The more prepared I am, the more I’ll be in control, less nervous, less stressed and more focused. ~ Marilu Henner
We have all been there, the big day has finally come around and you have an interview with a dream employer. As someone who has been through a lot of interviews, I have experienced interview jitters.
Therefore, I thought I would share some of my experiences and some take away advice for anyone who is about to have an interview.
This is a guest post by Jonathan actively interviewing recent graduate.
Remember, Nerves are Natural
Nerves are simply your body releasing adrenalin into your body and therefore to some extent cannot be avoided. I always find that the most confident people in life are the ones who can use this to their advantage allowing them to become more focused and turning it into confidence.
One thing that can boost your confidence is practice. Knowing exactly what you are going to say, and preparing for any interview questions that you may get asked is essential for feeling more comfortable in the interview room.
Start by:
- Writing the most common interview questions down and writing your answer underneath in 10 words or less.
- Use the STAR frame work to plan your answers: Situation, Task, Action and Result.
- Practice with a friend. Although this might be a bit cringe worthy, it is important to get used to answering under pressure, and will give you a good insight to how the answer sounds.
Dress to Impress
In my experience, whenever I dress professionally, I always feel like I am professional. This doesn’t always mean having to wear a suit, but a smart jumper with a shirt and tie underneath often does the trick. Spruce up your professional wardrobe using inspiration from around the web. Look up business attire and mix and match options to get ready for the interview and joining in a new job with style. Have a look at the women’s suits, or possibly these men’s trousers from House of Fraser and choose what works out keeping in mind the weather, your comfort level and the company culture.
Prepare Questions
Remember, interviews are a two way street. A lot of interviewees go into the interview expecting a grilling, but this isn’t often the case. A key tip is to get your interviewer talking and on side, remember, they may be as nervous as you if they haven’t interviewed very often before.
If you have five or six questions about the company you are applying to, about the role you will be doing or even your interviewer’s role within the business. People love to talk about themselves, and this will help you get onside with the person doing the interviewing, making you both feel a lot more relaxed.
Finally…
Remember, the person who is interviewing wants to like you and think you are a good fit for the role. Interviewing is a time consuming process and your potential employer have seen that you are a good fit on paper. Now it is up to you to convince them they are right, so go for it!
About the guest post author:
This is a guest post by Jonathan, a recent graduate based in the UK. I would love to hear about your experiences, please leave a comment below!