How to Prepare for Your Job Interview
Essential steps to get you interview ready
As a job candidate, I know the stress of getting ready for an interview.
Do I know enough about the company?
Do my interview responses show me in the best light?
What if something goes wrong?
As an interviewer, I want every candidate to have a successful interview. In this situation “successful” doesn’t mean that the candidate will definitely get the job. Every candidate can’t get the job.
In this situation, “successful” means that the candidate communicates their relevant skills and learns more about the role.
As the interviewer, I assess if the candidate is a good match for the role. As the candidate, you assess if the role is a good match for you.
Whether you’ve got a week to prepare or your interview is tomorrow, you can set yourself up for success. So how do you prepare if you don’t know where to start? Focus on the parts of the interview that you can control.
The interview is a conversation, not an interrogation. Advocate for yourself.
Interviews can be a point of anxiety, but they don't have to be. There are certain things you can do to put yourself in a position to bring your A game in any interview. Here are a few essential tasks to complete before your next interview.
🔅🔅🔅
1. Research the company before the interview
This step puts you in the best position to talk about how you are a good fit for the company and the role. Submitting your application, says that you’re interested in the job. Doing your research shows that you actually want the job. You’ve taken initiative to learn about the company.
Your Research Checklist
Here is some key information to look up before the interview:
Company ‘About’ page
Company mission, vision, and values
Company products and services
Industry news
Employee reviews
Your interviewers
🔅🔅🔅
2. Conduct a mock interview
The interview process can be stressful because people think of it as more of an interrogation than what it actually is - a conversation. To get more comfortable with the interview process, practice, practice, practice. When you're prepared, you're able to let your personality shine through during the interview.
Common interview questions to prepare with:
Tell me about yourself.
Why should we hire you?
Why do you want to work for this organization?
What are your strengths?
Can you tell me about a time you had a conflict at work? How did you resolve it?
Your interview practice criteria
Start with recording yourself. Fortunately, you can use your phone for this. Record with video, so you can critique your responses and your physical delivery. If you can only record audio, or you can’t record yourself at all, practice in front of a mirror or ask someone to observe and provide feedback.
I’m not going to lie - it’s probably going to be painful to watch yourself, but it will get easier each time. So what things are you looking out for?
Relevance
Do: Stay on topic and make sure you’re actually answering each interview question.
Don't: Ramble
Response delivery
Do: Keep your responses short and to the point.
Don't: Rush
Physical presentation
Do: Maintain good posture, eye contact, and a pleasant demeanor.
Don't: Slouch, cross arms, use closed body language
Practice until you get comfortable. I recommend doing this at least 3 times, making improvements each time.
🔅🔅🔅
3. Prepare to interview the interviewer
At the end of every interview, the interviewer asks if you have any questions. Your answer should always be 'Yes'!
Why? First, it gives you an opportunity to learn more about your needs. Do you need to work from home? Do you need flexible work hours? What management style do you like?
Second, it shows that you are actively engaged in the conversation about the role and the company.
This is your chance to interview your interviewer. Ask the questions about the things that are important to you, so you can make the best decision for you.
Questions to ask your interviewer
1. How does the company's mission, vision, or values influence your day-to-day work?
Purpose: Assess the practical impact and implementation of the company’s core values. If there is a specific point of the mission, vision, or values that is important to you, ask about that particular component.
2. What about your work motivates you to come in and give 100%?
Purpose: Learn what drives these employees to commit to what they do.
3. Are there any skills that unexpectedly helped you be successful in this role?
Purpose: Gain greater insight about the position. Create an opportunity to discuss your competency with that skill, should you have it. This question is good for the interviewer who is, or has been, in the position for which you are applying.
4. Why is this position available?
Purpose: Understand why the position is available. Was the last person promoted? Did they change departments? Were they let go? Did they find an opportunity elsewhere? The response to this question can be a helpful indicator of the team, department, or company’s current health.
5. What will I be expected to accomplish in the first 90 days?
Purpose: Show that you are committed to getting clarity about the role, being a team player, and getting results.
6. Are there any remaining questions or concerns regarding my ability to be successful in this role?
Purpose: To address and resolve any doubts the interviewer may have about you as the ideal candidate. Ask each interviewer this question.
When your interviewers meet to evaluate your interviews, you will have addressed (and assuaged) their concerns.
