Interview Top Tips – How to Showcase your Inner Superstar!
It’s important to remember that an interview process is a two-way street. The company are interviewing you to decide whether they feel you would thrive in the role and in the business, but equally, you want to find out as much as possible to decide whether the company and the role are right for you. Does it satisfy your goals? Do the company’s values match your own? Does the role suit your strengths? Will the role keep you engaged? Ultimately, no one wants to move company every few years, so it’s worth investing some time to ensure you’re making the right choice for you and your career.
Get Prepared
Not only will this help with those interview nerves, it will also help you think of interesting questions to get the most out of the opportunity.
Research the company and the interviewer. What do you like about the company? What stands out to you? Get a feel for the company’s culture and values and write these down! Avoid quoting the website back to the interviewer… hopefully they already know what it says!
Do some serious self-reflection. What do you want from your next role? What motivates you? Is it money, security, recognition? What are your biggest strengths? Write these down! What are you most proud of in your career so far? What have you enjoyed most in your previous roles and why? What salary do you want, and what salary do you need? How would other people describe you?
Practice out loud. Prepare to communicate what you want to get across using real life examples where you can. A good way to make sure your answer is clear is to structure your answer using STAR.
- Situation
- Task
- Action
- Result
Plan any questions you’d like to ask during your interview. Genuine questions only! Avoid asking questions for the sake of it.
Nerves. It’s important to remember everyone gets nervous, it’s totally normal! Good preparation will help reduce your nerves and if you’re prone to the pre-interview jitters, don’t add caffeine jitters into the mix! Caffeine can also contribute to a dry throat which can be a very unhelpful side effect of nerves.
Get some perspective and don’t blow the interview out of proportion. Yes, it’s important, it’s a job you really want, but it’s not the be all and end all. The interviewer is just a person, the office is just an office where people go to work every day and you are just one of many candidates the company are seeing for this role. Get some perspective, keep calm and show your superstar self!
Plan ahead. Check the weather, plan your route, avoiding getting soaked if that’s on the cards and leave plenty of time to get there!
Make an Impression
First impressions are everything! When you walk in, the first 10 seconds will set the tone for your interview.
Dress to impress. Dress according to the culture of the company you’re visiting and air on the smart side. If you’re unsure, it’s always better to be too smart than not smart enough. The small things matter so polish your shoes and iron your outfit. Don’t be afraid to show your personality. If you would normally wear colour, then wear colour, just make sure you look extremely smart and professional.
Don’t weigh yourself down. Take as little as possible with you to the interview. As well as making your journey less stressful it means you won’t have to worry about where to store your many belongings when you get there. If you can’t avoid this (maybe you’re staying the night after the interview and need to bring an overnight bag) then ask if you can leave it at the main reception if possible.
Warm welcome. Greet everyone you meet with a smile, a warm hello and a firm handshake (or maybe a wave is more appropriate right now?). Accept a drink on arrival if you’re offered one, but only if you can trust your hands not to shake! Otherwise, it’s ok to politely decline.
The Main Event
Work the room. Lots of companies will use a variety of different situations during the interview process, you might have a test to complete while you’re there or you might find yourself in a group situation. Try to speak to as many people as possible and find out as much as you can about the company and the culture.
“Act natural”. Take some deep breaths and take your time to consider and answer questions. Maintain normal eye contact during your conversation, too little and you seem underconfident, too much can be uncomfortable for both of you!
Be interested. Take a notebook and pen. Take notes if something is mentioned that you’d like to ask about later in the interview. You might also want to write down some key points beforehand to jog your memory during the interview.
Be authentic. I can’t stress how important this is! It’s glaringly obvious when most people are acting. Just remember, if the job isn’t suited to your personality, then you don’t want it anyway. Be honest and open with your answers and your questions.
Stand out. Do you have an interesting fact about yourself? Have you done something exceptional? Climbed a mountain? Represented your country in a sport? Do you have an unusual hobby?
Be clear. Concise answers are key. If you’ve planned your answers beforehand try not to go off-piste, waffling will lose your interviewers interest and waste your precious interview time.
No no’s! Firstly, do not swear - obviously! Try to avoid negativity about previous experiences. Instead, try to focus on what you learned and the positive reasons that you chose to move on.
It’s OK not to ask questions at the end. If all your pre planned questions have been covered during the interview, then the interviewer has done their job well! Don’t scramble to make up a question at the end for the sake of it, just thank them for being so informative.
Say Thank You
Follow up via email to thank the people you’ve met during your interview. This is a really lovely touch and an opportunity to communicate anything you feel you might have missed during your interview. Fingers crossed you’ll be asked back or even offered the job!
