Impress Your Interviewer – An interview is the most common thing every job seeker would go through a lot many times in his career. It is an interaction of both the interviewer and interviewee to understand each other properly, discuss any questions, facts or statements.
While it a two way communication, most of the interviewee’s are hesitant to start conversation with their interviewers because of the fear of being rejected. They think that asking questions from the employer may annoy him and create a biased and displeased feeling in his mind.
Not every interview is easy and every individual is not confident about himself and the interview. There may have been some interviews in which you didn’t performed well, were nervous or didn’t like the work environment or pay.
There may be some interviews in which you gave your best but were not selected by the interviewer and you kept thinking all the night about what wrong did you do in your interview.
Having necessary qualifications and skills may not always give you a 100 percent guarantee of being selected. Besides being excellent in academics, there are some other interviewer skills which are necessary to possess in order to impress your interviewer and get selected.
You must possess a right attitude, personality, knowledge and body language besides your academic qualification. Sometimes it is the one of these factors only, that companies reject individuals.
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Sometimes, depending upon the type of job, a company may require a person who is extrovert or introvert, frank or serious, fluent or full of skills. There are some others factors too that may result in your rejection, sometimes it may be your dressing sense or inability to carry all the necessary documents.
Getting rejected in 3 or 4 interviews is a fine thing which you don’t have to worry about. Start afresh and carry yourself positively. But if are being rejected again and again, it is a matter of concern.
You have to look deep and find out the factors which you have to work upon for your success Look upon all the factors – external (dressing sense), internal (attitude, tone of voice, commitment), social (conversation skills) and personality related (extrovert, introvert, frank, serious).
Here is a checklist about how to impress your interviewer and get selected for your dream job opportunity.
Interviewer Pre-Preparation
If you are serious enough for a job or a company then you may have to prepare before hand for a lot of things in order to combat any factors responsible for your failure.
- If not interested in a company or post: Even if you don’t find a job opportunity interesting, go for the interview anyway. This helps in building up future contacts of job opportunities. Moreover you learn about the company, their work environment and the interview conducted builds up the confidence in you for the future interviews.
- Prepare a file with all necessary documents: Carry all the necessary documents in a well organized file. Reorganize your CV according to the job profile and work upon choosing the appropriate references too. Carry 2-3 extra copies of your CV and remember not to forget any documents related to what you have mentioned in your CV. Always prepare your file according to the job profile. Carry the latest and eligible documents only. The interviewer doesn’t want to see the certificates of activities performed in your 10th
- Prepare a short story of your skills: If you are not that good in describing yourself and your skills, prepare a short story about it. Stories are easy to remember both for you and the interviewer. Rehearse the story line and get it prepared concrete so that any chances of inability to speak yourself are minimized.
- Pre-search for the location and distance: Be on time. If in the first meeting itself you reach late, it would definitely not yield a good impression of your punctuality. Search for the location, nearest points and ideal mode of transport by doing the research on Google maps. Reach the destination 30 minutes early. However avoid reaching too early as it may pressurize the interview conducting team.
- Do a thorough research: Do a thorough research about the company, its mission statement, history, awards & achievements and product offerings. This is important as interviewer often asks their candidates questions related to their company. They want to check whether the candidate is serious enough about the job and company or not. Hence, it is recommended to research about all the necessary information before hand.
- Read up the current affairs: Have a thorough knowledge of current affairs and current news related to your job. For example if you are going for a financial analyst job you should have full knowledge of current economic and financial conditions and new laws being worked upon.
- Re-organize your social media: Nowadays there are many profiles for which the information of the social media channels you use are equally important for the interviewer. So delete any quotes, pictures, status or discussions which may sound profane or objecting to your recruiter.
On the interview day morning
- Dress formally and avoid flashy ornaments: Truly said-“First impression is the last impression”. Dress up in proper formals. Your hair should be neatly combed and nails should be trimmed properly. Never wear something too fancy for an interview. Accessories such as belt and small earrings are desirable but avoid any accessory which is too fancy or flashy. Avoid any strong perfumes and fragrances which may distract the interviewers. Avoid heavy makeup and strong shades of lipstick. These are some small crubs which when not worked upon properly can decrease your selection probability.
- Go for a short break: After reaching your interview destination, make sure to go to the restroom and check your hair, face, teeth and clothes. Give a last touch up to your hair, check for any dirt on the shoes, wash your hands to remove any sweat or dust.
- Waiting room etiquettes: At the waiting room, be nice to everyone. Be polite and avoid showing your hurry and nervousness. Avoid using phones as they are most likely to convey some bad news which may distress you and distract your focus.
During your interview
- See for your body language: Your body language speaks a lot about you. The interviewer can know what type of personality you have by noticing your hand movements, eye movements and talking fluency. Never wear lanky clothes or uncomfortable footwear which makes it uncomfortable for you to walk in for the interview.
- Greeting your interviewer: Greet your interviewer with a smile and a firm handshake. Remember your hands should not be shaking or full of sweat. Don’t sit like a wax statue in a tight position. While talking use your hands to explain things. Make an eye to eye contact with the interviewer. Avoid laughing and being too frank while talking. Don’t move your arms and legs here and there. Avoid touching your face, rubbing your nose, manage hair strands. A proper posture and body movements should be worked upon thoroughly and should be maintained not only inside the interview room but also at the waiting hall.
- Have an ideal tone of voice: Whatever be your voice tone, you have to adjust it according to the conditions. In an interview it is necessary to convey a polite and gentle tone. Your voice should convey your interest, courteousness and commitment towards the job and company. Avoid opting for a voice which is too hard to hear as well as a tone too harsh to hear and which may also convey your arrogance and attitude. Don’t speak in a hurry, speak everything clearly and give stress on important words.
- Ask your interviewer a few questions: It is advised to ask your interviewer few questions, it may be about the company, the work, challenges etc. Ask what does the company values the most, what you may be learning out of your job, what is the company’s future goals. If you don’t ask questions and leave without a conversation from your side, it implies either you didn’t understand the work or you are uninterested in the company.
- Describe yourself and your talents: Give a fledged description about what interview skills you developed from your last experience at different companies. Showcase all your talents and skills with full confidence and energy. If however at any company your experience was not good, never say bad things about your former employers. It builds up a negative image of you and some employers may dislike this attitude of yours. Avoid talking about the salary in first meeting. These questions can be discussed in the later stages of selection.
- Be sure for what you write: Never write any skill, talent which you cannot perform with full confidence. If your interviewer tells you to show one of those skills, and you don’t do it correctly and confidently it may decrease your points and you may also feel embarrassed.
- Convince your interviewer: Display yourself in such a manner that your interviewer is highly impressed with your personality, thoughts and skills. Give examples on how you can prove to be an asset for the company, what you having which others are lacking and showcase your commitment towards the organization. Always tell the truth. Never boast your skills and talents which may convey your egotism.
- Gather up with ease: At the end of the interview gather your files and documents calmly and with a smile. Gathering things quickly may lead to dropping things or documents which may make you embarrassed. Have a handshake with your interviewer and say thank you. Walk towards the door slowly and with confidence.
- Send a follow up mail: After your interview session, it is advised to send a thank you note to the employer through email. This might not seem fruitful to you but these tiny doings can yield a good reputation and liking of the employer towards you. You can build a reputation that people would look up to and you would be considered to be amongst the best relationship builder.
Interview is a responsible and serious task both for the interviewer and the interviewee. The Interviewer also has a lot of pressure regarding who to choose, not to become partial or unfair with any interviewee, to select the right employee who proves to be an asset for the company and who becomes a permanent employee with his full commitment.
In the same way an interview is nervous about impressing the interviewer, showing all the positive qualities and skills and hiding any negative ones which may reduce his chances of selection.
Sometimes this pressure creates a hindrance and makes it further more difficult to go for an interview. If you get too nervous for the interview you may need some personality development classes.
Be positive whatever the result be. With every interview conducted, you will learn about what you are good in, what you have to work upon, what impressed your interviewer and what etiquette’s you have to work upon further.
Never think anything wrong about your interviewer. Place yourself in his shoes and feel the pressure of selecting the right employee. Recognize your weaknesses and work thoroughly upon them.
Also note that you don’t have to pretend what you aren’t. Never pretend yourself too much which may shock the recruiter afterwards. Though working on body language and personality is important but showcase only those qualities which you can carry conveniently after the selection process too.
Developing a responsible and committed attitude towards your job and company is important and this feeling should come from inside and not only during the interview day.
Always work with your full potential at every job. This will make up a good image of you in the eyes of the employer so that in future if you have to give his references, you feel confident to do that. Develop positive interpersonal relation at every work environment which will not only create a good image of you but also improve your inner conversational and social skills.
