Interviews

Interviews 

Preparing for a job interview is important in determining who the panel will pick at the end of the day. There are rules of interviews some are unwritten rules while other have been documented time and again. For this task, the focus will be on three things to do at an interview and three not to do. This will be put together as an ultimate guide to an interviewee going to seek a job. The unspoken rules are; politeness, neatness in self presentation, confidence as well as keenness during the interview. There are mannerisms that are not expected at an interview like chewing gum and giving too much information even when it is not asked. 

To begin with, preparation is important and entails conducting diligent research on the company. This will enable the interviewee to develop answers that have been fashioned around the company’s needs. Having background information about the company also means that the interviewee is truly interested in joining the company. Research prior to an interview goes beyond knowing what the company is about to also include knowledge about the rank one is applying for. (Marr) The interviewee should have ready answers when asked about the salary they expected because they will have researched well enough to know what the company pays for the position they are applying for. An interviewer will always ask unrelated questions at least once during an interview and the interviewee should be prepared for them. This will help in ensuring that they can answer general knowledge questions intelligently and will the favour of the panel. 

Secondly, the interviewee needs to groom well before an interview. This means dressing professionally to appeal to the panel. (Joyce)Official dressing for men entails not having untucked shirts, wearing jeans and sneakers while for ladies the scope is wider. Short dresses, wild hair, tight trousers, overly revealing clothes as well as wrong shoes can be considered as wrong dressing choices. For an interviewee, exuding professionalism is most important. It is important that before an interview, the interviewee tries on all the clothes they intend to wear and ensure that they are presentable before a panel. The interviewee is supposed to be well groomed with proper and official hair styles and hair-cuts for men. Image makes the first impression before one can get the chance to speak.

Thirdly, an interviewee should work on points that will show their confidence levels are desirable. This is something an interviewee can achieve by having questions to ask once the panel gives them the opportunity. (Marr) At this point, the interviewee needs to ask more questions about the expectations of the role they hope to secure in the company. It also shows the panel that the individual is interested in learning more about the company as much as they can. This is also the opportunity the interviewee should take to seek clarification in areas where they failed to get what the panel meant. This is the time to show that one is confident and not easy to manipulate without coming off as too demanding, malicious and rude. Preparation is key.

There are the things that an interviewee should never do as an interviewee. These are basic etiquette. To start with, one should never chew gum during an interview. Chewing gum before a panel is a sign of rudeness and sheer lack of manners. This means that as an individual, the impression before the panel will already have been tainted. In addition to not drinking prior to an interview, one should also make sure they do not show up for interview smelling of alcohol or cigarettes. (Joyce)This is one sure way of making the panel see the interviewee lacks seriousness and commitment. Smelling alcohol during an interview is also a sign of lack of self-control. Alcohol can also impair judgement and the responses to the interview panel will not be satisfactory to say the least.

Secondly, an interviewee should not appear over confident about securing the job to the panellists. While confidence can easily help an interviewee get a job, excess confidence is likely to cost the same interviewee the job (Marr). Over confidence often borders on arrogance, a trait that the panel cannot take lightly. It is for this reason that any serious interviewee will be careful to get the right level of confidence. Over confidence can also result in the interviewee failing to prepare well prior to attending the interview. Failure to prepare well enough for an interview can make the interviewee show up dressed inappropriately, without all the documents required in addition to lacking responses that are appropriate to the panel’s questions. Too much confidence is as dangerous as lack of confidence for an interviewee.

Thirdly, the interviewing panel does not take lateness lightly. It is prudent to avoid getting late by all means even when it means arriving at the venue an hour before. Punctuality communicates responsibility to the panel conducting the interview. (Joyce)Being late opens a string of possibilities of how the day could go wrong. Getting late does not give the interviewee a chance to relax the mind before going before the panel. One is prone to make mistakes out of panic for being late. This is why being early to an interview is important.

To conclude, looking for a job is a job in itself. One needs to take the task of preparation seriously to ensure that they can easily be considered for the position they applied for. The competition on the job market is very high. This means that the job interviews will always have people who are more qualified, more experienced and more confident. This is why being genuine and well prepared for the interview is as important as the job itself.

Works Cited

Joyce, Susan P. “Job Interviewing Dos and Don’t for Job Seekers.” 2017. Live Career. Artcle. 4 December 2017.

Marr, Benard. “Job Interviews: The All Time Classic Do’s and Don’ts.” 25 January 2015. LinkedIn. Article. 4 December 2017.