Interviewing Essentials: How to Strengthen Your Interviewing Technique

Feeling confident and expressing oneself clearly plays a significant role in gaining employment.
If you don’t have a lot of experience interviewing or have a limited work history, it can be difficult to know how to make your background relevant. The most important factor in preparing for an interview is to practice. You’ll find that if you run through basic interview questions and practice how you want to answer these questions, you’ll feel much more prepared to tackle both the standard or more difficult questions that may be asked during the interview.

Do a test run to the office the day before your interview
Nothing will take you off your game more than being late for the interview. It is best to do a trial run before the actual interview so you can make sure you know exactly where the office is located. On the day of the interview you’ll have one less thing to worry about.

Bring several clean copies of your resume to the interview
Oftentimes, you will meet with more than just the person you’re scheduled to interview with, especially if the interview goes well. They may decide to fast track you in the interview process and have you meet with multiple people that day. Show that you are well prepared and think ahead by providing extra copies of your resume to whomever you meet with.

A Smile and a Firm Handshake goes a long way
You’ve probably heard it a million times, but it is absolutely essential to make a strong first impression. When your interviewer greets you, don’t forget to stand up, smile and extend your hand. Make sure you give a firm handshake, interviewers form an impression based on their overall impression of you, not only on how well you answer their questions.

Prepare Ahead: Practice Makes Perfect
If possible practice some basic interview questions with a friend or family member. If you don’t have anyone to practice with ask yourself questions and answer them out loud. Make sure you feel comfortable discussing your resume, education and background in a lot of detail. Once you feel comfortable with that part, if you have a formalized job description, spend some time reviewing the job responsibilities and qualifications the company is looking for in a candidate. Make the connection between your background and how it relates to the position itself.

So… “Tell me a little about yourself…”
This is a common question that is asked during an interview, since it is an open-ended question it can be difficult to know how you should answer. Stick to professional information only and give an overview of your background, your education and how your background pertains to the position. Since this question is commonly asked, you should memorize your answer before the interview.

What do you know about our company?
Spend some time reviewing the company website and learning as much as you can about the organization. When you feel you can knowledgeably speak about the company and summarize what they do, you should feel prepared to field questions relating to the organization.

Salary
It is best to try and find out the salary range of the position and base your answer on your level of experience and how close you are to meeting the qualifications for the position. Give a range for the employer to work with.

Relax and Be Yourself
Once you’ve prepared for the interview, feel confident and try to relax. You’ll want to give the interviewer a sense of your personality and try to make a connection with the interviewer. The idea behind preparing ahead for the interview is to be relaxed enough that you feel like you can be yourself and make a strong overall impression.


Elizabeth Dratch, Senior Recruiter
edratch@thedubingroup.com