Now that you have landed an interview for the job, don’t just show up and plan to wing it. There are some serious preparations you should make. A job interview can be more about your personality and demeanor than you might realize. OK, some jobs may be more technical but even toughs positions require a necessity for the employee to get a long or fit in with the “culture” or work environment. Believe me, they are not going to change the working environment to accommodate you, I don’t care how good you are. Here are some high level job interview tips; I will cover in more detail later:

• Brushing up on your job interview skills is a must.
• Get some good job interview training, there’s plenty available.
• Prepare yourself for those typical job interview questions.
• Think about appropriate dress for your job interview.
• Be prepared.
• Relax – much easier if you are prepared.
• Follow up.

Sharpen Your Job Interview skills

Job interviewing has become a skill or even a profession, especially in the Human Resources field. I hate to put it like this but “playing this game” is a very real necessity in today’s job market. Face it, today’s job market is an employer’s market. There are usually hundreds, if not thousands, of applicants for one job. There is plenty of good, in depth, material out there on the internet and in many reputable books about the ever changing interviewing techniques that are popular today.

Handling Tuff Job Interview Questions

I’m not talking about technical questions about the job functions, which you should be qualified to answer or don’t even bother, I’m talking about those Stress Interview kinds of questions, questions that may have little bearing on if you can perform the job duties. Those situational questions like:

• Tell me about your strengths and weaknesses.
• Tell me about a recent conflict you had with a fellow employee and how did you handle it.
• Have you had any negative reviews and how did you handle it.
• Have you ever observed a fellow employee violating policy and how did you handle it.

The main thing here is to be as honest as you can. You can get some ideas from many websites and books as far as sample questions and answers but apply those to yourself with all honesty because the confidence in your answers will come through and if that’s not good enough for the interviewer then you are probably in the wrong place to began with.

Appropriate dress for your job interview

Not all jobs are the same. Not all job environments are the same. So what is the appropriate dress for your job interview, again, do some research. I wouldn’t think that a suit and tie would be appropriate if you are interviewing for a mechanic at a local car dealership but a pair of Dockers and a golf shirt might be. But then, obviously a suit and tie would be very appropriate for a manager, supervisor or a sales position. There are many in-betweens like a blazer or sports coat with or without a tie, with a dress shirt or golf shirt, Dockers or slacks and many combinations of all of the above.

You might want to drive by the company in the mornings and evenings when most employees are coming to or leaving work and see what the dominant dress is and then dress a notch or two above.

Be Prepared

It’s obvious that you should be qualified to do the job first and foremost. So what do I mean by being prepared?

Go over the job description with a fine toothed comb. Visualize what the job entails. Then prepare some questions about the actual job duties. This is ammunition for the relax part below.

Go to the company’s website and learn all you can about them and the industry they are in. Brush up on the latest industry news and any recent news about the company. Think about some general questions you might ask about this. This is ammunition for the relax part below.

Relax

Keep in mind that you are interviewing them as well. Don’t attempt to take over the interview but balance the interview with some of your questions about the company instead of waiting to the end when you are ask if you have any questions – in the interviewers mind, the interview is over by then and they have already rated you.

For example; say you get the dreaded Stress Interview Question of “Tell me some of your weaknesses”. For many people an honest answer could be “I could be more organized, especially when juggling multiple projects”. Then immediately follow with a question like “Does the Acme Co. offer self improvement courses for their employees?” This tends to level the playing field and keep the engagement balanced and therefore you should be able to feel more relaxed instead of feeling like you are taking an exam.

Follow Up

As in anything that is so important, like interviewing for a job, the follow up is very important. Try to get contact information either before the interview or during the interview. Send an e-mail or a voice mail (unless they actually answer their phone) to restate how the interview went and follow up on any lingering questions. Reference something you mentioned on the interview or bring up something you forgot to mention. Make Contact.