|
Get That Job!
31 August 2013
In supporting the efforts of job search clients, I believe that it is a good practice to do a sort of post-mortem after each interview session. Identify areas that you have done well in, and those that you could do differently at the next session. Here are just a couple of key areas that you should be focusing on in preparing yourself to be an effective interviewee.
Responses to commonly asked questions:-
- “Tell me about your career history”
The interview is always a 2-way process, with the emphasis (time-wise) accorded to you responding to questions posed by your interviewers. Preparation is not about writing down your answers and trying to regurgitate them during the interview. You should never do this for two simple reasons – you will come across as ‘un-natural’ and rehearsed, and secondly, it is highly unlikely that you will be able to remember word-for-word all that you have prepared for. Instead, write down in bullet-point form the key points that you feel are important for you to highlight.
One good example would be your response to the question:”Tell me about your career history”. You would not be wise to take 20 minutes or more to share everything that you have done. Instead highlight only those experiences that are pertinent to the job you are applying for. If you are applying to be a business development director, do not elaborate on your experience doing something else totally irrelevant from business development work. The cardinal rule – “sell what the interviewer wants to buy, do not sell what you have to sell” – there is a hugh difference.
Talking about 2-way process – you should also go prepared to ask good questions when prompted to. We all know about the taboo ones on salary, working hours, etc, that we should talk about, only when initiated by the interviewer. Generally speaking, there are four areas you can focus on for your 4 – 6 good questions to ask – the job, the company, the department, and your immediate boss. Another rule of thumb – ask “open-ended” questions.
- “What are your strengths? What are your areas for further development?’
All of us will have multiple strengths. Again, apply the rule of highlighting those strengths that are relevant to the job you are being interviewed for. Hence, if you are selling yourself as a super-duper sales professional, do not up-play your strong financial management skills. It is usually easy to talk about our strengths – but to be up-up on your competitors, arm yourself with stories to tell. I always say that you must go to interview sessions with a bag – an imaginary bag that it – and pull out the right stories, or examples to share when you are highlighting your strengths. To reinforce your strength in strategic thinking, for example, share an experience when this skill was effectively used.
To be another level up in delivering your point home – tell your story in this sequence –
Situation – what was the scenario when you had to utilize this strength of yours … Action/s – what did you do…
Result/s- the outcome of what you did. This is the punch-line that should send the message home i.e. “…and from this example, I demonstrated that I am strong in my strategic thinking capability…”
What do you say about your areas for further development? This one is usually challenging. Here’s what you have to do. Identify one that is not serious enough for the interview to terminate the interview immediately e.g. “…when I get upset, I start shouting and hitting my colleagues…”. Instead, go for one that is not too serious a gap e.g. “I tend to say “Yes” to my colleagues request for assistance, and find that I sometimes end up stretching myself too much…”. This one is one of my favourites – provided it not too far from the truth of course, of course – as it can also be perceived as a plus point i.e your being helpful to others, and being a team player.
- Mental state
I’ve coached job seekers who tell me this before an interview: “…let’s see, I will just go and do all that I can. Anyway, I don’t think I will get this one…”. I never fail to get upset when I hear this, and my (sarcastic) response to them typically is this: ” …if you feel this way, then maybe you should not go, and waste everybody’s time, including yours…”. Honestly, if you are not mentally positive and upbeat, and go for interviews with the intent to secure a job offer, why bother? Begin with the end in mind – if you want the job, tell yourself you will get it. Or at least this: ”…I have a better than good chance of securing this one …”.
Positive thinking has a stronger chance of begetting positive outcomes.
- It’s also in the packaging …
Being successful with interviews is not just about research (about the hiring company), preparing your responses to commonly asked questions, and being mentally positive, etc – it’s also about the image. The rule of thumb – dress the part. If you are going for a sales manager’s role, go dress like one. Other areas to watch out for, dressing, hairstyle, accessories worn, color sense, etc.
Paul Heng
|
Programs 
