Interviews have to be one of the most nerve racking scenarios that most of us have to go through during our working lives. Chances are that you are going to have to go through a whole host of interviews throughout your life; some of which will be successful and result in employment and some of which will be unsuccessful. Most of the time, the success of an interview is down to the way that you handle it so we thought we’d share a few tips with you that will help you get through your interviews with ease.
Creating a good first impression
Whenever you meet someone new in everyday life, a huge percentage of what you do and say in those first few seconds determines their overall impression of you. It is no different when it comes to job interviews and first impressions really do count. There are a whole host of things you can do to create a good first impression including the following:
#1 – Dress smart
It doesn’t matter what kind of job you are being interviewed for, you need to ensure that you are dressed to impress. To be honest, there are very few jobs where you should even consider not dressing as smart as possible and therefore, a suit will rarely create a negative impact and will be the perfect attire for most job interviews.
It is important to remember that you can go one step further than this if you want to make a good first impression however. For example, you can make sure that your shoes are shined prior to leaving the house. You can also make sure that your clothing is clean and well fitting; ironing should also be carried out with precision before any job interview too.
Basically, the point we are trying to get at is that you should take pride in your appearance when going for a job interview. Everyone dresses smartly in a suit or similar attire, so going one step further and ensuring that you are immaculately dressed in bound to create a good impression on your potential employer.
#2 – Have confidence
An important part of a successful job interview is having confidence. By this we don’t mean you should ‘swagger’ in as if you own the place, but you should have a certain air of confidence about you.
Of course, the truth of the matter is more than likely that you won’t feel immensely confident when attending a job interview; luckily however, there are a few tips and tricks you can take on board to appear a little more confident than you are.
First of all, you should make sure you adopt a confident walk. This means standing straight and walking proudly. Don’t overdo it, just make sure that you aren’t slouched over as if you couldn’t care less.
Secondly, you should adopt a firm handshake and greet the employer in a confident manor when you first meet them. If you have to, prepare the exact words that you are going to say to them upon the handshake. Something along the lines of “Good Morning Sir/Madam, I’m very pleased to meet you” won’t go a miss.
Lastly, you should actually feel genuinely confident. You wouldn’t have applied for the job or being invited for an interview if both you and the potential employer didn’t think you could do the job well and therefore, you have nothing not to be confident about. Yes, there might be other candidates, but remember, they are going through the same nerve-racking situation as you.
#3 – Arrive early
So many people these days are late for job interviews. This certainly does not create the best first impression so you should make every effort possible to arrive not just on-time, but early. Don’t arrive too early however, otherwise you will more than likely be left sat there weighing up the interview and worrying yourself about your performance. However, arriving 5 – 10 minutes early is perfect; this way you can make sure to really think about what you are going to say during the interview and take in your surroundings too.
Research the company prior to the interview
Surprisingly, this is something that so many people neglect when it comes to interviews. You should ALWAYS do your homework when it comes to interviews as you are likely to face a whole plethora of questions from the potential employer regarding this subject. Questions like “So, what makes you want to work for said company?” or “How would you describe what we do here at said company in one sentence?” The questions can sometimes be challenging, so the more knowledge you have on the company, the easily they will be for you to answer.
There are a lot of places you can research the company before the interview, with the main place being online. Check out the company’s website and read as much content as you possibly can. If you know who the interviewer will be prior to the interview, research them individually on LinkedIn or other social networking sites too as this can be a huge benefit.
Think outside the box
So many people follow a set path when attending interviews these days, and while this is obviously done for a reason, you can often impress the potential employer by thinking outside the box. Unique thinking is a skill that is highly valued in most positions and organisations so demonstrating this during an interview is always a good choice.
Now, thinking outside the box is something that you have to figure out yourself although it could be something as simple as taking along a portfolio of your work to the interview and letting the potential employer know that you feel this will help him/her in their decision as it is a much better representation of your work than your CV. Whatever it is, make sure that it won’t be taken the wrong way by the interviewer.
About The Author
Roger works for Jam Recruitment; a UK based engineering jobs website with hundreds of job listings and regular blog posts providing insightful information such as tips on writing a perfect CV.
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