5 Keys to the Perfect Job Interview

Setting up your interview to generate job offers

Getting the interview is the first step to any hiring process successfully ending in an offer. Once you have an interview, your work has just begun.

I found from my own experience and coaching 1,000’s of clients, there are just a handful of things that make all the difference in getting, or not, a great offer.

Interviews are the single MOST important part of the hiring process, bar-none.

To prepare for interviews, let’s take a high level approach to identify what keys determine success.

 

Being Known

You are at a distinct advantage when the company, interview team and hiring manager are all familiar to you. This key: being known equals low risk. Often you will be selected for this reason even if you don’t have the best skill sets.

 

Preparing to Prepare

It is redundant. However, many times when preparing for interviews we miss a key ingredient. Investment of time in preparation. When interviews are coming up, the philosophy that most often wins: 10x practice investment.

For every hour you plan to be in an interview, practice your answers for 10 hours. Out loud. In front of people or a camera.

 

Knowing Them The Best

You could prepare like crazy, be known to the hiring team and still blow the interview. Why?

Because you didn’t prepare a strategy. Ask yourself these questions: How well do you know the role? Who used to have it? Why is it open? What are the performance metrics for success?

Having answers to these questions will allow you to be confident in your answers.

 

Ask-Answer-Ask (or AAA Technique)

Do you sometimes feel that interviews are an interrogation: they ask, you answer, until it ends – which can’t come too soon.

The best technique you can learn is They Ask – You Answer – You Ask back.

Dialog can only be maintained when you have both parties talking. Get the interviewer engaged by ask-answer-ask back with a similar related question.

 

Post-Interview Follow-up

Confirmation of your next steps will give you an idea of where you stand in getting an offer.

Before you leave the interview, be sure to have the interviewer tell you when offer decisions will be made. When will the ideal candidate start?

How soon you can follow-up with them.

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