INTERVIEW SUCCESS FORMULA

Start with the present and tell why you are well qualified for the position. Remember that the key to all successful interviewing is to match your qualifications to what the interviewer is looking for. In other words, you must sell what the buyer is buying. This is the single most important strategy in job hunting. After uncovering what the employer is looking for, describe why the needs of this job bear striking parallels to tasks you've succeeded at before. Be sure to illustrate with specific examples of your responsibilities and especially your achievements, all of which are geared to present yourself as a perfect match for the needs he has just described.

Your greatest strengths?

Prior to any interview, you should have a list mentally prepared of your greatest strengths. You should also have, a specific example or two, which illustrates each strength, an example chosen from your most recent and most impressive achievements.

Your greatest weaknesses?

Instead of confessing a weakness, describe what you like most and like least, making sure that what you like most matches up with the most important qualification for success in the position, and what you like least is not essential.

Why should employer hire you?

Whether your interviewer asks you this question explicitly or not, this is the most important question of your interview because he must answer this question favorably in his own mind before you will be hired. Walk through each of the position’s requirements as you understand them, and follow each with a reason why you meet that requirement so well. IT is your best opportunity to outsell your competition.

Where do you see yourself five years from now?

Fist, reassure your interviewer that you’re looking to make a long-term commitment that this position entails exactly what you’re looking to do and what you do extremely well. As for your future, you believe that if you perform each job at hand with excellence, future opportunities will take care of themselves.

Your management style?

Try to avoid labels. Some of the more common labels, like progressive, salesman or consensus, can have several meanings or descriptions depending on which management expert you listen to. The situational style is safe, because it says you will manage according to the situation, instead of one size fits all.

What do co-workers say about you?

Be prepared with a quote or two from co-workers. Either a specific statement or a paraphrase will work. Stephanie, a co-worker at Johns Company, always said I was the hardest workers. It is as powerful as Stephanie having said it at the interviewer.

Why do you want to work at our company?

This question is your opportunity to hit the ball out of the park, thanks to the in-depth research you should do before any interview. Best sources for researching your target company is annual reports, the corporate newsletter, contacts you know at the company or its suppliers, advertisements, articles about the company in the trade press.

How do you measure up to your own definition?

The best way to measure anyone’s success is based on our internal or external customer’s success because of your contribution. Isn’t it so nice if our customer parsing our success. Give a well-accepted definition of success that leads right into your own stellar collection of achievements.