Acting the Part - Get Rave Reviews at Your Next Interview
- Oct 10, 2014
- 2 min read
Congratulations – you passed the screening process and have been invited on-site for an interview! Organizations and hiring managers treat the in-person interview seriously. This is often the most heavily weighted step in the hiring process, meaning that as a candidate, you have little to no luck if you don’t perform well here. The best way to ace your in-person interview is to treat the interview for exactly what it is – a performance. Think about the role this organization is trying to fill, and rehearse to do that part well. Below are some tips for getting into character:
LOOKING THE LEAD. The saying ‘Dress for Success’ definitely applies here. You never should go into an interview appearing sloppy or inappropriate. A good rule of thumb to shoot for is to dress like a current employee would, or even one level above. In the vast majority of professional jobs, a suit is the most acceptable and most common attire. Error on being more conservative – avoid perfume (you never know – your hiring manager may have an allergy!), wear conservative shoes (common color, not too high of a heel), appropriate make-up (avoid loud eye make-up and dark or sparkled nail polish).
SPEAKING YOUR LINES. Verbal communication is a huge part of you in-person interview. When answering questions, try to use action verbs to clearly describe what you have done in the past that makes you such a great candidate. Don’t talk about the same one experience for over 5 minutes – show that you have a myriad of varied practical experiences and hti on different parts of each. Use examples when making general statements and focus on the outcomes showing what you were able to bring about. Above all – always be positive.
PREFORMNG YOUR ROLE. How you behave non-verbally is also impacts your interview score. Strive to use non-verbal communication to convey self-confidence. For example, offer a hand shake, instead of waiting for one; make eye contact naturally – don’t overdo it here – staring at the hiring manager for an hour will not help you land the job. Also, pay attention to your posture. Don’t slouch or appear too comfortable, yet you don’t need to sit on the edge of your seat either. If you talk with your hands, do so in a relaxed way and try to avoid big or excessive gestures. These can be distracting. Finally, know your nervous gestures going in and if you start subconsciously doing one, put a stop to it.
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