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13 Best Things You Should Always Do During (or After) a Job Interview

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By Laura Gesualdi-Gilmore

A few simple steps can ensure you are making the most of the short time you get with a hiring manager when interviewing for a job.

The labour market in the U.S. is looking good as the summer comes to a close, with 528,000 jobs added in July alone. Still, when you’re going for a top position — or maybe even your personal dream job — it’s likely you’ll face stiff competition.

For these top jobs, any advantage you can bring to the interview is helpful. That’s why it’s so important to look the part, do your research, and bring your A-game in general.

Whether you’re looking for a higher-paying job, interviewing in hopes of breaking into a new field, or applying for your first gig out of college, here are 13 things to always do during (or after) a job interview, no matter the field.

1. Research the company

Showing right off the bat that you put in the effort to learn about the company should be a priority. It’s generally a good idea to do a Google search, look the company up on LinkedIn, and see if the firm has been in the news recently.

This preparation will be especially helpful if the manager asks why you’re interested in the company during the interview. Doing your homework will put you in a much better position than simply winging it.

2. Dress for the job

The phrase “dress for the job you want” is widely used for a reason. The ideal attire for a job interview depends on the company and job description, but in many business situations, classic professional attire is the way to go.

This could mean a suit or dress slacks. Or, it might mean a nice dress or skirt with your best pair of pumps or flats, or perhaps a pants suit.

3. Arrive on time

You want to be respectful of the person who is interviewing you, and that includes being respectful of their time.

It’s a good rule of thumb to arrive 10 minutes early — maybe even 15 minutes if you’re commuting to an unfamiliar area — to ensure you’re on time for the interview, and that the hiring manager’s first impression isn’t of you showing up late.

4. Plan responses beforehand

Interview questions can vary depending on your field and the job you’re applying for. However, there are some universal questions that come up often. Use these to prepare.

For example, many interviewers ask about things such as:

  • Your career history
  • Why you’re interested in a new job
  • What your greatest strengths and weaknesses are
  • What salary range you are looking for
  • Why they should hire you

Preparing responses for those universal questions — but remembering to keep the answers casual during the actual interview — should make the whole process that much easier.

5. Get familiar with the job description

Read over the job description again before you head into the interview. A job interview, after all, is an opportunity to sell yourself — and to sell yourself, you need to know what the company is looking for.

Arm yourself with responses about how you meet the job requirements and how you would make a great fit for the open position.

6. Bring extra resumes

With everything online these days, there is a chance that the hiring manager will be looking at your resume on a computer the moment you walk in. But again, it’s always a good idea to show up prepared.

Bring a few extra resumes with you to the interview so you can hand them out to everyone involved in the interviewing process.

7. Make a list of your positive attributes

Before your interview, think of three skills you want to emphasize. These might include:

  • Skills that fit well with requirements listed in the job description
  • Past work experiences that you think helped prepare you for this new job
  • Other positive attributes about yourself that you want to get across

Be familiar with your best “selling points.” That way, you won’t forget to mention them during the interview.

8. Turn negatives into positives

There will inevitably come a time when a hiring manager asks if you have experience doing something you have never done. Fortunately, there’s a way to spin this inexperience.

If an interviewer asks if you have Photoshop experience, and you don’t, try emphasizing your other skills — like organization and time management — that shows you’re eager to pick up this new skill quickly and efficiently.

9. Show excitement about the job

Getting a new job is exciting, so don’t feel shy about letting the hiring manager know that you’re thrilled about the opportunity.

It may seem obvious that you want the job if you’re showing up for an interview, but it doesn’t hurt to reiterate that fact so the company knows you’ll show up to work with a great attitude.

10. Keep your cell phone on silent

You want to communicate respect to the person interviewing you, and part of that is turning off distractions.

If your phone begins ringing, or even vibrating, in the middle of the interview, the hiring manager might think they don’t have your full attention — and begin to question whether they would have it after they hired you.

11. Speak highly of former employers

Even if you’re interviewing for a new job because you are unsatisfied with your current position, avoid any negative talk about past employers.

Instead, keep it professional by discussing the type of work you did and why you’re interested in the opportunities this new company can provide.

12. Ask questions

Typically, toward the end of an interview, the hiring manager will ask you if you have questions for them — and you should. This will show you’ve done your homework and you are invested in knowing more about the company.

If you’re struggling to come up with questions, stick to the classics, such as asking about:

  • Challenges you may face if you are hired
  • What the company culture is like
  • What the hiring manager likes the most about working there
  • What a typical day in your potential new position would look like

13. Follow up

There’s some disagreement about whether the old-school method of sending an actual “thank you” note to a hiring manager is still relevant, but career experts generally recommend at least a “thank you” email.

It doesn’t have to be lengthy: Simply thank the interviewer for their time, reiterate that you are excited about potentially working for the company, and sign off by noting that you hope to hear from them soon.

Bottom line

Whatever your reason for being on the job hunt — even if it’s simply to make more money so you can retire early — arming yourself with knowledge about the company you’re interviewing with, looking your best, and preparing your top selling points can go a long way during the interviewing process.

So, if you are hoping to move beyond living paycheck to paycheck, make sure you put these tips into practice.

By Laura Gesualdi-Gilmore

Edited By Chris Kissell

Sourced from Finance Buzz

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Be the solution in your next interview

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By Carrie Weaver

It’s all about framing yourself, and your answers, as the solution to their problem.

Amelia Earhart said that preparation “is rightly two-thirds of any venture.” Your amount of interview preparation determines how well you perform in your interview, and your interview performance is the determining factor in whether or not you receive a job offer.

Just like an audition for an actor or musician, your interview is a type of test. The good news is that a test can be aced. In order to ace any test, you first need to understand what’s going to be on the test. Think about the open position you are interviewing for as a “problem,” and you, the candidate, will be the solution to that problem.

Let’s say you’re a marketing professional. Take a step back and think about why marketing exists in the first place. It’s to inform and engage potential customers about a product or service. The next question to ask yourself is, “What’s hard about that?” You want to come up with two to three high-level reasons.

For example, first, you have to capture people’s attention in a crowded space. And then once you have their attention, you have to communicate your value so it appears better than a competitor. Now that you’ve identified the problem, ask yourself, “What are the skills that would be most helpful in solving that problem?” In our marketing example, creativity and bold communication would be incredibly useful. Now imagine your interviewer asks you, “What strengths do you possess that would make you successful in this position?”

You might answer with something like, “I’m a thoughtful and compassionate leader who listens deeply and helps level up the skills of every person on my team.” While that’s a good response, and most organizations can benefit from good leadership, that response is not as valuable as this one: “I’m a strategic and inspiring communicator who finds joy in delighting future customers with bold, value-based communication.”

The first response regarding elevating others would work well if the position problem was about levelling up a team of marketing professionals with differing levels of competency. The second response, however, is addressing the language of the problem. If you’re not presenting yourself as the solution to the problem, someone else is. Here’s a three-step process to better understand the problem of your interview so you can ace the test.

1. Conduct a high-level analysis of the industry or company pain points.

2. Gain insider intelligence from the recruiter or hiring manager.

3. Undertake a detailed analysis of the job description.

First, start with your own high-level knowledge of the industry and your role, just like the marketing example we discussed. Second, use insider intelligence. You’ll gain this through your conversations with folks who work there who can give you the inside scoop on the problem. This may be a recruiter or a colleague. Ask anyone you can this question, “What would you say is the biggest challenge this position is trying to tackle?” They’ll often tell you directly.

Lastly, use the job description. Really review it and read between the lines. How are they describing the problem? A detailed examination of the job description uses a company’s own language to give you a sense of what’s most problematic or most important.

I recommend running the job description through a word cloud generator. When using a word cloud generator, copy and paste only the descriptive portion of the job posting that describes the relevant portion of the job. Don’t copy the requirements section that says, for example, “three years of managerial experience, and five years of marketing experience.” You’ll just see the word “experience” returned. Focus on copying only the portions of the job description that truly describe the job.

For illustrative purposes, I reviewed an email marketing manager position at Amazon Fashion. Using a word cloud generator, the largest or most common words returned included, “Amazon, experience, and fashion,” which makes sense given the position. Instead, look at the next-largest or medium-sized words, as the relative size of the word indicates a greater frequency in the word use, and you can hypothesize that these words are most important to the position.

For the Amazon Fashion job description, I saw the words “high, fast-paced, helping, quality, and growing.” In rereading the position requirements, I determined that the goal of the position is to help drive sales and the word “high” appeared frequently in terms such as “high-quality,” “high-growth,” and “high-aesthetics.”

During your interview, use this information to shape all of your responses. For example, by stating that your email marketing has “high aesthetics and is reviewed with the highest quality standards in mind,” you can show how you are able to drive sales. By using the language of the problem, you will be able to position yourself as the solution. It’s that simple.

Use this three-step process to make quick work of identifying what’s going to be “on the test” during your job interview. It’s all about framing yourself, and your answers, as the solution to their problem. Be the solution.

By Carrie Weaver

Sourced from Fast Company

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