Three Thoughts on Acing the Interview

The point of an interview is to convey why you are the best candidate. The interview should be a confirmation of the impression the employer got when they reviewed your resume. The interview should fill in the blanks and reaffirm the reasons the employer found your background interesting. The conversation should help the interviewer imagine you successfully doing the job. While not comprehensive, here are three thoughts on acing the interview.

1.    Know Yourself

The first rule of interviewing is questions about you shouldn’t stump you. You should be prepared to answer the most basic and predictable questions during an interview. Here are some questions frequently asked in interviews:

• Tell me about yourself. An effective response is a 90 second to 2 minute summary explaining who you are as a professional and giving a little insight into your personality.
• Describe your career transitions. You should have a concise, precise story that explains your career moves in a positive fashion. Always avoiding blaming anyone else for outcomes.
• Describe your leadership/management style. Even if you are not in a management role, you should be able to describe your style as a teammate, collaborator or supporter of your leadership team.

2.    Sell Yourself

The second rule of interviewing is to listen to the questions they ask you and answer them. While doing so, you should clearly state the benefits of choosing you. Have a few anecdotes prepared that expound on your past successes and provide a few more details and context than your resume does.

•  Answer questions about your effectiveness in previous roles by describing what you did, why it was important and how your boss and company benefitted from the results of your actions.
• Recount what has improved under your leadership. Describe the measurable accomplishments you have achieved. Specify the monetary value of your work where possible.
• Illustrate the problems you have solved, or better yet, the problems you have prevented. Outline the parallels between prior work situations and what you might predictably encounter in the new role.

3.    Be Yourself

The third rule of interviewing is to be personable and show the best aspects of your personality. The employer will choose you not just because of what you can do, but also because of who they think you are. You want to be chosen because you’ll fit in with the team. That is not to say you must be exactly like them to fit in. It means the company will understand the advantages they will gain from your diverse experiences and perspective.

• Illustrate why you are successful in your work by connecting your best personality traits to your ability to deliver desired outcomes.
• Answer honestly about your weaknesses, while explaining why your weakness is not a permanent impediment. Point out how you have grown and learned from prior experiences, including adverse ones. Have a brief story prepared that describes a failure and the lessons learned, but only bring it up if asked.
• Connect your personal values and mission to the values and mission of the employer. Explain why your work matters to you.

The first interview belongs to the employer. If they don’t learn what they need to know about you in the first interview, they are unlikely to invite you to a second one. Have questions about the company and the role prepared, but remember you don’t have to learn everything you’d like to know in the first conversation. At this stage it is more important not to leave their questions unanswered.

If you know yourself, sell yourself and can be yourself, you’ll perform well in a first interview and be strongly considered for a second round of meetings.

Cheryl Bedard represents the best interests of candidates and clients. She identifies opportunities for success for talented executives and companies and reconciles hopes and dreams with reality.