Some businesses are built around coaching job seekers on interview best practices – ours included! Many candidates dread the interview process and become a pile of nerves as soon as their name is called. Interviewers know this and are used to this. We know that for most people, the interview is an uncomfortable time. We have given and will continue to give you lots of tips around interviewing best practices and thought for this article we would concentrate on some general tips that should be kept in mind when answering each question.
1. Do your preparation ahead of time. Look for the common interview questions and have lots of answers prepared.
2. Ensure to work your top accomplishments and impressive items into your answers.
3. Stick to the point. Often we see interview candidates go off on tangents and even ask to have the question repeated after they have been talking for a solid 5 minutes.
4. Don’t hog the interview, if the interviewer has stopped making notes, they probably have what they are looking for – they will ask you for more examples if they need them.
5. Wrap up your answers. Think about your answer like a very short story. A story starts with a quick intro, the points and then wraps up by rounding off the question.
Think about being on the other side of the table. You are there to find out if the candidate is indeed the best fit for the role. You want to have a positive experience with the candidate, be engaged and see a natural fit. Ensure you now -as the candidate- show the interview that you are this fit.
Practice, practice, practice. Be positive, smile when you answer and give eye contact. You can do it!