Interview: Our nightmare, our proving point. It is the marketplace where we sell ourselves. There is always so much fuss going on about it. Millions of sites to guide you, and millions of them confuse you as well.
To impress the interviewer, we try to convince them to believe that we are born for the job. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn’t because you underestimate the interviewer and act either over smart or too naïve. So here are a few things that may commonly go wrong and steps to take to avoid them.
Presenting you with a list of Things to Say and do and avoid at a job interview.
1.Dress with a professional touch. Do not over-dress or wear something too casual. Show some seriousness in your dressing style. First impressions should always be the best impression.
For girls: Do not wear heavy make-up or too many accessories.
2.When the interviewer asks you to say something about yourself, just a brief of what person you are would do, you need not brag about what all you have done from childhood or give them your personal history.
Don’t talk too much. Listen more and answer aptly.
Stick to the basics, such as your educational background, interests, or hobbies that should not include anything inappropriate.
3. Make sure your resume holds the right and clear objective focused on your career aspect or position you are applying for rather than adding ridiculous statements like “looking for an opportunity that uses my talent and skills which helps the firm”
P.s: all firms recruit a PR to help the firm.
4.When they ask you about your plans, we all know that it gets a little bizarre when asked for the plans for the span of the next 5-10 years.
Never disclose if you have any plans apart from this job. Usually, we want recruiters to know how goal-oriented we are and how we plan, but that might be one of the negative points for a particular job interview and may lead to rejection. Every firm looks for employees who will work for them in the longer run. Let the recruiters know your 2-year plan in the company if necessary. Make it sound genuine and catchy.
5.When asked about strength and weakness
Strength
Do not be highly emotional and say being compassionate, able to empathize with others. No, no, no, don’t say that. You are not looking for a theatrical position at Opera. Do not get personal during a job interview.
Weakness
Trusting others easily is the lamest excuse you can ever give. They will think you can’t analyze who is bluffing with you or who is true to you. You must be brilliant and decisive with the clients you deal with, also saying that “working hard is my weakness,” a big NO! You cannot put that as a weakness as you have to convey that you will be ready to work and do everything in your power. Be honest and smart.
Note: Adding strength related to your job and adding weakness that is not related to your position would be a useful asset.
6.Do not sell yourself; at the same time, do not be overconfident. Be a true employee and show enthusiasm to work in that company. Before the interview, do some research about the company you are attending. Give examples of any employees finding better opportunities in the company and looking at the brighter side of the job. Ask some questions regarding the profile. Don’t be desperate.
7.Do not stress yourself much or get scared. The more you fear, the more you stutter. Be confident and relax. You always have to give your best no matter what the result would be. Show them how much you would love to work with them.
8.If you have a time gap between jobs, explain it with a valid reason. Recruiters will be very particular about why you were idle. Usually, people think by giving a health reason they might get in, but few firms give utmost importance for health conditions. When you resigned or had a change of career, don’t give them a reason of “I don’t know what I was looking for.” Instead of that, say that you were interested in the profile, and you gave it a shot, and you really learned some professional skills from it.
9.The toughest thing is negotiating the salary. Always give HR or their representative a chance to tell how much they are ready to pay for the concerned post. You cannot jump on them with your expected CTC. Sometimes you may quote less, or you may offend/annoy the recruiter.
Know how much they are willing to offer and then negotiate accordingly.
10.Just in case if they put you on hold. Take deep breaths. Reply with a smile. You are going to hear this several times at your interview trials…
To sum up, the key points to remember during job interviews are.
Everyone has to know that each interviewer is different and what each firm expects from its employees. Their vision and beliefs are different. Nevertheless, all employers want some basic and definite things like being flexible, better communication and interpersonal skills and mostly the commitment & interest to work for the firm. For more job search tips, have a read here.
All the very best! Bonne chance!
Author bio :
Madhuri Naidu
Writing is my passion and motivation as it inspires my own soul as well as others. Poet by heart. Blogger & avid reader. Woman with Wanderlust.
