Things To Do Right In An Interview
These tips will help you prepare for the big day of your professional interview! Follow these tips and you’ll get through the big interview with flying colors! Whether you have a mock interview, or are starting to prepare for your professional career, practice these tips to properly prepare for the big day!
1) Dressing the Part
In order to impress the company you’re interviewing with, you must dress accordingly. Wearing business attire, suites, a nice dress, or a pantsuit if you’re a girl, you want to avoid dressing in your normal day clothes, including yoga pants.
Always wear the appropriate attire, and make sure to wear professional business attire as well as to practice good hygiene and present yourself like you want the company to see you.
2) Review the Questions The Interviewers Will Ask You
Make sure to prepare a list of questions that could possibly be asked by the interviewer. You can practice your interviewing skills with a friend, or you could sign up for an interview with Interviewstream through the Pomerantz Career Center. The Interviewstream will ask questions assimilated with actual professional interviews, and you will get to see the feedback from your interview. All you need is a camera, or you can even schedule an interview in the interview stream room at the Pomerantz Career Center!
3) Do Enough Research on the Company
4) Be Respectful of the Interviewers
5) Good Non-Verbal Behavior
What To Do After An Interview
First of all, take a deep breath, youve gotten through the most stressful part. While waiting for a response from the hiring manager can definitely be frustrating, knowing what to do after an interview can actually help you influence the outcome. Once youve accomplished these steps, you can rest assured that you did everything in your power to get the job offer.
Whats One Fact Thats Not On Your Linkedin Profile
Heres another open-ended question to ask an interviewee that can help you uncover some interesting insights. Similar to asking, What do you think I need to know that we havent discussed? it could spark some conversation about a hobby outside of their 9-to-5 life or even a compelling story that reveals more of their strengths and motivations. This question can help you understand not just what a job candidate has done, but why.
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Learn The Types Of Interview Questions
At this point, its time to start figuring out how to work in relevant details into interview answers. One of the best ways to start is to learn about the different kinds of interview questions.
If you need to say no, youll need a different approach. Pivot by discussing how you intend to acquire the skill or by focusing on your willingness to learn and excitement about professional development. Many hiring managers will consider a candidate who doesnt have every hard skill if they are enthusiastic and have potential, so this method can work.
For behavioral interview questions, youll need a robust strategy. Usually, combining the STAR Method and the Tailoring Method is the best approach. So, lets take a look at those.
Connect With The Hiring Manager
In the course of your research, you might find that the hiring manager went to your school or lived in your hometown, or you might learn that the company sponsors a day of volunteering on an annual basis. Use what youve learned to forge a genuine connection to the people youre speaking with. Show your enthusiasm.
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The Night Before Your Interview
- Read through your notes, resume, cover letter, job description, company or industry summaries one last time.
- Know the route you will take to the location and how much travel time you will need.
- Build in additional time to ensure you are not late.
Youre ready! Get a good nights sleep to ensure that youre at your best on the day of the interview.
A Colleague Interrupts You To Ask For Help When You Are Already Busy How Do You Respond
It’s easy to fall into the trap of focusing exclusively on the candidate when performing an interview, but you also need to recognize that they will be a part of a larger team. How they work with others is of paramount importance, even if they work alone. Why? Because disagreements between colleagues can prove highly detrimental to both work and health.
Asking this question will give you insight into how your candidate may work with others. Again, it’s essential to understand that the content of the answer isn’t necessarily the most important part, but how they tackle the question. If they effectively dismiss their hypothetical colleague with no hesitation, that could be a red flag. If they provide solid reasoning for not helping their colleague, that shows an ability to prioritize. Focus on how they justify their response.
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Tell Us About A Time You Had To Think Creatively To Solve A Problem
Consider the purpose behind this question a mixture of one and two. You want your candidate to demonstrate previous experience, but you also want to see their creativity get to work. This query is a more direct way of achieving both things but is still open enough to allow the candidate to show their character.
With these hypothetical scenario questions, pay close attention to how a candidate answers rather than the specific story they share. It will give you an idea of how they may react when presented with a similar situation if they worked for you. That is precisely the kind of insight you’re looking for from an interview.
Directions And Contact Information
If you cant find the building and arrive late, you may have shot yourself in the foot. Thats why it helps to bring directions on how to get to your interview as well as where to park.
You may also want to print out pictures of the building or write down nearby landmarks to help you find it easier. Write down your interviewers name and phone number in case you do get lost and need assistance.
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So When You Answer What Skills Do You Need To Improve Pick A Real Area Youd Like To Get Better At But Make Sure Its Not Something Essential To The Job
You can choose something youre already pretty good at, but still trying to improve even more. You can choose something that you learned a long time ago but havent used in recent jobs very much.
You can name something not directly related to your work but something youre passionate about learning. For example, maybe youre an Accountant but someday youd like to be a Team Leader, so youd like opportunities to improve your leadership. You could suggest that youd like to lead a meeting or project to begin, just to build out that skill-set over the long term.
Lets look at some example answers and this will start to make more sense
Ill put that Accountant example above as the first example.
What Not To Bring Or Do
Doing the following will likely ruin your chances of getting the job:
- Dont carry in your morning coffee or protein shake.
- Don’t bring your parent or anyone else with you.
- Dont arrive talking on a cell phone or texting. Turn off your phone before you enter the building and store it in a handbag or briefcase.
- Dont wear a hat or cap leave it at home.
- Dont chew gum or suck candy.
- Dont overwhelm the interviewer with your piercings or tattoos. If you have a lot of piercings or earrings, remove them, so they arent a distraction. One pair of earrings, such as small studs or hoops, is acceptable. Do your best to cover your tattoos.
- Dont wear strong perfume or cologne you never know if someone is allergic in the office.
- Don’t wear leisure clothes such as jeans, workout wear, sneakers, or flip flops. Wear a pants or dress suit and close-toed shoes.
- Don’t appear with messy, unwashed hair. Make sure your hair is clean and off of your face.
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Bring References To Support Your Character And Qualifications
You also should bring references to your interview. So, think of three people who can vouch for you who are not family. You should feel confident that each person will respond to an employers inquiries. Therefore, make sure you include individuals who you can notify ahead of time about a possible contact. Once you have determined who to use as references, write down each of their full names, telephone number, and indicate how they know you. Type and print out a list, providing a copy for each person with whom you will be interviewing.
Contact Information And Directions
While there are many things you can control during the interview, getting there is not one of them and traffic or public transport can easily let you down. Plan ahead how you will get there and make sure you have the contact details of the person you are meeting in case you need to contact them for anything.
Have directions to where you are going before hand and if you can, find your way there before the interview, so you know exactly where you are going.
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Tips For Great Job Interviews
From researching the company to handling certain key interview questions, make sure you make a great impression and ace your next job interview by following these 20 tips.
Want to ace your next interview and land thatopen job youve been seeking? Here are 20 tips to help you prepare.1. Research the industry and company.An interviewer may ask how you perceive his company’s position in its industry, who the firm’s competitors are, what its competitive advantages are, and how it should best go forward. For this reason, avoid trying to thoroughly research a dozen different industries. Focus your job search on just a few industries instead.
Practice Your Speaking Voice Body Language And Mannerisms
Confidence and body language are a great way to make a good first impression. Practice a strong speaking voice and friendly body language. Nodding your head while listening, planting your feet to the ground while sitting and sitting all the way back in your seat are just some things to keep in mind during your interview.
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Tell Me About Something On Your Resume
Everyone has something on their resume that theyâre really proud of. Whether itâs a skill or achievement youâve listed or a specific place you worked, considering answering this question with the most interesting thing on your resume. Plus, donât just say something relevant to your most recent positionâyouâre already going to be asked about that. Instead, think back to one of the older positions listed on your resume and talk about how that job helped you grow into the person you are today.
Find Out The Type Of Interview You Will Be Going On:
There are several common types of interviews such as one on one, group, and behavioral. You shouldnt assume you will get a certain one. Dont be afraid to ask your recruiter what kind of interview will have if you dont know the interview will be more beneficial to both parties if you are prepared.
READ MORE: 6 Interview Types You Must Know as a Candidate
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Things You Should Not Do In An Interview
When youre applying for a job, you may think that recruiters only evaluate your educational background, work experience, and skills. That may be true, but just for the initial phase. Keep in mind that even though you have the right skillset and knowledge that companies are looking for, recruiters and hiring managers may ignore your application based on inappropriate behaviors during the interview.
First impressions last. As for job interviews, you need to present yourself as a professional who demonstrates proper behavior.
There are several things that can go wrong during an interview which can affect your chances of landing that job. Recruiters can let go of some of them, but several mistakes are considered deal-breakers.
So, what are the common mistakes that candidates do to disqualify themselves from the job? Here are seven things that you should not do in an interview:
#1 Arrive late
Punctuality says a lot about a job candidate. It demonstrates your respect for the time of the interviewer and that you really want the job. If youre late for something as important as a job interview, how can you be relied on for other matters? Arrive about 15 minutes before your scheduled interview time. In case of an emergency that will prevent you from showing up on time, make sure to inform the interviewer.
#2 Wear clothes that are too casual
#3 Skip your personal hygiene ritual
#4 Check your phone all the time
#5 Avoid eye contact
#6 Play with something on the table
Be Ready For The Small Talk
Getting the small talk right can have big consequences. Its a way for people to build rapport and affinity, and start to generate that elusive, intangible quality of chemistry that characterises all effective business relationships.
So as part of your interview preparation, its a good idea to think ahead to some likely topics that might come up, so as to help keep the conversation flowing smoothly. The key is to come up with topics where you have a shared interest, so that youre able to both ask and answer credible questions.
For example, if you see a picture of your interviewers family, perhaps you could ask about them and be ready with a family anecdote of your own. Or if youre a sports fan and you spot signs that your interviewer is too, perhaps you could ask a suitable question that youve also got an interesting answer to .
Think, too, about topical themes. For example, has your potential employer been in the news recently? Or could you ask about the potential impact on the company of a recent development, such as Brexit or falling share prices or a serious malware attack? In each case, make sure you have an interesting thought of your own to contribute too.
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Questions For The Interviewer
Questions for the interviewer arent optional in todays competitive job market theyre necessary. Asking thoughtful questions shows that youve done your research and are genuinely interested in the position.
Make sure your questions are related to the company and what you can do to help them, said Fletcher Wimbush, CEO of The Hire Talent. Stay away from self-focused questions like Can I work from home on Fridays? or What is the 401 plan like?
You should only ask those types of questions after youve received an offer.
Do You Expect The Bank Of Canada To Continue To Raise Rates
This is a bit of a trick question, because there’s one thing you should absolutely include in your answer.
The reality is that you can look to the overnight index swaps market to see how priced in rate hikes are over various durations. So, for example, in early January of 2022 traders had priced in a 70% likelihood that the Bank of Canada would raise rates from 0.25% to 0.5%. However, the Bank of Canada shocked market participants by staying at the 0.25% level that had been in place for the last few years.
Even with the delay in takeoff from the 0.25% level, the market is still pricing in around six rate hikes in 2022 .
So when answering this question you shouldn’t just give your unqualified opinion, but rather say that the market is pricing in a certain amount of hikes over the next year as you can tell by looking at the short-term rates market. You can find out how many hikes are being priced in at any given moment by either using a Bloomberg terminal or just finding a recently updated free Bloomberg article .
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Video Interview Bonus: Anything That Looks Weird On Camera
Due to COVID-19, video interviews are increasingly common. If youre getting ready to meet with the hiring manager virtually, then you need to make sure that the attire you chose looks good on camera.
What many people dont realize is that certain colors and patterns dont appear the same when viewed through a lens or screen. For example, white and black can actually be bad choices for video interviews, as well as many bright colors.
At times, patterns can also get a bit muddied with viewed on camera. It can cause some strange color shifts, some of which may not be flattering.
When in doubt, stick with neutrals that arent black or white. Navy blues, mid-toned beiges, deep greens, soft maroons, and similar hues can work well, along with many pastels. Once you have some options ready, test your outfit on camera before your video interview, just to be safe.
Tell Me About A Conflict You Faced At Work And How You Dealt With It
This question is important to ace because it helps an interviewer understand how you deal with conflict. It also helps test how well you think on your feetâso if you prepare ahead of time with a specific example, youâll avoid the awkward moment of silence while you try to think of an example.
Once you have an example in mind, simply explain what happened, how you resolved the issue in a professional manner, and try to end the story with a happy note about how you reached a resolution or compromise with your co-worker.
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