An interview is really a sales transaction – it’s your opportunity to sell YOU!
The best marketing campaigns are well researched. The customer is known inside and out. So is the product. KNOW THE EMPLOYER and KNOW YOU.
Do your research…
- Research the relevant organisation. Try their website, news articles, friends and contacts, annual reports, industry information such as funding sources.
- If you can, find out who will be interviewing you. Do they have a LinkedIn account – what is their specific role?
Review and Pre-empt…
- Review the application you submitted for the role, especially selection criteria or specific questions you were required to address.
- What is the interviewer likely to ask? What do they really want in an employee?
- Most Importantly… What are your strengths? KNOW THEM WELL and be able to explain them well. How do they relate to the role? If you don’t know your strengths, ask previous supervisors, friends and family.
- Surf the net for possible interview questions. Some are common for most industries. Others are quite specific.
- Jot down your responses. You may not pre-empt all questions, but by now, you will be feeling more confident and are well on your way to nailing this interview!
- Government agencies, including Local Government, will likely ask you to provide examples of when you have behaved in a particular way. Prepare examples of workplace scenarios or be ready to expand on examples you have provided in your application.
It’s your turn…
- Prepare questions to ask the interviewer. Questions show how well you have researched the company and your keenness. They are a MUST.
- Have two or three prepared and be ready to ask them even if you are not given the specific opportunity to do so. DON’T ask questions already answered in the advertisement.
- Skip the questions you are busting to ask about pay rates, holidays etc. Remember this is a sales transaction – just sell you for the time being.
Tune it up…
- Time your responses as you practice. More than 2 minutes might be waffling. 20 seconds may not be enough.
- Rehearse in front of the mirror. It’s worth the embarrassment. Responses should sound confident but not rehearsed.
- Practice with a friend or relative. Ask for feedback.
- Prepare clothes a day or two beforehand in case of last minute wardrobe failures.
- Check the interview location. Being late may significantly reduce your chances of success.
- Just before the interview, use some of the techniques referred to in this Amy Cuddie Ted X talk.