How To Perform At Your Best In Job Interviews
Job interviews present a real opportunity and at the same can be hugely stressful too. Some people seem to take job interviews in their stride while for others it is a real struggle.
If you are like most people you want to perform at your best consistently. You might be wondering if this is really possible. My view that this is not just possible but much easier than you might think.
So what can you do to perform at your best in job interviews consistently?
Understand The Context
Making a decision to change job is a significant one for you. Making a decision to hire someone is a huge decision for the employer.
They are unlikely to make that decision to offer the job unless they have confidence that you will deliver. It is a big risk in their eyes to appoint you. Your job is to provide the re-assurance that appointing you is not a risk but a missed opportunity to get a great individual on board.
Ramp Up Your Preparation
A small proportion prepare really well. Some do a reasonable amount of preparation. The vast majority do way too little in my experience.
An interview is a stressful situation. If you are not prepared the stress you are going to be under is going to be even more significant. Usually what happens under these circumstances is that you don’t just struggle with the difficult questions, you also struggle with questions that you know the answer to.
Now you might wonder what constitutes enough preparation. My view is that you need at least 7 hours preparation for every one hour you are going to be interviewed for.
Make Being Prepared A Priority
If you are in a job at present you might not have a lot of spare time on your hands. What you are in control of is whether you prioritise your preparation over other activities or not.
If you don’t make it a priority, you will still be under prepared on the day.
Get Feedback Every Time
Sometimes you will be successful and sometimes you won’t secure the role. Either way it is vital that you get feedback.
Once you have obtained feedback, it is important to use this. Look for patterns both positive and negative in the feedback rather than getting hung up on one specific point.
If you are noticing things coming up time and time again, get some help to address areas that are letting you down.
The Bottom Line: Success in job interviews does not come with a guarantee. At the same time there are plenty of things you can do to stack the odds in your favour.
Duncan Brodie helps accountants to achieve more career success. He invites you to sign up for his free report The 7 Biggest Barriers To A Successful Career In Accountancy
About the Author Duncan Brodie
Since 2006 I’ve worked with in excess of 8,000 accountants and professionals in workshops, seminars and one to one helping them land their next jobs and become better leaders, presenters and business partners. Before that I spent 25 years in accountancy climbing the career ladder from Payments Clerk to FD. I’m a CIMA Fellow, Certified Professional Coach and Team Coach Facilitator.