Preparing for tough interviews

You just got the call inviting you to interview for your dream job. You are the perfect candidate, the pay is right and you are excited to have the opportunity. And then it strikes. That lurking monster called FEAR. All of a sudden you are not sure if you have the skills they are looking for. What should you say? How do you convince your dream company to choose you?

These are common questions asked by many job seekers when faced with issues and the key to performing well and leaving a lasting impression with potential employers is preparation.  As you begin planning for your upcoming interview, we recommend doing your due diligence and becoming familiar with the job ad or description provided for key responsibilities and requirements, reviewing the branding messages of the company for clues as to the organizations culture and trying to read between the lines for potential “pain points” or challenges being experienced by the company you are interviewing for.  To gain insight in to these areas, take a look at company websites, their LinkedIn page, review additional social media pages and reviews on sites such as glassdoor.com, indeed.com or Google.

On the day of your interview, you will most likely be interviewed in a style called Behavioral based as this is the most common approach used today by recruiters and hiring managers. Questions asked in this format are designed for you to describe situations that demonstrate your typical behavior. Examples include:

• Tell me about a time you worked with a difficult customer.
• Describe for me a situation you handled that you would consider a crisis.

In answering these questions, try to be as descriptive as possible and speak to the issue including areas of perceived focus. Next, use Success Stories. Success Stories should include key selling points related to the job posting such as “What makes you the best candidate for the job?”, “Why do you want the job?”, or “What strengths and skills do you offer that they are searching for?” A simple format to following that will help you deliver these points is the S.T.A.R. method which means Situation, Task, Action and Result. Your Success Stories should show the interviewing team how you:

• Solve problems
• Your style and personality
• Your priorities
• Your strengths

And the KEY to this format is to provide RESULTS that are memorable. Show what you can do! Here’s an example:

Question: Describe how you thrive in difficult situations.

Situation: I worked with an unhappy client (be descriptive).

Result: I solved their problem. Landed a contract that increased revenue by 18%.

Lastly, some important things to remember in answering interview questions is to always be positive, keep your answers to around 60-90 seconds and be articulate. Next week we will discuss typical interview questions and provide examples of how to answer these questions.