Important job interview: how to get it right?

We have prepared detailed instructions for those who have to pass an interview with the employer.

You will learn about interview preparation, frequently asked questions and common mistakes when applying for a job.

What you need to know?

the main thing - carefully study the vacancy.

Record those skills and qualities that are indicated by the employer in order to focus on the interviews.

Recipe for success - in a personal approach to each employer. It is important to understand what kind of work you will be entrusted with and show that you are competent in this area.

Training

We will talk about two aspects: psychological and practical. Under the psychological implied emotional state. Your confidence, calm, lack of excitement and jitters for the interview.

Practical training is to carefully examine each job you respond to.

Emotional-psychological

To begin with, we will calm you down - nothing wrong in the office of HR'a does not wait for you. Irrational (meaningless, groundless) fear of the unknown enters. Most often due to lack of experience in interviewing.

Rehearse your behavior in front of a mirror, or ask for help from a friend, a loved one.

Take a look at the proposed issues (the most common of them we indicated in the next section).

It is better to beat everything in advance, what to improvise sitting in front of the employer. Tune in to win, but be prepared to lose and do not accept the failure of a personal account.

Moreover, the more they ask clarifying questions and carefully study the applicant - the more serious the company.

Without discussions and inquiries, either frivolous dubious organizations or companies where the personality and experience of the employee are not important, and they usually have staff turnover, are dispensed with.

Practical

At this stage, the specific company you are going to is being studied. Find out:

what kind of work will be required of you;
specialization, niche occupied by the company;
composition of the team, your future colleagues;
history of the company - how many years on the market, what are the achievements, awards, awards, victories in tenders and competitions.

Get information labor will not be - take a look at the official website of the company.

Each large organization has a website that contains comprehensive information about its structure and activities.

Site may not be in a local, small business (club, hookah, cafe), but certainly in the presence of a group in the social network ("Vkontakte", less often - "Classmates").

What questions are asked?

Many companies use the same questions when conducting an interview. Therefore, you can prepare answers in advance and easily parry most of the questions.

We have compiled a list of the most common of them, where we tell how to respond and what to answer:

"Tell me a little about yourself". It's about self-presentation. How to better position yourself, we will describe in more detail in the section below. Now the main advice is to speak on the case. Your task is to show interest in this particular place of work, to name the qualities, skills and experience that will be applicable to this particular vacancy.

“Why did you choose our company? Why do you want to work with us? ”. Before you go for an interview, not only carefully read the vacancy on the site, but also look at the company's web page. Learn more about its history, employees, customers. So you can find the differences of the company and point out at the interview. The employer does not respond well to the usual phrases “your firm is solid”, “I want to grow professionally”, etc. And the answer “last year you won the contest“ The best design of an online store ”and hired a cool Petersburg designer X” is much better, because it shows your interest in the company.
"What are your advantages?". One of the main questions on the interview. Here you have where to turn - lay out all the best qualities, skills, achievements, knowledge that may be useful for a particular job.
"What are your strengths and weaknesses?" There are no problems with strengths - just name your best qualities, confirming them with reason. Not "punctual", but "I hand over the models in the allotted time." As for the weak, you need to be careful. Most candidates have problems - I don’t want to talk about negative sides.
But if you do not name anything at all, the employer will have distrust and skepticism about everything said by the applicant.
“Why did you leave your previous job?”. Here the company wants to know about your reputation. If the cause was a conflict, it speaks of your inability to compromise and failure to comply with subordination. Even if you had a big fight with the boss, emphasize what you liked in the previous place, tell us about the positive aspects. Then the employer will understand that you are thinking positively and do not see the world in gloomy tones. It is also not recommended to blame and complain, even if the curiosity occurred through no fault of yours.

“Did you try to get a job with other companies?”. It is necessary to mention that you went for interviews to other companies, but prefer the one where you are currently interviewing. The fact that other conversations were successful will give the impression that you are a sought-after specialist.
“How do you see yourself in five / ten years?”. Here they are trying to learn about such qualities as dedication, ability to plan and prioritize. It is better to tell in details applicable to the vacancy - what skills you plan to develop, what knowledge and qualifications to get.
About recommendations. Often the company asks for recommendations from previous jobs. This way newcomers are eliminated (who have no experience or it is minimal). As well as conflict people leaving the scandal.
That is why it is important to collect the most positive feedback about your work and provide the phones of former employers.
“What salary do you claim?” Thin question. Cannot be cheap. If you are embarrassed, this indicates either a lack of experience and qualifications, or shyness and lack of purposefulness. Before any interview, determine your current level and name the number that you can justify with real work.
"Do you have any questions?". Here are useful tips from paragraph 2. If you studied the company to which you came, learned what they are specifically doing, the team, the office, then the questions will appear by themselves. Do not hesitate to ask their interlocutor.

Self-presentation

How to interest an employer?

The impression about the employee develops at the very beginning.

Therefore, you need to make an impression in the first 5 minutes. During this time, the employer forms an opinion about the interlocutor.

Pay attention not only to what you say, but also how. Nonverbal communication is equally important. - confident tone, open posture (do not cross your arms, do not fidget on the chair), smooth gestures.

Try to maintain eye contact, but do not overdo it - a constant look in the eyes is perceived as aggression. Here the old method will help - during the dialogue look at the nose of the interlocutor. An important factor is a smile.

She has not hurt anyone. A calm smile is disposed, but it is better to use it naturally - the falsehood is felt and perceived extremely negatively.

Recommendations

How to successfully pass an interview when applying for a job? Psychological advice will help you prepare well for the interview.

How to go to a meeting?

Let's talk about etiquette and dress code. The student years are over, and going to an interview in a T-shirt and jeans is not a good idea. Unless you are a renowned expert in your field. But in this case, employers themselves knocking on the door.

Whatever the company scale, we recommend the following set:

Classic dress style - trousers, shirt, jacket, shoes.
Neatness - clothes should be ironed, shoes - cleaned. Appearance is the first thing people pay attention to, and nothing human is alien to HR'am. A pleasant well-groomed appearance speaks of a number of useful qualities: responsibility, punctuality, healthy self-love.
Perfume. At least - you should not smell unpleasant. But do not overdo it with eau de cologne.

How to behave with the employer?

Important qualities you should not forget:

Punctuality. Business communication is the best option. Avoid the two extremes - isolation and talkativeness. Few people want to talk with a silent introvert, from which the words cannot be pulled out with ticks.
And what's worse, no one wants to listen for hours talking about pets, bad ex-commanders and failures on a personal front.
Concreteness. Answer briefly and in the case to the asked questions. Ornate philosophizing and avoiding the topic are discouraged.
Calm. You must be internally confident in your competence, in the ability to "pull" the proposed work. Do not bluff, overstating achievements and skills, but do not make a bad bargain.

How to talk?

What to say when applying for a job?

Ask questions. If, after the interview from the applicant, there was not a single question, the employer will think. "Either shy, inert," "or not interested in our company at all." Both can fail. Of course, questions should be about the company, and not about the identity of the interlocutor or his eating habits.
Speak in a calm measured voice, do not hurt. We recommend practicing diction before the interview - speak the prepared answers to the questions, use tongue twisters.
Give up slang and jargon. Professional slang is appropriate, but only to make it clear to the employer that you are competent in your field.

How to make an impression?

As we mentioned, the first impression is formed from the appearance, as well as non-verbal signals. Come into the room calmly, without fuss. Try to occupy as much space as possible - this shows confidence, lack of constraint.

Interview with a psychologist

Sometimes the employer involves a psychologist in the interview. It may be related to the specifics of the professionor with a high level of the position you are applying for.

There are two formats of meeting with a psychologist: conversation and tests. Sometimes they are combined. All the advice that we gave regarding the behavior of the interview, are applicable in a conversation with a psychologist. As for the tests, they can be as follows:

personal. It turns out your temperament, checked quality, honesty;
intellectual. The most common option is an IQ test;
professional. Created to identify your level of knowledge.

The main advice is to respond to tests the way you talked to your employer. Otherwise, there will be a “difference in testimony” and dishonesty will be revealed in the interview.

Applicant errors when applying for a job

Late arrival. Fatal error. You can spoil the impression only by this item. If you stay for a good reason, the first thing is to briefly describe the situation and apologize for the wait.
Appearance. Simple clothes (t-shirt, faded jeans, sneakers), or dirty, not ironed.
Interruption on a phone call. We recommend to turn off the smartphone for the entire period of the interview.
Tactlessness. Transition to personalities, familiarity, too relaxed postures, sharp gestures.
Violent reaction. Excessive emotionality on the asked questions, aggressive behavior.