Here are some tips for a job interview that will help you come out of the process on top. When you walk into a job interview, the product you are selling is YOU.

In order to successfully sell yourself, you must market your personal brand. That is, you must build a reputation that qualifies you, and only you, to successfully fulfill the job requirements. The job interview is your time to shine – your time to sell yourself and your abilities. In order to do that, you must have faith in your personal brand.

That’s what separates you from the rest of the candidates for your desired position. If you can do so successfully, you will be well on your way to landing the job of your dreams. Continue Reading

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No matter where you are in your career, from entry-level to the top rung of the ladder, one skill that is absolutely necessary to catapult you from one level to the next throughout your professional life is the ability to interview well.

What exactly is the purpose of an interview? What are the goals of both parties involved in the interview, and how does this tie in to receiving a job offer? What is the best way to prepare for an interview, to avoid being nervous, anxious, and blowing the entire appointment?

According to a general dictionary, an interview is defined as a formal meeting, especially one arranged for the assessment of the qualifications of an applicant. Seems simple enough, right? As a job seeker, it’s necessary to change the way that you view an interview. Let’s take our thinking from a passive appointment in which an employer gets to know a prospective employee, to a dynamic process in which a prospective employee has the opportunity to sell his or her skills. Continue Reading

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You do. If you want the job, that is.

The thank you letter is a critical element of the interviewing process. In a way, it’s analogous to the defense attorney making his closing summation at trial. The evidence has been presented; now he’s wrapping the whole thing up with a bow, recapping what’s been said, and trying to convince the jury why they should decide in his client’s favor.

It’s not uncommon for the case to be won or lost on the basis of the summation.

If you’re the person on trial, you probably don’t want your attorney to phone this in. Or to decide it isn’t worth doing at all – why not skip it and roll the dice? Let’s just send them in to deliberations and let the chips fall where they may. After all, this is just a formality, right? Continue Reading

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Telephone interviews have become very common as a first step in the interview process. It allows employers to narrow down the candidate pool and only schedule the most qualified applicants for in person interviews.

It is just as important to prepare for a telephone interview as it is for an in person interview. It could be more important as this determines whether or not you ever meet the employer. Following are five tips that can help you prepare for and ace the phone interview. Continue Reading

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It astonishes me how many job seekers in today’s day and age are held back because they lack the information and skills necessary to interview well. I have developed a simple list of basic interview skills every job seeker should posses before stepping foot in the door of an interview. You may be amazed by what you don’t know.

Prepare a resume that sells. Is your resume a timeline, historical document, or a sophisticated marketing and sales piece? Sell the employer on your best attributes and what you can bring to them. Quantify when possible! Continue Reading

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When you have an interview lined up for the job of your dreams, it is a good idea to seek out every job interview tip you can find to make sure that you are as prepared as possible for the interview.

1. Research the Company

The job interviewer is very likely to ask you why you are interested in the job for which you are interviewing. If you are able to respond in a way that demonstrates an accurate understanding of the company, the researcher will likely be very impressed with you.

The fact that you took the time to learn the organization’s mission or that you have a clear understanding of the company’s primary product line sends the right message. It lets the interviewer know that you have both initiative and a genuine interest in the job. Continue Reading

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As a recruiter in the Staffing Industry, I spent the last four years interviewing people for all different types of positions – from entry level manufacturing to management and professionals. I have met some candidates that interviewed very well, and there were others that I could not wait to get out of my office. Here are a few interview tips on what NOT to do when applying or interviewing for any position. I was going to number these and put them in order, but they are really ALL number 1!

Do not smoke at the site where you apply or interview.

Smoking or chewing tobacco makes a bad first impression – wait until you are in the car leaving before using any tobacco products. Even if the interviewer is smoking (such as at a construction site), wait until you leave. Continue Reading

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You’re a six-figure jobseeker, an executive. You’ve sold and performed project management assignments while working from the C-level down. You have been swimming with sharks for years and come up with nary a scratch. In a way your career seemed untouchable like a diver inside the steel cage. The predators couldn’t get to you.

But industries, economies, recessions, age and personalities change. With the buyout of your current company prior to the “official” recession declared in December of 2008 you decided to make a move to a competitor. Continue Reading

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Probably the most important thing to remember about a job interview is that once you get past Human Resources the people interviewing you are probably amateurs at interviewing.

They are pros at whatever their major responsibility is but hiring new employees constitutes only about 2% – 5% of what they do. That means that if you are prepared you have a fairly good chance of subtly controlling the interview by the questions you ask and the way you structure your resume.

Here are some of the kinds of interviews you can expect to encounter. Each takes a slightly different type of preparation and tactics. Continue Reading

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As an expert in the field of career management, my job is to help people craft cover letters and rsums that showcase the specific transferable skills that would be a value to all potential employers.

Nothing makes me sadder than, once having heard that my clients have secured the interview, to find out later that they have been found guilty of one or more of the cardinal sins related to job interviews.

Cardinal Sin #1: Resting on your laurels. Falling into the trap of believing that your stellar credential and years of work experience speak for themselves is disastrous. Continue Reading

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You have found a great job opportunity. You have the necessary skills and experience. Everything is going according to plan, but for some reason you aren’t selected. What happened?

It’s likely that you committed an interview mistake. Most hiring managers are willing to let one or two small matters slide. However, if you commit several of the common interview mistakes you will never make the short list.

We interviewed hiring managers, recruiters, and even job seekers to identify the most common mistakes made by job applicants. We intentionally did not rank the list of interview offenses, since their impact will vary widely depending on the attitude of the interviewer. Continue Reading

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No matter how many interviews you have gone to it never really seems to gets easier, does it? That’s because each interview is different. Each interviewer is different from the last one and often the position you are applying for, although in your field of expertise, is different even if only slightly.

However, there are ways you can feel more relaxed and prepared for interviews, and increase your chances of getting that job or promotion that you’re going for.

Here are 10 tips to help you approach a job interview more confidently and increase your chances of success. Continue Reading

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