Job Interview Tips

Welcome to interviews for jobs
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Job Interviews – More Success Secrets for People Who Want More Out of Life

Job interviews are hardly anyone’s favourite hobby. They can be boring, nerve wrecking and challenging to say the least. However, with the right attitude job interviews can be a creative and highly rewarding process. The following ideas and strategies are guaranteed to help you succeed at job interviews and make the career changes you desire.

1. Find the problem – You are being interviewed because the prospective employer has ongoing or potential problems that need to be solved on a regular basis. Consequently, your job interview success depends on how well you prove your problem-solving capabilities. Find out more about your prospective employer’s wants and needs by conducting vigorous research. For instance you can carry out internet searches, speak to relevant staff, read company literature and browse through press archives.

2. Find the solution – Anyone can identify problems but it takes a winning candidate to create helpful solutions. Whilst preparing for your job interview, seek a thorough understanding of your prospective employer’s wants and needs then brainstorm for ideas and strategies that can satisfy those wants and needs. The more solutions you can proffer, the more capable you will appear. However, try not to give away too many valuable ideas at the interview stage. Just say enough to demonstrate your expertise and generate some positive interest.

3. Fire your desire – During the job interview, your interviewers will want to know if you genuinely want the job so don’t hamper your chances by exhibiting nonchalant behaviour. Whilst preparing for the interview, fire your desire by repeatedly visualising yourself in the new role. Remember that, sooner or later, you will attract whatever you choose to focus your attention on. Be sure to maintain high levels of confidence whilst keeping your feet firmly on the ground. If you carry out your due diligence and remain persistent, you will succeed at job interviews and make the career changes you desire.

4. Get inside knowledge – It’s important to find out, beforehand, what format the job interview is going to take. Will you be asked behavioural and situational questions for instance? Will you be required to take psychological tests or make a special presentation? The more you know, the better prepared you’ll be. It also helps to find out basic information about your prospective interviewers. How many people will be interviewing you on the day? What are their names? What age group do they belong to? What are their roles within the company? Again, if you know what to expect, you’ll feel more confident at the interview. Contact prospective employers, recruitment agents and other reliable persons for insider information then adjust your responses to suit your interviewers’ preferred style.

5. Get help – People sometimes struggle with job interview preparation because they try to do everything by themselves. But why bear the burden yourself when you can easily get others to help you? For instance, you can get close relatives to practice likely questions and answers with you or pay the neighbourhood whiz kid to do some research on your behalf. If you are one of those people who can’t figure out what ’smart casual’ really means, get a fashionable friend to help you choose what to wear on the big day. If your morale is low, ask your nearest and dearest for encouragement and support. Remember that even the most unlikely people can offer unique perspectives and nuggets of wisdom too.

6. Do your best – It is true that you can only do your best, but aim to make your best good enough. Speak clearly and confidently at the job interview whilst maintaining your natural style. For instance, if you are a slow talker don’t try to speak quickly just because you want to sound keen on the job and if you are the serious sort don’t try to be overtly humorous either. Maintain eye contact with your interviewers throughout the interview as this will make you come across as honest, confident and intelligent. Just be your best self and you’ll make a positive impact at the job interview.

7. Follow up – Never leave the interview room without a contact name and direct telephone number you can use for follow up purposes. However, make sure you find out how long you should wait before soliciting job interview feedback. It is wise to send a thank you note a few days after the final interview and to ring for information within agreed time scales. If more follow up is required do so no more than twice per week, contacting the key decision makers (usually the interviewers) directly where possible. Do exhibit polite and professional behaviour at all times.

Well prepared candidates usually do well at job interviews. Remember the afore mentioned ideas and strategies and you too can edge out the competition, get the job of your dreams and enjoy true career fulfilment.

About the Author

Ogo Ogbata can help you find your hidden talents, discover your life’s purpose and create passionate work that provides time and money for what matters most in life. CLICK HERE to visit her website and receive a series of motivational articles, success stories and powerful strategies guaranteed to help you create the working life of your dreams. You can also CLICK HERE to read a 12 Step Guide to Excelling at Job Interviews.

How To Bounce Back From Job Interview Rejection

Handling job interview rejection. You’ve had your job interview, you’re checking your emails, the post box and your phone. Then it comes through – “Dear John, we regret to inform you  …” -   the polite rejection. This is not what you expected, you know you’re the right candidate for this job.

Job rejection shock is a hard fact of life. It doesn’t matter how good a candidate you are, one or more rejections are inevitable. Even in good times organizations usually have a number of candidates to choose from and in today’s job market supply clearly exceeds demand.

What are your options now? What do you do when facing rejection? Take these simple steps and come away from the experience wiser and better equipped to manage your next job application and interview. 

Contact the employer immediately

Phone or email and ask politely for constructive feedback. Ask questions like, “Where did I fall short of the requirements?”, “Can you give me some advice that will help me with any future applications?”  Avoid sounding defensive but rather focus on the future and suggest to the company that they can assist you by providing you with honest feedback. Listen carefully to their answers, thank them for their time and input and make good use of their advice.

Conduct an audit of your job interview keeping their feedback in mind. Ask yourself these questions:

Did I do my homework ?

Did you find out sufficient information beforehand about the organization and the job. Did you know all about the job you were interviewing for – the tasks, responsibilities, skills and abilities it involved?.  How much detail did you have on the organization? Did you know your strengths, weaknesses, selling points, suitability? Was the position a good fit with your skills and abilities?

Did I make a good first impression?

First impressions are critically important in job interviews as they set the tone for the rest of the interview. Did you arrive on time? Were you appropriately dressed? When you saw how the company employees were dressed did you feel comfortable with what you were wearing? Did you greet the interviewer with a firm handshake and use the correct name?

Did I listen carefully and answer questions appropriately?

Were you clear about what the interviewer was asking you? Did you respond with the relevant information? Did the interviewer have to repeat the question to get the information he or she wanted? Were your responses fluent and well organized or did you stumble over your answers? Did you get the job interview questions you expected or were you taken by surprise?

Did I show my enthusiasm for the position?

Did you use positive words and project a positive message with your body language? Did you display confidence in your ability to do the job or were you nervous and unsure? Alternatively were you too pushy and dominated the discussion?

Did I have informed and relevant questions to ask the interviewer?

Did you prepare good and insightful questions to ask about the company, the job, the management and the industry? Were your questions based on solid information you had gathered during your interview preparation or did you quickly think up something to ask when the interviewer said, “Do you have any questions?”

Did I have the right documentation with me?

Did you have a portfolio with you that included references, work samples, extra copies of your resume? When the interviewer asked for a document were you able to produce it?

Did I close the interview and follow up appropriately?

Job interview rejection can be the result of the final minutes of the interview.  Had you addressed all the interviewer’s concerns before leaving?  Did you restate your interest in the position and close with an expression of appreciation for the interview opportunity?  Did you follow up with a thank you letter within 24 hours of the job interview?

Thinking through your job application and interview in a constructive and proactive way will allow you to work through your disappointment at job interview rejection and shift your focus to the next opportunity. Build on what you have learned and try to keep positive. Keep looking for the right opportunity and stay determined. Getting the right job requires dedication, a planned approach and a great deal of focused effort – it’s a job in itself!  Go through the pre interview checklist to make sure you are properly prepared to make the best impression in your job interview. Persistence, preparation and constant improvement will land you the right job.

About the Author

Julia Penny has many years experience interviewing and placing candidates across a wide range of jobs. She offers her expertise to help job seekers prepare for and succeed in job interviews at her free website Best Job Interview

How to Ensure That You Fail Your Job Interview

Job Interview Questions and Answers

Do you want to know how to interview for job promotion? Or perhaps you are interviewing for a new job. Either way, most people find interviews make them nervous, and this doesn’t seem to retreat with time. The most effective method to minimize stress and anxiety is to always prepare properly for a job interview. One way of doing that is to have a shrewd idea of the 20 common job interview questions that are most often asked.

It would be wise to discover some of the important details surrounding your potential employer. It is wise to know what they make or sell, how large they are, what is their turnover, and what market sector do they operate in. Most of this information can be found in your local library, or online. Even better, ask the company for a copy of their annual report, and any promotional literature they might have. This knowledge will help when you are asked about why you want to work for them. Remember too that the use of power phrases, job interview skills and questions, and nonverbal communication in job interview situations are all important.

Typical interview questions about your work

1. Where have you been working, what position did you hold, and what were you responsible for?
2. Were you satisfied in the job?
3. What was your salary?
4. What major problem areas were there in running your routinely, and how did you overcome them?
5. What was the most rewarding part of your previous employment?
6. What did you enjoy least about your last job?
7. How would you rate your success on a scale of one to ten?
8. How did you get on with your other workers?
9. How good was your supervisor and what were his/her weaknesses?
10. So why do you want to quit this great job?

Those questions are a vast minefield,just waiting for an explosion that blows you out of the competition. There is a sure way to make sure you avoid every trap that is laid before you – and having a full knowledge of job interview questions with answere is only part of the solution.

Some Personal Questions at Your Job Interview.

These are worth your attention because they are all just as relevant for job interview questions healthcare as they are for a telemarketing job interview, or a firefighter interview, or a General Motors job interview. The answers are transportable across all employment interviews and types.

1. Explain to us what a typical working day consisted of at your last employment
2. Did you ever find it necessary to take work home?
3. How did your wife / husband feel about that?
4. Typically, how many hours would you be willing to work in any one month?
5. Are you a quick, routine, or slow worker?
6. How do you react to stress at work?
7. What kind of things really motivate you and urge you on?
8. Are there any types of decisions that you prefer not to take?
9. The dreaded question at every job interview – tell me about yourself.
10. What has disappointed you most in your working life?
11. Are there things about work that make you mad?
12. How do you react to criticism?
13. If you were able to do something differently in your life to date, what would you alter, and why?
14. If we were to ask your fellow workers why we should take you on, what do you think they might say?
15. Are you a team worker or do you operate better alone?
16. What does success mean to you and how is it measured?
17. And so on ……..

These common job interview questions are also a minefield and each one could destroy you if answered injudiciously. You need to know the proper way to talk in a job interview.
About the Author

The Job Interview Miracle Formula will guarantee you pass your job interview no matter what interview questions are thrown at you. This is the ultimate solution to How To Interview For Job Promotion, whether it is in-house or with a potential new employer.