#6. Top Ten Interviewing Mistakes: Focusing only on the job
<Previous | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | Next>
Students feel that they need to show that they are super professional during the interview. They accomplish this professional demeanor by steering the interview into a question then answer, question then answer format. Students are also afraid to ask the interviewer anything about her personal life because they don’t want to be intrusive.
At the career events, everyone is asking the company representatives the same questions: “What is your typical day like?” or “What does your company do?” Students feel that they need to show their eagerness for the company by bombarding the representative with questions about the company. Both of these strategies are fundamentally wrong.
Interviewers are people too
Treat the interviewer like they are just any other person. Initiate and push for a conversation rather than a Q&A session. The true way to make a connection with the company representative or interviewer is to get them to talk about their personal lives and interests. A great way to find common interests with the interviewer is when they ask you to tell them about yourself. Always throw in your Goodies, which are your interests and passions. If you find that you two share a similar interest, quickly build upon it and turn it into a conversation.
Take a chance
Most students are too nervous to ask the company representative about her personal life. They feel that it might be too intrusive and unprofessional. The truth is people LOVE to talk about themselves and LOVE to talk to people with similar interests. Take a chance and put yourself out there. If you answer a question with a story about your fraternity, quickly transition the conclusion of your story by asking him if he ever pledged and crossed into a fraternity. There is always a way to transition into a conversation.
Speak from the heart
I was at a recruiting event when a young student came up to me to ask me about my company. She pulled out a notebook from her back pocket and began reading me a list of questions and started jotting down notes on her notepad! She came off completely cold and impersonal. She didn’t want to get to know me as a person; she just wanted information that she could use to her advantage. Recruiters do not like being interrogated by a list of questions. They want to genuinely speak to a person and have a conversation.
{ 0 comments… add one now }