INTERVIEWS

                 How well you perform at an interview will largely depend on how well you have prepared for it. Failure to correctly prepare almost certainly means you will not perform at your best. In some cases, it will mean performing quite badly, which may contribute to the erosion of your confidence. Even if you’re lucky enough to be the favoured candidate, and are almost certain to win the position by just turning up, you should still take the time to prepare because the better you perform, the greater the likelihood that you will negotiate a better salary—and often the difference in money can be substantial. We’ve all heard people boast that they’ve never prepared for an interview in their lives and have done all right. Whilst this boast may not be an idle one, closer inspection will usually reveal that these people were:  lucky—that is, in the right place at the right time;  well connected;  working in a ...

       Doing well at interviews is not nearly as difficult as many people think. With correct preparation and a little practice, most people who dread interviews can learn to excel. The important thing to note is that performing well at interviews is a learned process. Highly effective interviewees are not born with interview skills; rather, they teach themselves what to say, how to say it and how to behave during an interview. Common interview mistakes       All of us have made mistakes during interviews, and most of us have walked out of interviews thinking of all the great things we forgot to mention and all the things we shouldn’t have said. But the most important thing about mistakes is learning from them—and not repeating them. Here are some common interview mistakes:  Failing to express oneself clearly. Often, because of anxiety and wanting to say things perfectly, we try too hard and turn what should be simple sentences into co...

Summary of key points  The best person for the job does not necessarily win it—often it’s the person who gives the best interview.  Interviews are more than just giving technically correct answers. They’re also very much about building rapport.  Not all interviewers know what they’re doing; your job is to know how to handle the good and bad interviewer.  It’s better to be honest and admit ignorance than try to pretend you know an answer and come across as disingenuous and less than bright.  Good looking people win jobs—maybe in Hollywood movies, but on the whole, employers are keen to hire talent over superficial factors.  Striving to give the perfect answer can get you into trouble. It’s better to give a good answer that’s to the point rather than searching for perfection; besides, often there’s no such thing as the perfect answer.  Do not ask questions for the sake of it. Only ask a question if you have a genuine query that ...

Introduction: The path to interview success Interview Skills that Win the Job offers an innovative and exciting approach to developing interview skills. As well as letting you know what’s needed to succeed at interviews, it goes one important step further and demonstrates how you can prepare your own answers including exercises designed to improve your skills.            People who consistently succeed at interviews are those who take the time to prepare their own answers rather than simply using answers they have read or heard elsewhere. Whether you’re a recent school leaver or a seasoned professional, this blog will show you how to prepare highly effective answers and how to deliver them in a confident manner whilst establishing that all-important rapport with interviewers. The book recognizes that one of the major obstacles to successful interviewing is organizing a vast amount of detail about what you’ve done in previous jobs (or at sc...