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Big Interview, Must Prepare!
AbsoluteZero
The new film by Quentin KoopantinoRegistered User regular
The new film by Quentin KoopantinoRegistered User regular
So I've got a big interview coming up. Arguably the biggest of my life. It's for a management position that pays twice as much as what I'm making now, and with student loans coming out of my ears... I NEED to nail this interview.
I've only got a few days... Any good tips for interview preparation? What works for you guys when you really need to perform well on an important interview?
I'm so excited and nervous about this, I think I may have poo'd a little.
I've only got a few days... Any good tips for interview preparation? What works for you guys when you really need to perform well on an important interview?
I'm so excited and nervous about this, I think I may have poo'd a little.
AbsoluteZero on
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Seriously. You're the right person for the job, right? It'll show. They will ferret that information out. It will not help if you stress yourself to death.
Hopefully other people will actually have more specific preparation tips, but seriously, learning to relax has helped me in interviews, tests, check flights, toppling small governments...
I had the best interview I've done, which got me my current job, when I was already sitting on two other offers. Since I didn't have anything to lose, I was really relaxed, and trust me, it comes through. As (understandably) nervous as you are, you have to try to just let it go and be yourself. If your answers don't sound canned, you'll already have an edge on the vast majority of the candidates.
One other thing - think of some questions to ask them beforehand. An interview isn't an audition; it's a chance to see if you and the employer are a good match. Not having any questions to ask the interviewer makes you look desperate.
Other times they will ask seemingly-unrelated questions at an attempt to see how you reason. A lot of people try to prep for those questions, but the truth is, if you've prepared for that question they've already heard your answer. If you haven't prepped for that question, then how you react will determine how well you've answered the question. In many ways, the substance of the answer to that question is not the point. What they want to see is how you explain your thinking process and your general temperament to being "put on the spot". In either case, the win-win proposition for you is to be calm, think things through, and try to explain how you deconstruct the problem and come to a solution to it in the best way you can. Trying to have the answer before you know the question will not do you any good.
The other questions they like to ask you are usually related to the job itself. In this case, demonstrating a fundamental understanding of how your job works, how it relates to other jobs, how it relates to the company as a whole, and the interpersonal/organizational dynamics required by that job, will be key. That sounds like a huge list, but it's not. You already have demonstrated some capability and competence - otherwise they would not waste the time on an interview. My recommendation is to think about the job you want in terms of the job you already have. What did you see that worked? What did you see that didn't work? How would you improve things? What things are important to have (tools/resources/personality traits/management styles) in order to do the job well?
The key to everything, I believe, is just to prepare for the interview by studying what you do now, and what you would like to do in the future. Trying to study for the interview itself is sort of besides the point. Study what you do. That will allow you to be more calm because will be more assured in your preparation for the job itself, and you will have a better understanding of what will be entailed. It's easy to answer questions about a car if you know how to take it apart and put it back together again.
As a last general point, you will almost always have an opportunity to ask questions of the interviewer, either directly or as part of the general flow of the conversation. Take the time to think about what you would like to ask that would demonstrate your competence, your understanding of the job, and also your willingness to take that extra step to succeed. Even a generic question such as, "What, in your estimation, are things which aren't easily foreseen but often can cause someone to fail or perform poorly in this position?" would work in most of these cases. Other times you will only have a small opportunity to ask a good follow-up question in a conversation - in those cases just demonstrate an informed curiosity of the job itself, and take those as small wins. And in all seriousness, you may feel like you need this job, but you don't want a job that isn't right for you, either. Investigating the actual job requirements and expectations is just good, common sense. Do what's right for you.
In summary:
1. Relax
2. Think more fully about the job itself, not about the interview
3. Demonstrate your preparation and knowledge
4. Any question not directly related to the job will most likely require a thoughtful, reasoned process rather than an actual solution/answer
5. Ask questions about the job
6. Relax
Look over the website for the company and have some questions ready. Even if the website answered all of your questions, re-iterate something that stood out to you and ask about it. For instance I'm trying to leave my current job because it's a small company which is incredibly unstable and bleeding money. I looked at the website for the place I interviewed recently, another small company, saw on the website that they've been around longer than my current company and profitable every single year. I re-iterated that as a question.. "So, I was looking at your website and it says you've been around since 1996. And you have been profitable every year?"... they answer... "Great, that's good to hear since I'm really looking for more stability right now". Being a technical position I asked about their development environment, tools they use, etc.
Dress nicely. Generally, you dress a step up from the normal workplace attire. So if it's casual, dress business casual. If it's business casual, wear a suit. In any case, a suit always works, it's better to overdress than to underdress.
This next bit could be tricky. Learn to "match" people. What I mean by that is see how they carry themselves, their motions, and adopt a similar style. This is walking a fine line between making them comfortable, and making it seem like you are mocking them.
The best explanation is, if you notice when they talk, they always have eye contact, you should do the same. If they tend to look away alot and only meet eyes occasionally, do a similar pattern. If they talk somewhat slow and relaxed, or lean back in their chair, follow suit.
The matching thing is a concept a professor of mine in college taught me, and I found it works quite well. If you aren't sure though, don't try it.
What's the work schedule like?
What would a typical day on the job be like?
What responsibilities will I have?
Others may be more based on the specific job. If you ask a lot of questions, it will make you seem interested in the job as an opportunity and not just someone looking for any job.
Yeah, they got me with that one in my most recent interview...
I wish I could say "I may just be too awesome"
Would likely get some laughs as I walk out the door.
Don't drink coffee before the interview, it may make you appear more jittery. Look up some common questions given during interviews, many of these are character based; what do you do in your spare time (hobbies)?, friend and family questions, etc. Better yet, anticipate some questions they may ask you; what are some management related skills/experience/issues that may be brought up; general questions to show your potential? Write all of these down and look them over before you go in. Also, think of some questions to ask THEM. Research their company, what they do, whatever they are involved in, and come up with some questions to ask them, things you may be interested in. Interviews are primarily a one way session of question asking, but there is usually a period at the end to ask THEM question, and a time to show that you know a little bit about their company.
Bring extra copies of your resume, cover letter, references, and any other related material in a nice portfolio, just in case they don't have a copy. Make sure everything on your resume is accurate. Basically, you can poof it up and make it sound good, but do not lie about any sort of position you may have held, or title you may have had. Come up with good responses of what you did at each of your previous positions, what your responsibilities were, and reasons for leaving the company.
Dress well. Get your clothes professionally cleaned, ironed and everything. Maybe you need a haircut? Trim/file your nails, or even get them professionally done (plenty of men do it). Shine your shoes, maybe even buy a new tie (nothing too busy). And brush your damn teeth/carry some breath mints. Sometimes you need to spend a little money to make money.
Also, if you are a smoker, try to smoke in a well ventilated area prior to the interview. Wash your hands, and maybe spritz some very mild cologne. Being a smoker, you may not smell yourself, but others certainly will.
Most importantly be yourself, but sell your positive points. Hell, even explain some of your negatives and ways that you overcome them (I am forgetful but carry a notebook with detailed plans for the day, just for example).
It's different for everyone, but while I find being prepared a good thing, you don't want to over-prepare. If you're scrambling to remember the canned answer you came up with for Question B, you're going to torpedo yourself. What I like to do is come up with specific examples of things I've done that will relate to possible questions and write those things down. There's nothing wrong with coming to an interview with notes. In fact, it looks good on you. Write down questions you want to ask of them, too, more than "How much overtime will I have to work" and "When do the benefits start" (actual questions I've been asked). Also, research the company and the position. If you show them you're actually interested, they'll have a better impression of you.
Good luck. I know how it is.
For me, I always lose sleep the night before an interview. The only thing that works for me is to have a really long hot bath until I am relaxed and sleepy - then I sleep right through. I second everything else everyone else has said about the content of the interview, but have a small tidbit (which probably isn't applicable to you):
When interviewing people to take over my previous position, I went to shake hands with the first candidate. His hand was like a wet fish. I am serious, he didn't even make an effort to even move his fingers to grip my hand. It was most offputting. Nice firm handshake please!