There are literally hundreds if not thousands of books that
have been written on the subject of mastering interviews. A simple stroll
through your local Barnes & Noble or search on Amazon.com will uncover a
glut of material devoted to the subject. While some of the content can be
useful, subject matter that is devoted to teaching the reader how to manipulate
the interview with nonsense the writers think we want to hear is useless. In my
opinion, there is no such thing as “buzzwords” or “phrases” that will impress
the interviewer so much that the interviewee will get the job. You can answer
interview questions exactly how you think we want to hear them, but if the
answers are not genuine, then it’s actually going to do you more harm than
good. It is very easy to see through thinly veiled answers that are nothing
more than pre-canned or pre-packaged gibberish.
The whole point of an interview is to get to know you as the
candidate; what’s your professional background, what qualifications do you
bring to the position, how would your personality fit with the company culture,
etc. Above all, we want to know what professional achievements/accomplishments
you bring to the table. This is what sells you, not the pre-rehearsed answers
for 200 questions. The simplest way to prepare for a job interview is to think
about your four or five greatest professional achievements, and have them fresh
in your mind prior to the interview. You will be amazed at how you can
intertwine your accolades into the responses that you provide for just about
any question being posed. It’s simple, and it’s effective.
I have hundreds of examples I could share, but let me
quickly relay the story of one job seeker in particular where stressing his
achievements in an interview was the key to him successfully landing the
position. This particular applicant had been laid off as a sales rep in the
pharmaceutical industry, and being one of the most competitive industries out
there at the time (and right now), it was difficult to find that next job. He
had some success in securing interviews, but not in beating out the
competition. As we talked about the specifics of his previous interviews, I
picked up one commonality – he was not doing enough to stress his achievements
with real-life examples. He had an excellent track record of exceeding quota,
being recognized as a top producer, and had been bestowed many awards and accolades.
The problem was, he was not conveying any of it in interviews. The day before
the next big interview, we spent a few minutes talking about his
accomplishments, and how to express those in the interview. His interview was
at the tail end of over 400 candidates. Yes, 400. The first question he was
asked was what 3 words best described him (which is a question I am not a fan
of, but that’s neither here nor there). Instead of spitting out the words that
were sure to impress (as conveyed by many books), he came up with words that
were genuine to him, and backed each with a quick example of a professional
achievement. That was the only question he was asked that day – he was the only
person out of over 400 that had answered it that way. He was offered the position
on the spot, and the rest is history.
If you are not doing so already, I would highly recommend to
incorporate your achievements in your own interview arsenal. It may just be the
thing that is holding you back from landing that coveted position.
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