How To Prepare For Your Interview

A job interview can be a nerve-wracking experience. Even after you’ve had a few under your belt, it can still be an ordeal. Fortunately there are some things you can do before the interview to prepare yourself and make your responses to the questions you’ll receive sound more natural and relaxed.

The first step to preparing is to simply interview yourself. What kind of questions would you ask of yourself in a job interview? A few of the most common—and tricky—questions include “What can you bring to this company?” “How do you feel about this kind of work? What is your favorite part?” There’s even the trick question, “What is your least favorite thing about this kind of work?”

If your responses leave something to be desired, try doing some introspection and come up with the most honest answers possible. You’ll of course need to be diplomatic in the interview process, but honesty can get you a long way towards a new job.

It’s a good preparation technique to picture yourself at the company in question and then ask where you think you’ll be in five years at that particular employer. If you can figure out a realistic career path for yourself, you’ll be well prepared for the inevitable interview question, “Where do you see yourself in five years?” This question implies a second one: “Will you still be with us or will you have moved on?” How you answer could tell your potential employers a lot about your goals and desires.

Avoid giving cliché answers in your interview. Everybody has heard the old wheeze about your number one shortcoming being perfectionism. Instead, why not try to be honest? Are you a stickler for being on time? Do you take it personally when your co-workers slack off in the middle of a big project? While these things aren’t necessarily character flaws, you do present yourself as someone who has a genuine concern for the outcome of the day’s work. By the same token, saying these things in an interview and then doing the exact opposite in the workplace will give your new employers pause when it comes time for those first performance reports.

Half the battle in a job interview is fought long before you face the person across the desk. Preparation is the key; without it, you’ll be at a major disadvantage in the interview. Walking in with the confidence you get from planning and preparing for it makes a tremendous difference; both in how you feel during the session and how you present yourself to your potential new employer.