Interview Questions, Preperation Tips and Guides

There are many things you need to do before an interview. The following are some general guidelines that you should follow without fail. Interviews can be very stressful, but proper preparation is key. With adequate preparation you can sail through your job interviews with ease and soon you will find that the right job interview can be something to even look forward to.

Interview Questions & Answers

First up is to do well and to do well you must be well prepared when it comes to the subject matter of your interview. Irrespective of the nature of the interview, most interviews these days will have a technical round or some form of exercise where your job skills and knowledge is tested. This step is crucial and making a good impression here can go a long way in your favor. Go online and browse through all the typical interview questions that one may ask during the interview. Many interviews contain the same questions.  Read the answers that are recommended and then think about how those answers apply to your past experience and individual situation. Do not memorize the answers, but practice solving questions yourself.  While practicing, make sure you say the answer out loud and see how it feels to say the words.  Record yourself if possible and play back the answer.  If you can perform mock interviews with friends, family , or colleagues then do so and take their feedback seriously and improve yourself..

Think about specific questions that you may be asked that are related to your experience, the prospective position, or your resume.  Look at yourself and you qualifications critically and be prepared to answer any shortcomings quickly and in a concise manner.  In this same way you should also look at your strengths and practice ways to let the interviewer know why you are the best person for the job.

Gather Information

Before the interview you should know about the company you are interviewing with.  You should at a minimum understand their dress codes and their overall job culture.  The extent of this intelligence gathering depends on the level of position for which you are applying.  If you are applying for an entry level distribution job,then know what types of products the company handles, their customers, and maybe some of their hub locations.  If you are applying for a post college professional position then it would be good to have an understanding of the companies annual report as well as the annual report of their primary competitors.  It would also be good to understand the direction the company is headed and make certain that you tailor answers in the interview to show that you are “on board” with making that happen.  Gathering intelligence for a position is critical in letting the interviewer know that you are not just an average applicant, but that you are the best applicant.

Social Profiles

If you have Facebook, my space, or any other profiles that show up in a Google search you will want to make them all private.  You want to keep your social presence under the radar unless you have a professional presence that will help you get the position.  But for most people it is important to keep your image professional and not allow access to your social networking profiles to the public.  This is the same for any links between your profile, your name, and your user name on public or even private forums.  Make certain it is not easy for your employer to discover how you handle yourself online.  Unless of course it is pristine and you honestly believe that all of your blog posts and comments will help your chances of getting a position.  But for most that is not the case and it is better to lock down all available information.

Be Well Rested

I know, you think you do better after an energy drink.  The fact is that you only think you do better after an energy drink, the rest of the world knows better.  Get a lot of sleep before an interview and eat a light and healthy breakfast with protein and low carbohydrates.  Do not eat fatty or greasy foods and stay away from stimulants for at least 48 hours prior to the interview.  Trust me, this will help you be at the top of your game.  Stay clear headed and be yourself, this is your best bet in handling an interview well.

Congratulations you have been noticed!  That’s right, believe it or not it is an accomplishment in and of itself to simply rise above the crowd and move past submitting a job application and/or resume and actually getting a job interview.  This is your chance to shine and your chance to show your prospective employer that you are the best person for the position.  The following are some of the most common interview questions, you need to be prepared for these because interviewers often ask them at the beginning of an interview to determine how much time they want to spend with you.  Flounder on these obvious questions and you will be at an extreme disadvantage when they get to the hard ones.

Before we begin, why don’t we get acquainted and you tell me about yourself.

Even though this is not phrased as a question and is actually disguised as casual conversation, it is in fact, the first interview question.  Be prepared, this question comes up in over half of all interviews.  The key to this is to keep your answer relevant to the job and your qualifications.  Because it was not a formal question you can throw in some extra information, but once again, make it relevant.  For example, if the job requires you to have great people skills, talking about how you love computer games is not relevant nor beneficial, but talking about how you belong to several clubs and are a spokesperson for them, that is relevant and important.  On the same note, make certain that you only talk about yourself, do not go off into tangents revealing personal information about yourself, friends, or family.  The interviewer wants to know that you have discretion and any work secrets are safe with you and will not be spilled in every outside of work conversation you have.

Can you tell me about your strengths?

This is another typical question that you need to be ready to answer.  This is not the time to be humble, this is a time to communicate to the interviewer some of the best qualities about yourself.  But before you do, make certain they are qualities that will be looked upon favorably relative to the position for which you are applying and ones that truly are your strengths.  Telling the interviewer you are great at communication and building rapport, and yet not having done so with the interviewer can be a problem.  It shows a lack of refection about yourself and possibly a lack of ability to take constructive criticism.  If you love to do your best and help others do the same, be prepared to describe how this is factually true.  Do not simply say it without supporting information.  If you make an extraordinary claim, support it with extraordinary evidence.

Can you tell me about your primary weakness?

Just as the strengths question is important, so is this question.  The key to this question is that you do not want to identify your true weaknesses unless you know they are not relevant to the job and you can factually state the ways in which you are overcoming said weakness.  The safest answers to this question are usually areas in which your are actually somewhat solid but that you have put effort into improving.  Never show your cards to the interviewer by telling them your true downside.  That will never benefit you in an interview.

Those are the three most common interview questions and some advice on how to answer them.  The key is that you want to be honest but you do not want to give the interviewer too much information.  Answer concisely and with facts that support your answers.  Glittering generalities about how great you are will not stick with the interviewer, but claims supported by facts will.