Here I am going to tell you a few tips on “Cracking a Job Interview”. First let’s get this straight, First thing is your appearance and body language. You should be well dressed preferably in a formal dress or business casuals. Please be clean shaved and you should appear quite active and energetic. And remember fill out a job application and get the job only when a position is open!
So, its about the job you really want- weather it be a receptionist job at a school or a operations manager’s job in a giant MNC. Choose a job that has some competition for the position. Where you have opportunities to grow and succeed.
You should have an excellent resume. It’s doesn’t have to be crammed with lots of stuff… by excellent, I mean that it is well written and it should look professional. It should not be hand-written or typed on a typewriter. The printout should be neat and clear on a white paper. A best resume is never more than 3 pages long with highlighted main points.
So now lets start with the Interview:
1) Always greet your interviewer or employer first instead of waiting for a hello or good morning from his end.
2) Instead of hello or hi, use professional greetings like Good morning or Good afternoon.
3) Always sit straight and do not lean on the chair or table.
4) There should be a smile on your face and be optimistic. Always bear a positive approach to almost everything.
5) Use proper English during the interview and avoid using unprofessional language or jargons.
6) Avoid verbal blunders that could cost you the job like :
YEAH instead of YES,
GONNA or WANNA instead of GOING TO or WANT TO,
AKSED instead of ASKED,
AIN’T instead of ISN’T,
DON’T instead of DOESN’T,
HOW IS YOU instead of HOW ARE YOU,
CV instead of RESUME,
THANKS instead of THANKYOU,
NOPE instead of NO etc.
7) You should be heard clearly instead of being loud. Being loud is not always a good sign.
8) Answer all the questions confidently and don’t look confused even if you don’t know the answer or simply say – “I DON’T KNOW”.
9) When you speak look straight in to the eyes of the interviewer and sound like a grown-up professional adult.
10) During the interview do not make too many gestures with your hands and face.
11) You have to prove during the interview that you are the person that company wants to hire.
During an interview you need to be the person that you think the company wants to hire. The very least you can do is, sound like a grown-up professional adult.
Here are some examples of the questions on how they should be answered:
So during the interview, when the employer asks:
Do you own your own transportation?
Answer:
“I don’t own my own car, but I’ve made arrangements to get to work.” Or “Yes, I have my own transport.”
Why do you want to work for this company?
Answer:
“I am looking for a career more than a job. I’ve read some great things about this company and based on the job description I believe that my skills and experience will be a good fit.
Why did you leave your last job?
Answer:
“There wasn’t any scope for growth in my last position”
What are your strengths and weaknesses?
Answer:
“Funny you should ask, I guess my weakness could also be considered my strength. I’ve been accused of being too organized. I like to have everything in it’s place, I like to complete a task, you know, follow it through to make sure it’s completed, then file all of the paperwork appropriately before I leave for the day”
FINALLY…. THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THE INTERVIEW… and the part that most people don’t take advantage of….. the part where they ask: Do you have any questions for me?
This is where you can shine and out-stand the rest. All you need to do is check out the company online, to get a little information and figure out some questions to ask. Here are some examples:
1) Is this a new position or has someone recently left, leaving his position available. (if they left, and the interviewer doesn’t say why… then say: May I ask why they left?)
2) How many employees work at this location?
3) Who would I be working with?
4) I noticed online that your company has several locations, is the position for this location?
IMPORTANT– don’t ask about salary or vacation or holidays. These questions can be asked when you are offered the job. AND if they ask you what you are expecting to earn… give them a range. There is no reason to bid against yourself. Unless you already know exactly how high they are willing to go… give them a range… and when you are offered the job, you can discuss the specifics.
SO… remember… speak proper English.
Sit up straight
BE A GROWN UP… Confident, Educated… and perfect for the job.
Good Luck!!
