Job Interview Tips From a Recruiter How to Pass an Interview - Career Sidekick

Powerful Job Interview Tips From a Recruiter How to Pass an Interview - Career Sidekick Powerful Job Interview Tips From a Recruiter: How to Pass an Interview Interview Preparation / https://www.edenscott.com/blog If you think most hiring decisions are based on your experience and qualifications, then you better keep reading. Yourresume gets you in the door, but how you interview determineswhether youre offered the job.This article will teach you proven job interview tips to help you pass a job interview and get the job you want. Heres what were going to cover:Part I: Job Interview Preparation Tips everything to do before your interviewPart II: Interviewing Tips the best strategies to use during your interview to stand outPart III: Tips for After Your Interview how to make sure you get the job offer after your interview is overThese are the best interviewtips that I know, from close to 5 years working as a Recruiter.After you finish this article, youll know how to stand out from other job seekers and pass a job interview a majority of the time.Part I: Job Interview PreparationEach step below will prepare you for the actual interview. None of this is very time consuming but it will set you apart from everyone else applying for the job, making it easy for the company to decide who to hire (you!)Here are the basic interview preparation stepsto remember.Ive put the estimated time next to each one.1. Research the company (10 minutes)Interviewers can tell when you’vedone your research, and they love seeing it. And if you haven’t… it looks really bad, especially at the start of the interview when they ask things like:Why did you apply for this position?What do you know about us?Why do you want this particular job?So the start of the interview is your chance to make a great first impression. Walking in with zero knowledge of their business is one of the fastest ways to shoot yourself in the foot and NOT get hired.It could even lead to them ending the interview early. That’s one of the biggestsigns your interview went badly, and you definitely want to avoid that (for example if you were told it would be a one-hour interview, and you finis h in 25 minutes).So be ready to show them that you what they do, how they make money, who their typical customer or client is, etc. Youre not expected to be an expert on their business, but know the basics.You can do this company research on the companys website, on their social media pages, and by searching Google. I also recommend finding one or two recent news stories to see what the company has done recently. To learn the latest on a company, trytyping the companys name plus the word news into your search bar.2. Think of two reasons youre interested in the company (10 minutes)Use the company research youve done to comeup with a business-related reason youre excited about them. It could be a new business model, new clients, new partnership, etc.Actual example: I recentlyhad a phone interview with a tech company that was built as a review/info website. They recently started handling transactions instead of sending the buyers out to other websites to complete the transaction. I rea d this in the news and mentioned it as an excitingdevelopment and a really good business move. The interviewer wasextremely impressed that I had read the news, and understood the implications. Total time spent researching: less than 3 minutes.Along with one business reason, try to come up with a secondary reason too. Maybecommunity involvement. Or company culture. Almost every company has a blurb about their culture on the website. Read it and mention what you read as a secondary reason for being interested.Youll seem extremely well-prepared and well-rounded for having two very different reasons.3. Think of an explanation for why youre job searching (5 minutes)Companies will often choose someoneless talented if they also seemless risky or if their motivations make more sense. Ive seen it first-hand.Dont lose out on a job to somebody with less skill than you. Prepare some legitimate reasons why you want to make a move (without talking negatively about your current employer). Here are some examples:Youve accomplished ____ in your current role and youre ready for a new challengeYourcompanys direction has shifted and you feel its time to join a new organizationYoure interested in a different type of product/serviceYoure looking for a larger or smallerorganizationYou can get more specific based on your situation. These are general ideas. If you do a good job with this you can beat out applicantsthat have more experience than yourself, because theyre not using these strategies most likely.If you are job searching while employed, heres a full article on interviewing when you have a job.And if youre unemployed right now, here are 20 good explanations for why you chose to leave your last job.4. Prepare to talk about specific accomplishmentsMost people go into their interview and make general statements and talk in very general terms. To set yourself apart, you want to prepare specific examples and talk about DETAILS. Facts, numbers and real accomplishments.Hint: this i s true onyour resumealso. You’ll get far more interviews if you cram your resume with facts, figures and statistics instead of general statements like “responsible for handling customer requests”.So when the hiring manager asks what you accomplished in your last job, or what you do each day, you should be ready to impress! This is not the time to hesitate or be unsure. Prepare ahead of time for this.If you’re looking for your first job without any work experience, then think about accomplishments in your academic career â€" classes you’ve taken, projects you’ve completed, etc. That’s your most relevant experience!5. Get familiar with your resume (5 minutes)This is one of the more important interview preparation tips, and one of the easiest. Glance over your resume if you havent in a while. Be ready to explain past job changes in a positive light. If you left a job because your manager was horrible, say that you went to an organization that had more supportive managemen t. Its all about how you phrase it. Well look at more examples of how to deliver this in Part II coming up.Also think of a couple of challenges and accomplishments in your last 1-2 positions. Interviewers love specificexamples of accomplishments.Thats it, youre done with Part I.At this point youve alreadydone more than 80% of job applicants, and you have good answers prepared for some of the most common interview questions. Lets move onPart II: Job InterviewTipsSo, youve mentally prepared yourself with the interviewing tips from Part I. Now lets talk about how to pass a job interview after it begins.1. Prepare to Describe your work history BRIEFLYMostinterviewers willask you to give a quick walkthroughof your background at the start of the interview. Thats why I mentioned reviewing your resume beforehand. Its a pretty commonly overlooked but its one of my favorite job interview tips and its so easy to do!If youve prepared a good, brief narrative of your career, you can impress them right off the bat. What got you interested in this field? What have you accomplished recently?But it has to be concise. Nobodywants to hire somebody that rambles on or sounds scattered, and thats the biggest mistake people make with this relatively open-ended question.Spend most of your time on the recent portion of your career. Go through the beginning rather quickly. 2-3 minutes total should be your target.2. Explain why youre interested in interviewing with themAfterwalking them through your resume, youll probably be asked why youre looking to make a job change, and/or why youre interested in their company in particular. This is where the research youve done pays off. You should already have two specific reasons for wanting to interview with their company.When explaining your reason for job searching in general,I mentioned one example of how to turn a negative into a positive in Part I. Here are 2 more examples:If your current companyhas no room for upward growth, say that youre looking for a job with more room for upward growth.If you dont like your coworkers, say youre hoping to find a team thats more collaborative.See the difference? Youre saying the same thing without sounding negative.Whatever you say youre looking for, be prepared for them to ask why you cant getthat in your current company.Just answer by sayingthat you dont think theres an opportunity to get this, and you considered this before starting to look externally. Simple and easy. That should end the line of questioning.3. Answering technical questions- dont freak outAfter the basic questions, youll get into the meat of the interview. The content and questions here will vary based on the job, but hereswhat you need to know about how to pass the job interview:A good interviewer will test your limits. Especially if its a position involving some type oftechnical knowledge (math, science, engineering, etc). The only way they can findyour limits is if they ask something you dont know. Sostay calm when you get this. Heres what to do:Try to work your way through the question as much as you can. Your thought process is often more important than answering correctly, so tell them what youre thinking. Ask questions to clarify if needed.Seeming genuine, thoughtful and honest can go a long way. Its more important than answering any one question correctly.Preparing yourself for how youll handle a question youre not sure of or didnt expect is an important piece of how to pass an interview. You can prepare for questions all day, but you still might hear something you werent ready for.4. Ask your own questions at the endYou should ask a lot of questions after the interviewer has finished their own questions.How are you going to decide if you want the job if you dont find out any info? The best job candidates are evaluating a company, not just trying to get a job in the first company that wants them. Once a company realizes this, theyll treat you like a top-notch candidate and try to sw ay you to join them.If you aren’t sure what to ask, here’s a mega-list of the best questions to ask.And here are5 great questions to ask recruitersin particular (this is forphone interviewsor first conversations with any recruiter).Use these lists to come up with questions to ask each person youll be meeting. If you interview with 4 people, you should ask questions to all of them. Its okay to repeat a question, but dont tell the last person, so-and-so already answered all my questions. Ive done this in the past and wasnt offered the job. Lesson learned.Some of the best questions are opinion-based questions because you can ask the exact same question to as many people as you want. Example: Whats your favorite part about working here? Whatis the biggest challenge/difficulty you face here?5. Always act like you want the jobYou have one goal in any interview: Convince them that youre the best candidate for the job and get invited to the next round.So you should be selling yourself i n the interview, not deciding if the job is desirable.Then you can go digest the info and make a decision once you get home.If you start using this approachyoull have abig advantage throughout the entire interview because youll have one single thing to focus on. Other applicants will be juggling everything at once.6. Dont ask for feedback on the spotIve seenpeople recommend that youask for feedback or concerns at the end of the interview. Something like this: Based on what weve discussed, is there any reason you wouldnt consider me for this job? Horrible advice. Never ask this. Ever. Or anything like it.First of all, they just finished interviewing you. Give them time to think. Youre going to go home and decide whether youre interested, they need timeto think too. Dont put them on the spot like this.Also, youre bringing the negatives to their attention. Youre literally asking them if they can think of a reason thatd stop them from hiring you. Even if they do think of something, they wont tell you for fear of a lawsuit.I like to say something like this instead:If you need any more info from me or have any questions later, dont hesitate to contact me.7. Be humanYou don’t need to seem perfect in the interview to get hired. Don’t try. Be human.If you seem fake, or if you try too hard to give “perfect” answers, the hiring manager might not be able to get a real sense of what your strengths and weaknesses are. And if they can’t tell, they won’t hire you.So, don’t go in with interview answers you read from the top of Google. If you found those in 5 minutes, everyone else did too. Come up withgreat answers that are unique.Remember that it’s also okay to occasionally say, “I’m not sure”, or “Sorry, I’m drawing a total blank”. (This is okay once or twice per interview. If you find yourself doing it more, it’s a sign you didn’t prepare enough).8. Learn the interviewer’s name and use itI’m horrible at remembering names. I always have be en. So if I can do this, you can too…When you hear someone’s name, repeat it to yourself in your head once or twice IMMEDIATELY after you shake hands. This helps you remember it.Most of the time, if you forget someone’s name, it’s because you never really “got” it. Immediately after you heard it, you forgot. So this is how to remember.Then, use it in the conversation within the first 5-10 minutes of the interview. Now you’ll never forget it.There’s another benefit to this too â€" using someone’s name helps you build a bond with them and build trust. Studies have shown you seem moreconfident, competent and impressive when you say someone’s name when talking to them.Go talk to the CEO in your company, and I bet they’ll use your name in the conversation. Leaders do this. Successful people do this.This is a very under-rated tip for interview success that anyone can do. It just takes effort.You will build a stronger bond/rapport with the interviewer if you do this, and they’ll be more likely to remember you favorably and hire you.9. Be upfront and use clear languageDon’t use vague language and “dodge” their questions. And don’t lie. They’ll usually know. Hiring managers interview a lot of people and have a great sense for this.If you lie and get caught, there is no way they’re going to hire you.And if you seem like you’re trying to hide information, they won’t trust you and won’t hire you either.Hiring managers aren’t just evaluating your skill; they’re evaluating your character. If you’re going to be joining their team, they need to see what type of person you are. Andno hiring manager wants someone who is dishonest on their team.What do they want? Someone who stands up and takes responsibility when things go wrong, who can learn from past mistakes, who is honest if there’s a problem, and who isn’t afraid to tell the truth.The interview is where they test this before hiring you. So just remember that while they†™re judging your experience and skills, they’re also judging these character traits.10. Never badmouthDon’t badmouth former bosses, former employers, coworkers or anyone else.Here’s what happens when you do: The interviewer will immediately become curious about the other side of the story. They’ll wonder if you were part of the problem (or the whole problem).Theyll want to know if you’re someone who always looks to blame others. And they might worry that you have a bad attitude and won’t be able to fit into their organization. And they won’t hire you because of this.So never, ever badmouth anyone from your past in your interview. Also, you never know if the interviewer knows somebody who you’re bad mouthing! Many industries have pretty tight-knit communities.11. Make everything about THEMHere’s a little secret: The interview isn’t really about you.If you want to start getting a TON of job offers from your interviews, you need to start thinking about what the comp any wants. Make yourself seem like a solution to their problems.How can you help them make money, save money, save time, etc.?How will you make the hiring manager’s life easier if he or she hires you?Figure out how to show this, start thinking about their needs and answering their questions with this mindset and you will be in the top 10% of job seekers.Same goes forwriting your resume. If you want to stand out, start thinking of your resume as being about THEM. It’s a document that should be “tailored” to the employer’s needs,showing them how your qualifications and past work will help you step into *their* job and be successful in their organization.That’s the general idea, and it’s true for resumes, cover letters, and interviews.Part III: Tips for After Your InterviewOnce your interview is done and youve left the room, there are still a few things you should do to boost your chance of getting a callback.These interview tips will help you impress the employer after t he interview is over.Always thank the interviewerYou want to thank your interviewer when you leave the room and send a thank you email the following day.Showing appreciation for the employers time goes a long way, and its one of my favorite interview tips because it requires no talent; just effort.Act interested but not desperate while waiting for feedbackSometimes you wont hear from the employer for many days after your interview.They might need to meet more candidates, or might need time to finalize their decision.Id recommend wrapping up your interview by asking when you can expect to hear feedback. That way, you wont be too anxious waiting at home.If that time passes, its okay to follow up with the employer to get an update from them. But be patient and never sound needy/desperate. Delays happen.If they tell you, sorry, things are taking longer than we expected and we are still making our decision, the worst thing you can do is act frustrated or upset.This isnt going to help you get hired!The best thing you can do is keep applying for jobs while you wait. Its never smart to wait around for one single employer because so many unexpected things can cost you the job or cause a delay in the process. (Budgets change, people get promoted inside the company and they no longer need an external candidate, etc.)So thats another one of my favorite interview tips when you finish one interview, try to get more lined up! Dont stop interviewing for jobs until youve signed a job offer.Use These Tips for How to Pass an Interview and Get More Job OffersIf youve followed these job interview tips, youre in great shape to pass your next interview and get the job offer.Dont forget: Motivation, interest, and how you explain yourself and the reason youre interviewing arejust as important as your actual resume/skillset. I cant stress this enough in terms of important job interview tips to remember!Reading this articlewont change your professional skills. But it canchange somethin g far more powerful- how you come across in the interview room.You can beat out somebody with more experience and a more impressive resume because job interviewing is a separate skill that youve spent time mastering.Do you have a question or comment about one of these strategies? Or do you have another interview tip to share? Leave a comment below.UPDATE:Ifyou have interviews coming up and don’t want to leave anything to chance, I’ve created anew guide where you can copymy exactstep-by-step method for getting job offers. You canget more details here.