Careers

Information on how to grow your career.

Interviewing tips

Over the next few weeks we will be posting a large number of interviewing tips. The economy is rocky at best, and there are multiple applicants for almost every job opening. Anything you can do to get an edge on the competition can only help.

Many people spend very little time preparing for interviews. They figure they can just show up, answer the questions they are asked, and that’s all the preparation they need. What they don’t realize is that in an interview you are usually competing with several other candidates, most of whom have qualifications that are similar to yours. Treat an interview like an athletic competition, where the difference between winning and losing can often be a split second, and you will be much better off.

So now the company has called you or emailed you saying they would like to speak with you, either over the phone or in person. What next? First, if the person from the company hadn’t been able to connect with you, but left a message, you need to call back immediately. Don’t wait. During the entire interviewing process, the company will be looking for clues on how well you respond to requests and how organized you are.

When you call to confirm the appointment, make sure you get the correct address, and a description of how to get there, and even which parking lot or door to go into if it is a big company. Don’t trust MapQuest. Also, depending on who you are speaking with, try to get as much information on the job description as possible. Something else you should try to find out during this call is the names and titles of the people you will be speaking with, including the correct spelling of their names.  The more you know, the better you will be able to prepare for an interview.

Coming Up Next: The interview is confirmed. Now, what do I do?