Every day thousands of interviews take place. Many of these interviews are successful ones, however, the vast majority are unsuccessful.
Once an interview heads in the wrong direction, it is difficult to turn it around and fix the mistakes made. Especially in competitive candidate driven markets, where employers have numerous candidates as options for their positions.
Even if you are the most qualified candidate, have the perfect resume, and possess the right background and career path for a particular opportunity, you may still not succeed in an interview if your interviewing skills are not sharp.
However, as with any skill based discipline, the more you practice, the better you will perform.
When preparing for your next interview, focus on the following objectives and tips:
- Sharpen your interviewing skills so that you will be in a position to be successful in every interview.
- Make your career transition your number one priority.
- 1. Always be at your best
- Interviews don’t come without their problems. First and foremost it is because of the fact that they rely on the skills and judgement of the people conducting them. Even the most experienced interviewers find it hard to put their personal likes and dislikes to one side. Therefore, interviews can be subjective; however as a candidate you should always be at your best during interviews.
- 2. Dress appropriately to increase your chances
- How you present yourself in an interview is just as important as what you say. As the saying is “If you look good, you feel good”, attire plays a very important aspect in the interview. The image you present carries over to your confidence level and your performance is a direct result. Even if you are a highly suitable candidate but show up dressed inappropriately, it will make a difference to the outcome of the interview. Most importantly, first impressions always count, so it is vitally important to ensure you arrive in the correct attire and are seen as professional from the moment you walk through the door.
- 3. Do your research
- Prepare yourself for the interview by gaining knowledge about the industry and the company you are going to be interviewing with. This will reflect your interest in the role and will ensure the interviewer knows you have come prepared. Make sure the interviewer understands that their opportunity and industry are your number one focus and second to any other opportunity you may be pursuing. To have knowledge of all the major players within the industry and what separates the company from its competitors will work positively in your favour too.
- 4. Don’t hesitate to show personality
- If the way you communicate is dry and you fail to show an ability to engage others, employers will find it hard to get excited about you. You need to show them how confident and self motivated you are. Show them that you have personality and your own style.
- 5. Examples, examples, examples
- When answering interview questions, it is very important to underline your answers with examples from your professional and personal experiences. Examples help provide a picture for the interviewer about how you would react in certain situation when working within their environment.
- Going back to subjectivity, you won’t be able to get buy in with every interviewer you meet. Some will like you and some won’t, which applies to yourself and the people you get on with as well. Therefore, go to an interview and focus on making a good job of presenting yourself!
- Good luck!