Top Tips for an Impressive Job Interview

Do you want to do your best and nail your next job interview? Of course, you do, everybody does, especially if you are looking for your dream job. In fact, job interviews could be really stressful and overwhelming. However, there is no place and time for worries here, because in this article we will share with you some really effective and helpful tips and tricks that will help you impress the recruitment professionals and make a great first impression.

Do your research

One of the best ways to give yourself the confidence that you know what you are talking about during a job interview and make sure you are the right fit for the company and the job vacancy is researching the company and the industry before you go to the job interview. Most likely the interviewer will ask you about your opinion and how you perceive the company or the industry the company is operating in. Therefore, you want to make sure you have a good knowledge of the industry, opportunities for the development of the company within the industry, the advantages of the company within the industry, the competitors, etc.

Your selling point

The interviewer would like to know why you think you are a good fit for the company, and why you are interested in a job opportunity in the industry and the company, therefore you need to clarify your selling points. Prepare at least three, better five selling points that will illustrate why you may be a good candidate for the job. Besides clarifying your selling points, make sure you have a good example that will illustrate each of them.

Predict the interviewer’s concerns

Truth is that there will always be more candidates for a job opportunity than vacancies, especially if this is an amazing job opportunity. Of course, there are ways for the interviewers to filter out the candidates, therefore, they will place a lot of attention on the reasons why a candidate might not be the right fit for the position. Unfortunately, these reasons often stick out like a sore thumb. In order to prepare yourself for anticipating and responding to such concerns, you need to ask yourself what are the reasons an interviewer might not want to hire you. This is the best way to make sure you are prepared to defend yourself.

Common interview questions

No matter the industry and company you are being interviewed for, chances are that most interviews within different business sectors will include a set of similar questions and this is some good news for you – you can prepare yourself for all the questions you are most likely to encounter.

You have questions too

It is a good idea to think of some intelligent questions you can ask the interviewer as this will give a good impression and show the interviewer that you are truly interested in the industry and the company. Interviewers always ask if you have some questions and this is your time to shine and demonstrate your knowledge and serious intent.

Practice

You don’t just need an intelligent and good answer to all questions you will be asked during a job interview. You also want to be able to say out loud these answers with enough confidence that demonstrate the fact you are truly believing that you are a good fit for the company and this can be achieved with a lot of practice at home.

Make a good impression in the first five minutes

The attention of the interviewers will be at its peak in the first five minutes of the interview when it is the best time to grab their attention and make a great first impression. Some studies show that interviewers need no longer than five minutes to make up their minds about the candidates for a job position. What is the best way to approach these five initial minutes and make sure you are making a good first impression? First things first, you want to come in with enthusiasm and energy. Then make sure you are expressing your appreciation for the interviewer’s time. Starting off with a positive comment about the company is always a great start.

Be assertive

You want to be polite during a job interview, however, this does not mean that you have to be passive. Be enough assertive to make a good first impression. You also want to be part of the conversation and maybe even lead it at some moments and points. Do not make the mistake of just sitting there passively, waiting for the interviewer to ask all the questions and lead the whole conversation.

Be prepared for inappropriate questions

Hopefully very rarely, however, some interviewers might be tempted to ask questions regarding gender, religion, ethnicity or race, age, etc. In all cases these questions are inappropriate and they should not be asked, in some places these questions may also be illegal. There are two good ways to approach such questions. You can opt for simply answering with a question – “I am not sure how this is relevant to my application/the job position offered by the company”. You can also opt for answering with a question behind the question. For example, if you are asked whether or not you are planning to have children, you can answer with: “I am not sure if I am planning to have children anytime soon. However, if you are asking me if I am planning to leave my job for a prolonged period of time, right now I am really interested and committed to my career and I cannot imagine giving it up”.