Looking for a Job? Then Prepare In Advance for a Good Interview

He desperately needed a job but approached an interview with little knowledge on how to make his presentation effective.

He woke up late on the morning of the interview, giving himself inadequate time to groom and dress. His arrival at the company’s Human Resource Department, he was 15 minutes late.

The secretary was unfavorably impressed with his rude manner when he grabbed the new employment questionnaire from her and tossed it on her desk when he had finished. He hastily filled out the questionnaire with no attempt to be neat, and he had no resume.

He had failed to consider the critical first impression that he would make when he met the H.R. manager.

Slouching in his chair, sticking his legs straight out in from of him, and failing to make good eye contact created a bad first impression on the H.R. manager.

The interview had barely gotten underway when his cell phone rang, disrupting the manager’s questions. When describing his duties and performance at his last job, the applicant talked in a rather cocky and arrogant way. The demeaning and disparaging way he described his former employer didn’t help his efforts either.

These behaviors lead the H.R. manager to form the opinion that this man would neither be a good team member nor fit well into the organization.

Here are some suggestions for creating a good job interview.

• Don’t be late.

• Dress neatly, exhibit good body language and facial expressions, and make good eye contact with the interviewer.

• Turn your cell phone off before the interview begins.

• Be respectful and pleasant to support staff. They often have significant input to the “boss” so don’t take them lightly.

• Remember your role in the interview. You are the interviewee, not the interviewer. Ask important questions but don’t dominate the conversation.

• Speak clearly and don’t talk too rapidly.

• Don’t bad-mouth former employers. Your comments should focus on the present and the future, not the past.

• Watch your language. Coming across as a know-it-all, or braggart will not serve you well. Show interest and enthusiasm, and when appropriate show a sense of humor.

• At the end of the interview, thank the interviewer, smile and shake hands.

• Write a follow-up thank you note to the interviewer expressing your hope to hear from him or her in the future.

Landing a good job usually requires having a successful interview.