Send Your Thank You Immediately
Sure, it was a telephone interview, but that is no reason for not taking the time to exercise simple but powerful courtesies. Write a thank you letter, and email it as soon as you can after the interview. Dont just say thank you! Make a point of reiterating your strengths and value for the position.
What Are You Passionate About
Understanding what you are passionate about or what motivates you might help employers decide whether you might be a good fit for the position. If you are passionate about helping people, for example, and are interviewing for a largely independent role with little interaction with others, the position might not be a good fit for you. To answer this question, think of broad ways you are motivated both in and out of work. Consider how your passions might align with the role.
Example answer:Im driven every day by the ability to create beautiful, innovative experiences for users all over the world. There is so much helpful, valuable digital information on the web. Designing it in a way that is easy for people to consume makes me feel like Im truly making a difference for people to access whatever it is that helps them live to their true potentialeven if only in a small way.
Read more: Interview Question: What Are You Passionate About?
The Dos And Donts Of Phone Interviewing
- DONT take the call in a car, outside, or anywhere noisy
- DO answer the phone with a professional tone Hello this is
- DONT smoke or chew gum during the call
- DO take notes and have your own notes handy prior to the call
- DONT take a long time to answer the questions
- DO allow the interviewer to interrupt you and ask follow-up questions
- DONT forget to prepare questions to ask the interviewer and write down new ones as youre talking
- DO prep for the dreaded salary question ahead of time in a mock interview
- DONT talk too quickly. Breath and make sure to enunciate
- DO make sure youre distraction-free to so you can focus and listen. You can scrub your counters later.
- DONT forget to send a post-interview thank-you note
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Questions Asked During Food Stamp Interviews
The purpose of the food stamp interview is to verify your eligibility for the program. Most of the questions on the application will be asked again during the interview. This serves as an opportunity for the interviewer to get answers to questions you may have failed to answer on the application, clarify any issues or inconsistencies raised by your application, and review the validity of your identification and support documentation.
What Are Common Second Interview Questions
Here are some interview questions that often come up during a second interview and that you should be ready for :1. What is it about this job that interests you?2. What do you want from your career and how does this job fit into that?3. Can you give an example of your problem-solving abilities?4. Can you give us what you think are your three most important qualifications for this position?5. Why should we hire you?
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Schedule The Interview Carefully Confirming The Interviewers Information
Choose a time that works best for you.
- Experienced interviewers know that, if you are employed, you will need to schedule the call for a time when you are not at work. So, they are accustomed to taking calls before 9, after 5, or at lunch time whenever you are not at work, if employed.
- Schedule the call for a time when you are sure you can be on time and undistracted.
- If they say the call will last 10 minutes, set aside 20 minutes. If they say 15 minutes, set aside 30, etc.
- Choose a time when you will be awake and sober not before youve had your morning coffee or after a celebration .
When you schedule the call, choose a time when you can be in a quiet place where you wont be interrupted by a co-worker or family member, barking dog, or other loud noises. You must be able to easily hear the interviewer, and you want them to hear you easily, too.
When the date and time have been established, collect information about the interviewer. The person you speak with may change depending on the date and time of the call, so when the call has been scheduled, ask for the name and job title of the person who will be interviewing you.
- If you are supposed to call them, confirm their phone number.
- If they are to call you, be sure that the number they have is correct.
Prepare To Describe Your Work History Briefly
Most interviewers will ask you to give a quick walkthrough of 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. Nobody wants 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.
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Prepare For The Most Expected Questions:
The benefit you have in telephonic interviews is that the recruiter cannot see your face. If you present the answer convincingly on phone, you will appear confident to the recruiter. It is best to prepare the list of most expected telephone interviews questions. It will help you gather sufficient confidence to score well in telephonic interviews. Here we have listed out a few of the most expected questions to ask in a phone interview for fresh candidates:
- What is your strength?
- What are your hobbies and interests?
- What are your core competencies?
- Would you be comfortable working in shifts?
- What is your salary expectation?
- Why do you wish to join this firm?
If you are an experienced candidate, the questions asked to you would vary greatly. Here we have prepared a list of questions that experienced candidates could expect to be asked during their telephonic interviews:
- What is your total work experience?
- Why do you wish to leave your previous organisation?
- Why should we hire you?
- Why should we pay you the salary you have quoted?
- What is the one thing you wish to change in your previous organisation?
If you answer these questions well, the interviewer is sure to be impressed. A basic preparation is required to clear telephonic interviews.
Are You Interviewing With Other Companies
You might be asked to explain where you are in the hiring process with other companies in a phone interview. This can be helpful for recruiters to understand how quickly they should move you through the process. If you are already interviewing for other positions, for example, you might be a higher-risk candidate than those simply in the searching phase. To answer this question, be honest about your current situation but dont feel the need to go into detail.
Example answer:While I feel this role is the better fit for what Im looking for, I am in discussions with three other employers.
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Have Important Answers Information And Credentials Ready In Advance
Nothing ruins a phone interview like an awkward, unplanned silence. Having a rough answer plan prepared in advance can save you the oh-so-common pause after tough questions. Theres no need to prepare entire answers before your interview, but a rough guide of how youre going to highlight and explain your skills during an interview is recommended. Keep qualifications on hand too.
Have Your Computer Ready
Whether you prefer to use a laptop or desktop computer, plan to have it ready for your phone interview. Make sure its charged, updated, and that your volume is off. Have the company website, social media pages, or other relevant tabs open in your browser, as well as the job posting.
Try not to type too much or too often because it can be heard over the phone, which makes you seem distracted.
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Smile While On The Phone
You will find that you sound more upbeat and engaged when you do this. Your smiles will be heard by the interviewer making for a positive impression. This is where your attitude will really show.
To help you remember to smile, place a mirror by the phone, where it will be easy for you to see yourself in it. Then, during the call, make a point of looking into it, and smiling while you are talking.
Never Take The Interview Somewhere Noisy
It might seem like common sense, but youd be surprised what interviewers say they can hear in the background of their phone interviewseverything from barking dogs to screaming children. Prepare for the interview by securing a quiet space in advance, even if it means escaping to your car parked in the garage, advises Chere Taylor, founder of Fulcrum HR Consulting. If you can lock your home office door, by all means do it. We’ve all been there and sometimes things just happen, but the more time spent anticipating what could go wrong, the better prepared and organized you will appear to the interviewer and the greater likelihood of success. That doesnt mean that if your washing machine beeps once in the background all hope is lost, but the more effort you put into being in a quiet place, the more focused youll be.
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Learn The Interviewers Name And Use It
Im horrible at remembering names. I always have been. So if I can do this, you can too
When you hear someones 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 someones name, its 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 youll never forget it.
Theres another benefit to this too using someones name helps you build a bond with them and build trust. Studies have shown you seem more confident, competent and impressive when you say someones name when talking to them.
Go talk to the CEO in your company, and I bet theyll 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 theyll be more likely to remember you favorably and hire you.
Take It As Seriously As An In Person Interview
THIS IS AN INTERVIEW! Treat it like one! That means be ready! Make sure youre well rested. The last thing an interviewer wants to do is feel as though theyre interrupting something else youre doing, or worse, woken you up.
When your interview is first scheduled, make sure you set aside time BEFORE the interview to prep for it.
If its an early morning interview, make sure youre going before the phone rings.
Get up, get moving.
Get your vocal cords warmed up. Brew a cup of coffee or tea and be ready for your day. Brush your teeth!
Speaking of getting up and goingthat means changing out of your jammies too.
But theyre so comfortable!
No. No. No. No.
This is just as much a mental game as a physical game and dressing the part can really help you kick your mind into the right frame to get you the job. If youre slouching around and being lazy, it will come through in your intervieweven if youre trying your hardest to fake it. Trust us, interviewers will know
Dress the partget the part.
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Prepare Your Own Cheat Sheet
Like all good interviews, its not just about answering questions, but asking the right ones as well.
The right questions not only help you get information you might need to make an informed decision regarding the job, but it also helps confirm your qualifications as the ideal candidate for the position.
Ask about the different aspects of the job and express genuine interest and excitement in the opportunity.
Take the time to make sure that this is the organization you want to work foritll save you a ton of heartache and headaches in the long run.
Dont be afraid to dig for more details about the position and the company.
Ask questions about the job that werent covered in the job postingask about specifics and get details.
You need to know exactly what youre getting into before you say yes to the job
Make sure you prepare your own list of questions before you start. Make sure your questions are thoughtful and have a purpose.
Need some examples to use or ideas to kick start your own list? Check out our Top 14 Questions to Ask In An Interview blog post.
Remember though to keep these questions short and sweet. Again, remember, Its not about you, its about them. How can you fulfill their needs?
End The Call Effectively
If the interviewer is bringing the call to an end without discussing the next steps, speak up! Express your enthusiasm for moving forward, saying something like this:
Thank you for your time today. Ive enjoyed speaking with you, learning more about this opportunity, and I would be very happy to discuss more about it in person.
Ask if email is the best method for staying in touch .
If an in-person interview is not scheduled at the end of the call, find out when and how you can follow up with the employer.
Be sure to ask for contact information of the person, or people, who will be your contact.
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Prepare For Your Interview
JobTestPrep offers an Interview PrepPack that is designed to help you ace an interview and bring you one step closer to the job you’re after. We provide you the tools to pick relevant interview questions and assess your overall interview skills, thus giving you the chance to thoroughly improve as well as highlight your strengths. Start preparing today to ensure your success.
Phone Interview Tips That Will Land You A Second Interview
By Jeff Gillis
Congratulations!
Your resume is stellar, your application was impeccable, youve caught a potential employers attention and now they want to get to know you better.
In years gone by that would have meant an in person interview but in todays increasingly busy digital world, many preliminary and some final interviews are being held in a wide variety of mediums including on the phone.
A phone interview? As in, we talk on the phone and not actually in person? As in, they have NO idea what Im actually wearing during the interview!? This is AMAZING!
Great, right?
FREE BONUS PDF CHEAT SHEET: Get our “Phone Interview Questions & Answers Cheat Sheet” that gives you word for word sample answers to the most common phone interview questions that you can use in your next phone interview.
Nothing like an interview for your dream job where you can lounge around in your pajamas, secretly watching TV out of the corner of your eye and, gasp, maybe even surf the web at the same time and update your status to Kickin it in my footie jammies knockin out my interview!
Nothis guy isnt ready for his phone interview!
Not so fast. Yes, its true, your future boss might not need to know that youre on the other end of the line in your favorite Scooby Doo flannels, but that doesnt mean that you shouldnt treat the phone interview as seriously, if not more seriously, than any other standard interview.
But..butbut
No buts.
More seriously? Is that even a thing?
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Why Are You Applying For This Position
Another common question, Why are you applying for this position? or What about this job interests you? tells employers whether or not you are serious and have a genuine interest in pursuing the position. To answer this question, use details listed in the job description that made you want to apply. This can be duties listed in the job description, details about the company or something about the job that aligns with your career goals.
Example answer:Ive been working for several years on gaining skills in your industry. I feel I have the knowledge, skills and qualifications youre looking for, along with a unique perspective coming from a different industry. I am passionate about working in the environmental protection space, and it is time for me to make a change. I feel your company is the perfect place for me to do that.
Never Talk Over The Interviewer
You might be eager to get your point across or talk about your experience, but interrupting the interviewer is awkward and rude when youre speaking on the phone, even more so than in face-to-face interviews. Interviewing can be stressful and sometimes that stress manifests itself in speaking too fast, speaking too loud, talking over the interviewer, or attempting to answer the interviewer’s question before they have actually finished asking the question, says Taylor. Don’t do this. Theres a big difference between being assertive and being aggressive, and interviewers can always recognize it.
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