The Secrets of a Successful Job Interview

illustration of many pawns over black background plus a golden one. Concept of a spotted candidate

The success of an interview is related to your desired career goal.The professional way takes different forms for each, depending on how much we know, the purpose we have and the time we want to invest. It matters to know what resources we have, how can we grant in terms of time, energy, involvement. Equally, it is very important to understand if we are willing to give up the safety and comfort that we value so much, in order to go further.

A successful job interview can be obtained by respecting some classic rules, but the true success depends on understanding and refining the methods recommended by experts.

Interview Preparation

Dress code, punctuality and attitude

Here is a check list that proved to be useful before taking part to an interview:

Prepare the clothes you want to wear for the interview a couple of days earlier;
Adopt a dressing style that is clear, simple without many accessories;
Ensure that your clothes are in perfect condition, cleaned and ironed;
Take care of your appearance:hygiene, hair, manicure and polished shoes;
Use a discreet deodorant and a discreet perfume of good quality. Between a strange perfume and the simple flagrance of soap, it’s better to choose the soap;
Prepare a portfolio including the important material you will need for the interview: the resume, work references, recommendation letter, cover letter;
Visualize the map of the place you’re willing to go for the interview.Make sure you know how to get in time to meet with the employer. Punctuality is a form of respect and an indication of the fact that you are sufficiently motivated for the job in question.
Search for the name and professional status of the person that will who will be interviewing you;
Be sure you have enough information about the company you want to work for;
Analyze the strengths you have that are related to the job and company for which you were called for interview.

Spontaneity requires a serious preparation

Beyond the first impression that you create at the interview, for which the above list can be helpful, you will have to support a presentation about yourself.The interviewer will analyze your skills for the job.In order not to be taken by surprise, be sure you are prepared.

Here are five points to focus on before the interview:

Define your own vision about the things you want to obtain.Establish and visualize your purposes in the career field, where do you want to get and for how long, which are the steps you consider appropriated to help you in your career.

The capital you have includes your knowledge, skills and competencies gained. Thoroughly analyze the things you know to do, your professional level, the base of your success until the present and the issues that could be improved.

Who is your potential employer?

The company you want to work for has a certain structure, a history and a culture of its own. How much do you know about it? Who are its main competitors? Who are its suppliers and customers? What about them? What projects has the company?What information exists on the market and media about the company? How can you use your knowledge in order to be a valuable candidate for this organization?

Values and performance criteria

Explore what defines you in the professional field, what are your professional standards and the values that represent you.What matters most to you: office layout, location, atmosphere, colleges, career, salary, opportunity to learn, an indulgent master, the opportunity to travel, hours of work? What are the top 3 criteria in relation to which you will evaluate the organization? What are the things that you do not accept easily? But the ones you do not accept at all?

Mutual gain

In order to have a long lasting work relation, it is necessary for both sides to be winning. Report back to interviewers as a discussion partner/business partner , not as an opponent or competitor.

If you scroll through all the steps above, it is very likely to be able to respond with conviction and naturalness to any questions asked by interviewers. Your answers will include at least some of your motivation.Don’t forget to act as an active listener, do not rush to answer!

Coming next…

Some possible questions of the interview

Why do you want this job?

It is recommended to focus on the positive issues that determined you to candidate for the job. Avoid to talk about the less pleasant aspects of your current job.

What qualities do you think you need for the job?

If the required skills are not already specified in the job description, present some of your qualities you identified in your balance of skills, which helped you to obtain concrete results in areas which are similar to those of the job you applied.To these, you can add 3 fundamental qualities that any employee should have: seriousness, professionalism, team spirit.

How can you contribute to the development of the company?

Now it’s time to value the results you have gained for your work.Keep a note of modesty, being too proud of yourself won’t be helpful at all.Employers do not look for stars, but professionals who integrate well in a team.

Why do you want to work for this company?

This is when you can prove that you’re not only informed, but you did a thorough analysis of your compatibility with the organization.

All the interviewers, including the experienced ones, are ordinary people, like you, they know it is normal to get a little excited. However, try to moderate your emotions.