More Interview Tips
As a long overdue follow-up to my interview tips article from 2006 (yes, I said it was an overdue follow-up, heh) I'm going to address some of the most common points and questions that have come up since then. Some of these are based on comments I've made elsewhere but I'm dragging it all together in one place now.
I don't believe in 'get the job at any cost'
That's why I don't make lists of magic phrases to use in interviews, or things like that. My approach is more about finding the right job for you,
which is why I don't suggest you over-think too much on what to say or do in the
interview; if being yourself isn't the right thing to do, or so near it
doesn't matter, then are you really going to be happy taking that job?
Of course, there is something to be said for getting a job at any cost
if you're out of work and really need a job! But then what you consider to
be an acceptable job is going to be very
different to what is acceptable to someone who is essentially happy but
just wants to see if they could do better elsewhere. If you do find yourself in this situation then I believe that being in employment makes it easier to find employment. The pure mechanics of scheduling interviews is obviously a problem but employed candidates seem to be more attractive to prospective employers than unemployed candidates.
Focus on the basics. Get these right and everything else will follow.
The reason I keep repeating this idea to focus on the basics is because that is where I see people going wrong time and time again.
I mentioned turning up on time in the first post because it's something I see candidates
fail to do all the time, not just because it is a nice safe place to
start. This is fundamental and I can't believe I still have to mention it. I'm not talking about being the victim of an unforeseen disaster. Sometimes stuff just happens, and if it causes you to lose an interview opportunity then there isn't much you can do about it, but you should never arrive late because of something you could have anticipated beforehand.
I mention behaving properly because - and I still can't believe this - I took part in interviews with a 'Paper MCSE'
for an entry level position we had a few years ago. This would have
been their first IT job after working in another industry sector and
deciding to change career paths. That wasn't the problem. In fact, we (the interviewers) were quite interested in talking to this candidate and hoped that their wider experience would not only make up for their lack of specific industry experience but would perhaps help them bring a new approach to the role we were advertising.
The problem was that he was shouting and screaming at me because I had
dared to design our AD setup in a different manner from what his "Learn
MCSE AD Design in 24 hours" book suggested.
He didn't want to hear
that we might have valid reasons for our design. He didn't want to hear
that my knowledge and experience were probably on a par with that of the
author (who I actually know!), and certainly was far in excess of his. He didn't want to hear that we had validated our design with a number of people (including a major IT contractor to the education industry and the author of the book he was using as his reference). He just wanted to shout
and scream because we dared to be different to his book.
So do you think we made him an offer?
Be polite to everyone you speak to, no matter who they are. If someone offers you help (directions around the building, a drink, etc) be graceful in how you respond to them no matter whether or not you need their help. Let me make this quite clear: Every single person you speak to while you are on the site will probably be asked for their opinion of you before an offer is made. Even if their opinion isn't asked for, you can be damn sure they'll make sure that the interviewing manager will hear about it if you are rude to anyone at any time for any reason.
You've got to be comfortable speaking about yourself to sell yourself to the interviewer.
This is was something I found very difficult myself when I was younger.
All I can say is practice, practice practice. Get used to speaking on
any subject you know about. The more you practice speaking in general
the better at it you get.
And you're always going to be the subject
matter expert for your own career.
Be a human. Humans have limits.
If you get asked a question, in particular a technical question that is being used to gauge your knowledge, it's better to admit you don't know than to bluff or stare blankly at the interviewer waiting to be rescued.
If something is on your resume then you should be prepared to answer questions on it. If you get caught out with questions about something on your resume that you have no clue how to answer then I refer you to the part in my earlier article about not lying. Sorry.
If you're being asked about something you don't know the answer to and can't reasonably be expected to know the answer to then the interviewer is probably trying to guage both the limits of your knowledge and how you react to being pushed to your limits. There is nothing wrong with not knowing something, especially if it isn't something you could reasonably be expected to know. Admit it, and try to answer the question as best you can, if possible, or at the very least show that you might be prepared to guess or that you know how you might begin to find an answer.