Job interview & how to prepare yourself

Interview

What everyone wants to know is, what should you do (and especially not do) during an interview to get that job? We promise you that if you follow these 5 tips, you will highly likely get your dream job.

The ‘golden 5’

First, prepare for the expected. What’s great about job interviews is that you know exactly what to expect. Almost all employers ask the same questions over and over again. Of course, they just want to get to know you as a person. Your job is very simple, find out what these questions are, and prepare impressive answers. the first and most important question they are going to ask you is: “tell me about yourself”.

How you answer this question will probably determine the outcome of the interview. The problem with this question is that it’s very general and a lot of people get confused. So they reply with a question: “well, what do you want to know about me?” That’s the last thing the interviewer would probably want to hear. What employers are actually looking for when they are asking this question is “what experience, skills or knowledge do you have that are relevant to the job that I am offering?” That’s the question you should answer straight away.

Don’t tell your personal history, such as, where you grew up. Employers expect you to have this answer at your fingertips. They call this an

“elevator pitch” and we hate those even more than you do.

This means that you should be able to give an absolutely amazing answer, without losing the perspective of your personality. Of course, they will ask a couple of other questions as well, such as: “why are you applying for this job? – what are your major strength and weaknesses?” – and so on. This is because every employer needs to answer 5 questions before they hire someone.

1. Why are you here and why are you knocking on my door, rather than someone else’s door?
2. What can you do for us? If I hire you, do you have what it takes to help me with the challenges I face?
3. What kind of person are you? Will you fit in? Do you have the kind of personality that makes it easy for people to work with you?
4. What exactly distinguishes you from the crowd? Do you have better work habits than the others, do you show up earlier, stay late, work more?
5. Can I afford you? If we decide we want you here, are you under our budget.

If you pass these questions, you will be hired with a 99% certainty!

Know your company

Secondly, know Your Company. A lot of people go to a job interview with the mindset that the employer is curious to know about him. Yes, that’s right! However, on top of that, employers also want to know what you want to know about them. Are you here because you have no other option or because you just love this company (culture)? This is why you have to find out everything about them before going to that interview. What are the major projects they are working on? Who are their biggest suppliers? Google them, go their website, read all of their latest press releases, and impress them! If you can talk to someone who has already worked there before just do it straight away.

How to answer a question

Thirdly, the 50/50 rule. There are two types of job seekers during an interview. The first type tries to talk a lot because they think that the more they talk the smarter they will look. The second type of person is trying to be as quiet as possible, while they are afraid to say something wrong. This is either because they don’t want to appear like they are doing, or simply because they don’t have an answer. That’s why they answer the question in a very short way:

“yes, no, maybe, I guess, I will try, I am not sure.”

During your job interview, you have to consider both. Half of your time should be devoted to listening and the other half you should be devoted to talking. That’s called the ”50/50 rule”. If you talk too much, you will appear as if you are ignoring your employer’s needs. Therefore, solely caring about yourself. Again, if you talk too little, you are going to look like you are unprepared and not confident enough. So here is how should be answering the questions. Your answer should approximately not be longer than 2 minutes and no shorter than 20 seconds.

What does the employer want

Fourthly, know what your enemy wants! During the interview, you are not the only one who’s nervous.

The employer is probably more nervous than you are.

• He or she is afraid to make a bad choice, thus costing the company a lot of money. Multiple questions arise in each employer his / her mind.
• what if he / she hires someone who will not be able to do the job as expected?
• What if he / she hires you and you don’t have the required skills?
• What if you start and take up all your ‘sick days’?
• What if you are only there to stay for a few weeks or months until you find a better job?
• What if you don’t get along with your co-workers?
• What if you will only do the minimum that you can get away with, rather than the maximum that the boss was expecting from you?

At the end of the day, employers want to hire people who can bring in more money than they are paid.

The end of the interview

Lastly, finalize the outcome – by the end of the interview just before you leave. Assume that you have decided to like the company and think they like you back just as much. Ask them the following question to secure your job.

“Can you offer me this Job?”

yes, it sounds a bit stupid, but if you did everything right, it is only good to show interest. This is because, if you have just impressed them and give a personal touch, they are highly likely to decide to hire you straight away. So when you are not sure if they like you or they are still in doubt. Ask them a less personal question while showing interest

“when may I expect to hear from you?”

So we prepared you for nailing every job interview. Now if you’re motivated enough, feel free to amaze us and get hired straight away.