I believe it's best for my wife to deliver the baby in Australia. I had to sponsor my partner to Australia. The application is done. I think she will be here late next month.
I came back to Melbourne early this month. Now, I have to look for a new job to support my new family. All my families and friends warned me that getting a job these days is very tough. Recruitment agencies and companies are getting hundred if not thousand of emails everyday. Well, I have to work harder if I want to land a good job.
My quest start from here!
In order to land a job, I need to learn 3 skills.
- Writing the resume
- Writing the cover letter
- Answer interview questions
Hence, I have to read 3 books during the last 2 weeks:
- The Quick Resume & Cover Letter Book
- 201 Killer Cover Letters
- Interview Skills That Win The Job
I also read other books roughly, but all of them teaching similar concepts.
On this blog entry, I want to focus on interview techniques as I will get an interview very soon. I want to remind myself that cover letter and resume only lead to the interview. In order to win the job. I have to do well in the interview. I might be the best technical person, but I might not be able to secure the job.
Interview is one of the hardest stage for me as I am one of a few people who suffer from impostor syndrome. This is why I am writing this entry to help me overcome it.
Here are some of the tips I got from the books:
Myths
- Prepare for the interview regardless of your experience. You may not be able to convoy this message at an interview.
- There is no right or wrong answer. Justify your statement is important.
- Experienced interviewers let you do most of the talk whilst inexperienced interviewers usually unprepared and keeps their phone ringing during the interview.
- If you have to say I don't know, say it! I think honesty is the best policy.
- Dress neatly and be friendly.
- Good answer is important, but it might not give you the job. Interviews are about rapport and trust. You should be a nice person to work with.
- There is no perfect answer because we don't know what the interviewer wants to hear. Keep it simple! Don't go around in circle trying to cover all possibilities.
- If you have no relevant question at the end of the interview, don't ask!
- Just relax and be yourself. That doesn't mean you can lean back or making jokes.
- Interviewers are not looking for flaws. If you think that way, you cannot establish rapport and trust. Treat each question as an opportunity to excel yourself.
Convincing them you're right for the job
- Common mistakes
- Failing to express oneself clearly - simple language is the most effective. Avoid jargons or complex sentences.
- Not being aware of one's body language - eye contact, sitting position and facial expression are important.
- Failing to control those nerves - feeling anxious before and during the interview is common. However, try to avoid it.
- Trying too hard to please the interviewer - building rapport and trust during the interview is critical. However, very few interviewers appreciate interviewee going overboard.
- There is nothing wrong with you, everyone should commit some of the mistakes above in the interview. Try not to repeat your mistakes.
- Correct preparation, even if you are the only candidate preparing before hand would likely to give you a higher salary.
- The case for preparation
- Interviews are rare events
- Many people find it hard to sell themselves. I am included.
- In most interviews, coming second isn't good enough. You need to beat other people.
- What is incorrect preparation
- Rote-learning generic questions.
- Learn other people responses by heart.
- Advantages for preparation
- Improve confidence
- Answer question succinctly
- Help you know what to say and how to say it
- Avoid making negative impression
- Import rapport-building skills
- Things that are important to interviewers - narrow down to 3 generic questions:
- Can you do the job? They need to know your knowledge, experience, skills.
What you have done?
How you did it?
Results... - Are you the sort of person they can work with?
Will you fit in the organization?
Can you work with someone you don't like? - How motivated are you?
You may not be asked this question, but failing to address it will risk you the job - Practice - success is one part talent and nine parts perseverance
- Practicing your answers aloud. I got this from the book, I find it very interesting:
It is important to practice your answers aloud, rather than just mentally rehearsing them. That’s because the human brain distinguishes between talking and thinking and you need to stimulate the talking part of your brain. Thinking your answers at an interview will get you nowhere, unless the interviewer is a mind reader.
- Get some feedback - if you are not the winning candidate ask for feedback. Most interviewers will ignore you, but if you get the feedback, you can improve your future interview performance.
- Mock interviews - setup mock interview with your friend will help measure your performance. It's a good idea if your friends had their own questions that would surprise you. However, you should prepare a list of questions to make it easier for them.
- Perseverance - Quitters usually get nowhere. Believe in yourself!
- Suggested activity: Neurolinguistic programming - This program help you perform better in the interview:
- Close your eyes and imagine yourself performing extremely well in an interview. Capture the moment, sound, smell, temperature, and so on. Don't hold back! Just relax and let it flow.
- Repeat the exercise until you capture the feeling of excitement. Picture yourself on the job after the interview.
- Every time you feel like quiting or thinking it too hard. Replay the excitement moment you've captured before.
To be continue!
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