How to ace an interview

Topic-Business Interview

Level-Intermediate

This is the scenario

It’s been a while since you lost your job.  After a long time of self-pitying and distress due to financial difficulties and pressure from your surroundings, you’ve finally decided to get into gear and set out to find a new job opportunity.

However, no matter what position you try to obtain, the pressure to perform well at the interview causes extreme anxiety that cripples your performance.

Before the interview begins

Does the thought of going on a job interview cause you to panic?

What do you do to help lessen your anxiety?

What are the basic DOs and DON’Ts in a job interview?  Name three of each.

What was the worst blunder you’ve ever committed in an interview? Briefly describe what happened.

What kind of interviewer intimidates you the most?

Now 

After a couple of failures, you’ve now learned to get yourself more prepared for upcoming interviews.

You’ve had your best friend and your family members pretend to be recruiters, and you’ve rehearsed all of the most frequently asked questions and answers. You’ve taken a practice run to the location where you are having the interview and know approximately how long it will take you to get there. You look presentable in impeccable attire. So, what next?

Prepare

The following are some of the toughest questions you will face in a job interview.  Some may seem rather simple on the surface and could have a variety of answers.

With your classmates, practice answering the questions and decide which ones you consider to be the toughest. After you’re done, point out the strongest/weakest parts of the answers your classmates have given.

Tell me about yourself. 

What do you know about our organization and why do you want to work for us?

What can you do for us that someone else can’t ?

What is your greatest weakness?

Have you ever had a conflict with a boss or co-worker?  How was it resolved?

How has your education prepared you for your career?

How long would it take you to make a meaningful contribution to our firm?

Why did you leave your last job? What did you think of your last boss?

What are your salary expectations?

Why should we hire you?

Useful advice

There are numerous reasons why people fail to land a job after they’ve had their interviews.

Oftentimes, when interviewees are asked to tell the interviewers about themselves, they feel that they should talk about their personal lives and hobbies, instead of seeing this as an opportunity to sell themselves by pointing out their qualifications with conviction.

Be positive during the job interview when asked why you left your previous job.  Indeed, your last boss may have been a jerk whose main concern was making your life miserable, but never bash an ex-employer in front of your prospective employer.

You may state that you decided to look for a company with room for growth and where you can better utilize your skills. Remember, although honesty is admirable, trash-talking is absolutely despicable.  After all, who would want to hire someone who only seems good at badmouthing their former bosses?

Turn the table 

If you were a recruiter, which of the following answers would be the worst things to hear from prospective candidates? Choose your top three and explain why.

I’ll work for free just to get my foot in the door.

I’m sorry I’m late, but I have great reasons for it.

To be honest, I know nothing about this company.

Do I have to work overtime? Because I seriously don’t do that.

I left my old job because my boss was an idiot.

I left my old job because there was too much office drama and I just couldn’t handle all that work anymore.

Nine to five? Boy, that sure takes the best part out of the day!

Speaking of my weaknesses, I’ve been told that I’m really slow when handling new things.  But I’m definitely willing to try.

How many vacation days do we get?  How about extra employee benefits?

The reason why I want to work here is because I don’t know much about the industry and I feel that this will be a great opportunity for me to learn.

Remember

When you’re asked to describe a weakness, try to aim for a weakness that works to your prospective boss’s advantage, such as “I am a workaholic, and I can’t stand leaving work undone.”

It’s also important to remember that employers don’t want employees that don’t contribute or give input. This can be reflected through the way you interact during the interview.  Words such as “Um..”, “ I’m not sure”, “ I don’t know”, or even “ No, I don’t have any questions for you” are telling the interviewer that you don’t have a clue about that company, and at the same time you’re showing a lack of interest.  Having a few questions in your pocket could make you more confident and prepared, especially in moments when the conversation is not flowing smoothly.

One last thing

No matter how the interview turns out, it’s really the effort that counts.  You won’t fret when you’re well prepared. Bring up your achievements that will make you the very best candidate for the position. The key is to focus on your achievable objectives and what you are doing to reach those objectives.

When dealing with questions that are related to your behavioral reactions to conflicts or problems, try to provide examples that reflect your calmness and your ability to resolve problems.

Vocabulary

pity  to feel sorry for someone because they are in a very bad situation

distress  suffering and problems caused by a lack of money, food, etc.

cripple  to damage something badly so that it no longer works or is no longer effective

impeccable  without any faults and impossible to criticize

conviction  the feeling of being sure about something and having no doubts

despicable  extremely bad, immoral, or cruel

badmouth  to criticize someone or something

fret  to worry about something, especially when there is no need to

The end

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