Hello Everybody! I hope that you are having as good of a week as I am! I’ve been kicking the New Year off with some back to basics tips for job hunting and will be continuing this week by talking about interviews. Before I jump into my thoughts on interviewing I thought that I’d share why I’m focusing on the basics this month.
I’ve found that a lot of the job hunting media out there focuses on new and exotic ways to get a job. While I think that there is a place for out of the box ideas, I truly believe that there are still some unwritten rules that should be followed. These rules are always going to be true and will sadly be what will set you apart in this day and age. Anyway, I digress. Here are the top five (plus one bonus tip)!
1. Wear a Suit – Look Good
You should always wear a suit to your first interview. Period. End of story. There are a couple of reasons why you should wear a suit:
- It makes you look good and professional
- It shows that you are interested in the position and taking it seriously
- It shows respect
Of these reasons the last two are most important. Now as with anything in life there are some extenuating circumstances where you can’t wear one. The interview could be at the last minute. It could arouse suspicion with your current employer. All of these are important factors. What is important is that you need to acknowledge that you aren’t wearing one and apologize to every person that you interview. This will show that you understand what is socially expected of you.
But “we are in a more casual society now, can’t I just dress professionally?” you might say. This is where things get a little tricky. I still maintain that there is really no option for a first interview. However, there is a little more leeway for subsequent interviews and you may have some options. Pay attention to what others in the office are wearing when you are at your interview. If everyone is in a suit then you should wear a suit. If, however, the office environment is a little more casual I think that you can dress it down a touch, I would still wear something a little more formal – perhaps a sportcoat and tie for men or a nice blouse and skirt. Just remember that you should dress to impress. One thing to remember though. I recently had a candidate go into a third interview with the head of an office. His interview process had been very casual, but the final interview was with one of the officers of the company. He only wore a sport coat and one of the first things that the officer said back to us was that he wasn’t wearing a suit. So you should put some thought into how you should dress for each interview especially if it is with a VIP. The parting thought on this is that you can always ask someone in the company what you should wear.
2. Research the Company Correctly
This is a tip that every recruiter, career counselor or career guru throws out there. Personally I think that it is a pretty worthless tip. It is so broad and ambiguous. It recently struck me that people should be told what to research. What are companies looking for?
Like many things I think that part of this is a test to see if you can do what you are supposed to do. If the interviewer asks if you have done some homework on the company and you say no it shows that you pretty much don’t care. However, I can tell you from experience that earlier in my career I tried to research a company before an interview and came away with a bunch of useless information that didn’t help me in the interview process. So here is what you can look for and what you can say about it:
- Talk to someone that you know in the industry and get their positive assessment in the company – then you can answer the question by saying “I’ve spoken to several people in the industry that respect your firm. I’ve been really impressed by what I’ve heard about your _____.” You can fill in the blank with whatever you heard using words like professionalism, culture, customer service…
- Research what the company does and say – “I have looked at your organization and I’m really excited about plastic. It’s definitely the next big thing and I really look forward to learning more about your vision for the future of plastics.” (For all of your really young people this is a shout out to the Graduate.)
- Look for an article about the company and say – “I’m really impressed with your company – I recently read an article talking about your growth last year and hope to find out how I could be a part of it.”
Here is what you can’t say. Don’t bring up a negative issue you found on the internet and share it with them. Don’t say I didn’t have time. However, you might be in a situation where you can’t find any information about the company. What do you do then? In this case you should be honest. Tell the interviewer, “I tried to do some research about your company and couldn’t find a great deal of information. I understand that you are in plastics, but could you tell me a little more about what your company?”
3. Drive to the Interview a Day Early
We all rely on technology. I know I do. One of the problems people have in their job searches is that we have little computers in our pockets that help us do things immediately that we used to have to plan for. Let me tell you a little secret…. Mapquest, Google Maps and other GPS services are not 100% accurate. They are great tools for when you are meeting your friend at a new restaurant and can be ten minutes late. They are not a great tool to rely totally on for an interview. If you want to make it the interview early (you should always be 5-10 minutes early – never more) you need to physically drive there the day before.
4. Bring a Portfolio and Something to Read
As I stated before you should be early to an interview. However, this poses another question. What should you do when you get there? Make sure you bring something to read like an industry magazine or a newspaper – don’t bring your cell phone and start playing Words with Friends. This will make you look casual and will also calm your nerves – you want to avoid looking like that guy that is sitting in the office for ten minutes tapping their foot and waiting for the interview. That guy looks creepy.
You should also bring a portfolio that has your resume and any notes you have taken. Have this portfolio is helpful for two reasons. First, it gives you a way to hold on to your resume without it looking like you crumpled it up and kept it in your pocket. Second and more importantly it gives you something to hold on to during the interview. When people are nervous they get fidgety and they start doing things with their hands. This can be like a security blanket for you.
5. Treat the Receptionist with Respect
Something that many people don’t realize is that the receptionist of an office is one of the owner’s most trusted advisors. Often times they are the glue that keeps an office together and they will give the hiring manager their impression of you. So… treat them like gold. Introduce yourself to them with a smile and let them know who you are there to see. Thank them when they go get your interviewer and thank them if they offer you something. Be polite and respectful and this will go far.
Bonus Tip – Turn Off Your Cell Phone
I probably don’t need to go in depth on this one. If you have the ability to do so just leave it in the car.
That’s all I have for this week. Let me know if you have any questions or comments. I can be reached at sthompson@insurance-csg.com. Have a great week!!!
Check out some of my recent articles on the blog here:
No comments:
Post a Comment