by ABFRLadmin | October 30, 2023
Bag that dream job: 6 things to do before your interview
The elation of getting a positive response from your dream company is hard to describe. While getting a foot in the door is just the first step, preparing for the interview is the next to get closer to make it a reality. The pressure of an interview can get overwhelming. After all, interviews are key to bagging the job, even if you believe your resume can speak for itself. Knowing how to prepare for an interview is crucial, and we’re here to help you put your best foot forward!
Here’s are 6 important things you need to remember before an interview:
1. Do your research
Knowing the company, industry, and job position is a golden rule.
Having a good amount of the knowledge about the organisation you have applied to is a strong reflection of how serious you are about the job, and how familiar you are with the organisation’s way of functioning. A nuanced understanding of the industry’s current trends or events helps reflect your experience and potential. Expressing detailed knowledge about the job position is crucial in displaying your level of awareness of the roles and responsibilities, if you are qualified for it. Knowing how to communicate why you’re fit for the role in that company is critical to get right.
While the company website and LinkedIn are two important sources, try exploring as many sources as possible, like your own networks. The information you’ve gathered will help making your responses in the interview as organisation-centric as possible, so make sure you are well-informed.
2. Evaluate and list down your skills and accomplishments
This seems like an obvious thing to do, but it is important to take time out to make a list of your accomplishments and weaknesses. CVs and resumes are two different things and serve distinct purposes. A resume is a single-page document that highlights your major accomplishments. A CV is a more detailed document that runs into a few pages and details the finer nuances of your roles and responsibilities.
While reviewing your skills and strengths, consider the job position you are applying for. List out instances in your previous company that help further communicate your skill strengths that would be relevant.
3. Prepare with mock interviews
Messing up an important event due to nervousness has happened to the best of us. Often, despite hours of preparation, the anxiety of the event takes over and we fail to showcase our true potential. Asking a friend or family member to practice and ask you some interview questions helps cover the common ground of interviews. It also helps in reducing nervousness. Additionally, having someone to practice with can be useful in examining and improving your communication skills, be it your tone, vocabulary, or body language.
4. Prepare questions for the interviewer:
In case that your interviewer asks you if you have any questions, you do not want to be caught off guard. It is important to ensure that the questions are relevant and specific in equal measure. Asking generic questions can make you appear under prepared and simply lazy while asking the right kind of questions allows you to make a lasting impression. Therefore, always take time out to think of questions related to the job position and organisation without seeming unprepared. Look up what current and past employees have to say on tools such as Glassdoor to have more pointed and poignant queries that you may have about the work culture or the role.
5. Prepare for different interview formats:
Depending on the organisation, job position and interviewer, the format of interviews differ. Similarly, the kind of questions, be it situational, skill-specific differ from job to job and depends on the interview format. Some of the common interview formats include panel interviews, group interviews, virtual or individual interview. It becomes essential to then prepare according to the format, or for different formats to be well prepared, familiar, and comfortable, especially in the case that you are new to it. After all, we do not want the format or style of the interview to be an added source of nervousness.
6. Do not forget the basics: keep everything ready for the day of the interview
Finally, make sure you have all that you need a day prior. Interviews bring a feeling of nervousness, which is why you want everything planned and ready. Be it the bag you take or the clothes that you will wear, or settling on the mode of transport and the time travel will take, make sure you’re well prepared. The last thing you want is to wind up late to an interview or looking unkempt, because as the old saying goes, “the first impression, leaves a lasting impression!”
With these 6 easy yet effect tips, you’re all set to bag that job, and we cannot wait to see you ace it!
Keep up the great work! Thank you so much for sharing such great posts….