Interview tips for the big day

The day of the interview has arrived; this is the moment when you prove yourself in front of the interviewer and you want to make the most of it. There are some tips you should take into account:

The things you should do:

• Be on time!
• Learn the name of you interviewer, and do not forget it.
• Greet you interviewer with a firm handshake
• Show interest in the conversation: listen carefully and do not interrupt.
• Relax (it sounds easy!) and answer the questions concisely, do not talk too much.
• Be honest; do not lie about your qualifications.
• Be positive, cooperative and enthusiastic
• Ask questions about the organization
• When you leave, thank the interviewer. (Do you remember his/her name?)

The things you should never do in the interview.

• Arrive late
• Chew gum
• Give a poor handshake
• Leave your cell phone on
• Eat
• Treat the receptionist impolitely.
• Say something negative about your past employer Job interview tip, preparing for a job interview

I have no experience, what if my interviewer thinks that I will not be able to handle the job?

Well, even if we do not have any job experience, this does not mean that we do not have experience. Just think for a moment, you are applying for a job where research and organizational skills are a must; you may think I will not be able to handle it, because of my lack of experience. Now, do you remember those extensive reports you have had to complete? For sure you had to research extensively, and organize all this information into a excellent report. Yes, you’ve got it.

The fact is that many of the skills we build during our education and our lives can be converted into qualities needed for our job. Think about all your activities: sports, social clubs, religious activities, personal projects, and try to extract examples to convince your interviewer about your abilities.

Look on the job specifications and prepare yourself. Go for it!Job interview tip, preparing for a job interview

Job interviews: what should I ask?

This concept may be new for you, right? The idea that we have about job interviews is someone asking us a lot of questions, but the fact is that we should be prepared to ask some questions. Try to ask about things have no information available through the internet or any other media.

Making well prepared questions will both give you valuable knowledge about the organization, and also makes a good impression to the interviewer. Some questions you could ask are:


-How and how often will my performance be measured?
-Will there be opportunities of growth in this organization?
-What would be the goals of the organization in the near future?
-Have the organization meet its goals for the last year?
-How is this organization structured?
-What would be the greatest challenge in the job?
-Why should I accept, in case I am offered the position?
Job interview tip, preparing for a job interview

How to dress for job interviews

Think about something really cool you have bought recently... now think about why you bought it.

The fact is that, in many cases we buy stuff just for its appearance. Now think about your services as a product, and your potential employer as a client, do you catch my point? You have to take care of the impression you make, that is why it is always important to dress appropriately for a job interview, even if you think the work environment is casual. Be aware that improper dress costs some candidates the job, then if you have tattoos, or a lot of piercing or something like this, try to cover them.

Everyday you can see that mostly, another person's perception of you is based on how you look. Then, what should you be wearing?

If you area a Man:

• Suit
• Tie
• Long sleeve shirt (preferably white)
• Shoes (of course, no sport shoes)
• Belt (The same color of the shoes)
• Socks (Remember to coordinate them with the shoes or pant)
• Neat hair.

If you are a Woman:

• Suit
• Dress shoes
• Avoid very showy makeup
• Avoid the excess of jewelry
• Use a professional hairstyle
• Pay attention to your nails

Yes, you look great! I would hire you.
Job interview tip, preparing for a job interview

Job interviews: Tactics

Check this cool video that I have found! Job interview tip, preparing for a job interview

Things you'll have to answer - Part I

Here you will find the common questions you will have to answer in job interviews. Your success will depend upon your preparation; you will find unexpected questions about almost everything related to you. Use the following as a guideline:

1.Tell us about yourself

Classic, no doubt. You shouldn't try to look like Einstein, but try to use a good statement for it. Be yourself; think about your experience in other jobs and the way this may contribute in the position you are interviewing for. Try to keep you answer within the boundaries of job issues, your interviewer will not be interested in how your vacations were affected by the weather, or your favorite TV series.

2. Why should we hire you?

You already know what the company is looking for, from the job ad. Make a comparison on how your qualifications will fill their expectations.

3. Why do you want to work for us?

Everything you may say here has to be based on your investigation about the organization. Something that always causes a good impact is relating the company to your future.

4. What experience do you have?

If you have experience, start with the specifics that relate to the organization, and the job you are applying to. I you have not had a job, you may talk about activities you have performed that have helped you to develop abilities related to the job in question.

5. Do you know this organization?

In posts before, we were talking about the importance of researching the organization's profile as part of you preparation. Now is the time to use that info: the activity they are dedicated to, vision of the company, and so on. Be as specific as you can.

6. Do you know someone who works for us?

Some companies have specific policies for relatives that may work for the organization. Try to investigate it before you are interviewed.

7. Why did you leave your last job?

Don't start speaking about problems in the organization you belonged to. Try to relate it to a positive reason, like a studying opportunity or something like this.

8. Do you consider you have been successful in your career?

The answer to this question always has to be yes. Think about you goals, the way you have been accomplishing them, and how are you working to achieve the others.

9. Do you prefer working alone?

Beware! many job positions require teamwork abilities as a must, you don't want to give the impression that you cannot deal with teammates. Always show a positive attitude.

10. Which is your best asset to contribute to this organization?

This is your opportunity to talk about your strengths. You have to show how will the organization be benefited with your work.

Further questions in the next posts!

Job interview tip, preparing for a job interview

The preparation for a job interview - Part II

Ok, you have verified your qualifications for the job, now you have to pay attention to you resume. Is there some skill missing in your resume? Now is the time to add it.

Something very important is to know your own resume; I have seen some cases where the recruiter ask the applicant something that is written in the resume, and the applicant doesn't know even what does it mean. The reason? Because someone else wrote it for him/her. If this is your case, try to figure out which questions may a recruiter do about the things written in your resume. For every statement (what) try to answer yourself the how, when, where did it happen. For example, if your resume says you are proactive, you should be able to answer how you have shown you are proactive, when (specific situation), and may be where (Of course, I assume that if the word proactive is in your resume, you know what does it mean :-)

In job interviews, you have to answer questions about yourself, for example, the classic one: Why do you want to work for us? Or Do you consider yourself organized? Those ones are just examples, we will review a complete list later. By now what you have to be aware of is that you will have to talk about yourself (This has been a problem for me, but I have learned to manage it). You may use the following as a checklist when preparing for your job interviews:

• I know the organization I am applying to.
• I have the "must have" qualities for the job
• I have written all the pertinent skills and experience in my resume
• I understand everything that written in my resume, and I am able to answer questions about it.
• I am prepared to answer personal questions about myself.

If you do, then you are prepared for your interviews. Go for it!

Job interview tip, preparing for a job interview