If you're about to participate in job interviews, heed these seven rules to make them successful.
No. 1: Make a Great First Impression
First impressions are critical to a successful job interview, and most employers know whether you're a good fit within the first several minutes of meeting. Important elements of a first impression include your attire, smile, handshake, eye contact, posture, attitude, communication style, and introduction or elevator speech. Be ready: You only get one chance to make a positive first impression.
No. 2: Answer the Interviewer's Question
Unless the question is inappropriate or illegal, you should always provide a response to the interviewer's question. We can't emphasize this enough: Answer the question you're asked, not the question you wanted them to ask.
If the question is unclear, ask them to repeat it. If you need to think for a few minutes, do so and then answer as best you can. Responses that don't address the question asked can make a hiring manager think you're avoiding their question or hiding something. Neither of these increases your chances of success during an interview.
No. 3: Be Prepared
Successful interviews require preparation, and managers can tell when you haven't done so. The bottom line is that your level of preparation reflects your level of effort and commitment to the position. Candidates who don't adequately prepare are telling the hiring manager they aren't willing to do what it takes and don't really want the position. Don't make this obvious mistake. Prepare for the interview and make it obvious that you're committed.
No. 4: Be Professional
Remain professional at all times during the hiring process, regardless of the situation. Your goal is to land the job, not to get a date or become buddies with a potential co-worker. Don't allow an off-the-record discussion, a rude individual, inappropriate comment or a mistake while answering a question derail your efforts. Stay focused and be professional at all times.
No. 5: Be Yourself and Be Confident
Be yourself and have confidence in your abilities during the hiring process, even if you don't feel it. Get rid of filler words such as "like", "um" and "ah", and don't fidget. While confidence is critical, be careful that you don't go overboard and appear arrogant.
No. 6: Ask Good Questions
Successful interviews should be more of a dialogue than a one-way conversation. You need to come up with multiple questions beforehand and always be thinking of relevant, appropriate questions during the interview. A lack of questions can signal that you're unengaged or desperate, neither of which is good.
No. 7: Show Them How You Will Add Value
This is an important and often overlooked rule of interviewing. Remember, the only reason an organization goes through the hiring process and conducts interviews is because it has a need. During an interview, you need to show the company how your qualifications (education, skills and experience) align with its needs and how you will add value to its organization. Anything less may result in failure.
Brian Niswander is an active-duty Air Force veteran, a reservist and the founder of Military-Transition.org and InterviewSkills101.com. After 25 years of working with service members and veterans in both Fortune 500 and public sector organizations, he launched an independent study of the military-to-civilian transition process to help service members better understand and successfully navigate their move into the civilian workforce. He also provides materials about the civilian hiring process and conducts interactive workshops through InterviewSkills101.com.
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