You made it! The company liked your background and now you have the opportunity to tell them more. Are you ready for that first meeting? This information should help you to sell yourself to a prospective employer and find out enough about them to know if you are sold on working for them.
Selling yourself is what the interview is about. This can be difficult if you are not normally in a sales position. Think about what makes a good sales person. They know their clients past, present and future. They know their product and how it can be of use to their clients. They are confident and honest and can find the benefits of every situation. They have a positive attitude and their clients enjoy meeting with them.
The first thing you must do is make sure you have a positive attitude. If you do not, make a list of your strengths and focus on what you have to offer. You may want to invest in motivational tapes and literature by Zig Ziglar, Anthony Robbins, Les Brown, Peter Lowe, and others you can find in the business section of book stores and the library. You must have self confidence and a positive mental attitude!
The next step is information gathering. Find out as much as possible about the company. See if you can get last years annual report and if Human Resources or Marketing has any company information packets. Look them up on the internet and in the library. The more you know about the company the better prepared you will be to ask and answer questions.
Be professional in dress and manner. Always be polite to everyone you meet at the company. It can cost you the job if you are not respectful of the people you meet, even if they are not interviewing you. Always dress neat, conservative and more professional than you normally would working at the company. It is better to be overdressed than too casual. Navy or black suits are always the best choice.
Arrive at the company ten to fifteen minutes early for your interview (earlier if you will need to fill out an application). You may want to bring your information you gathered to review while waiting for your interview. Use the time you are waiting to get more information about the company. Notice the people passing through the lobby. How are they dressed? Are they enjoying their job? What type of person works for the company? If possible talk to the receptionist and find out information about the company. How long have they been there? What do they like about the company? Do they have any pointers on interviewing with the people who you are meeting?
Have a firm handshake (but not rough) and smile and make eye contact when being introduced. Notice your surroundings and comment if appropriate to relax the interviewer. Be prepared for questions in the interview. Some sample questions will be on the following pages. Make sure you are comfortable with them. You may want to practice with a friend. Be direct with your answers and tie information to the question by using examples of how you applied your answer to specific situations. Do not ramble or talk too much, but do communicate your answers completely. Make sure you remember to tell the employer how you would benefit their organization. At the end of the interview make sure you find out the next step and ask for the job.
Follow up all meetings with a thank you note. This will allow you to emphasize information in the interview and to re-state positive reasons why you believe the position fits you and what you could bring to the company. Again, say you look forward to the next step and would like to work for the company.
Leave the company with an image of you that is positive, enthusiastic, focused, polished and convinced. You must be outstanding enough to be memorable.
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