This article focuses on preparing you for the job interview.
This is what people face after they have received that long awaited
call to attend an interview in their dream office.
Remember that the job interview offers
you the only opportunity to appear before your potential employer and prove
yourself competent and fit. You may never have such an opportunity again; so
take it very serious and do your best to impress your potential employer. If
you do your homework, you stand a greater chance of outperforming your fellow
competitors. The following are what you need to do:
1.
Do a Research on the Company
Organizations don’t just want to hire
competent persons to fit into their vacant positions. They are also after
persons who show beyond doubts, how excited and passionate they are, to work
for them. This is because in most cases, it is that passion/excitement that
gives birth to commitment of the job, which eventually gives birth to desired
results.
You need to convince the interview
panel that you are at least interested in what the organization does. One big
way to do so is to convince the interview panel that you know where the company
is coming from, where it is presently, and where it is going. This has become easier these
days as most organizations have websites which could be accessed for
information about them.
Get to their website and find out a
few things. Find out where they are coming from, where they are going i.e.
their vision, mission, goals/objectives, values, what they do, where they have
branches, who their customers and competitors are, and so on. If you know
someone working for them, don’t hesitate to find out more from him/her. You
could even discover something that would make you think again, if you would
still want to work for them.
2.
Master Your Curriculum Vitae
A friend attended a job interview and
all the questions that were asked were drawn from the information he supplied
on his CV. Your Curriculum Vitae is your private advertising media. It is the
only medium through which you can market your skills, abilities, competencies,
wealth of experience and qualifications, without charge.
A lot of persons are good at
brandishing themselves so excellently on their CVs with high sounding words
which they have no a mastery of. For example: Your CV says you are a team
player and a goal-getter but you don’t fully understand what those terms mean.
Do you know the difference between a go-getter and a goal-getter?
As much as possible when preparing
your CV, avoid claiming to be what you are not. This will make it easier for
you to defend everything written in it. Make sure you understand the meaning of
the adjectives you have used in preparing your CV and don’t include anything
you cannot defend. If you eventually get the job, you may be called up at one
point or the other to defend what you claim to be.
3.
Prepare on How to Answer Job Interview Questions.
As much as job interview questions
depend on the type of job you are interviewed for and the type of organization
that you are interviewed to work for, there are some standard job interview
questions to expect from any serious panel of interviewers.
4.
Refresh Your Academic Knowledge
Very often, your job is not so tied to
what you studied in school but at least it is good to refresh your knowledge on
what you claim to have studied. This is just in case your interviewer wants to
know if you really went to school and acquired the knowledge you claim to have
acquired. This will not entail that you go through all your books as if
preparing for a standard comprehensive exam. You just need to focus on the
basics of the course you studied in school especially the aspects that relate
to the job you will be hired to do.
5.
Be Current on Events and Happenings
Current affairs have become an
integral part of most of job interviews today in Nigeria. Nowadays, employers don’t just want
to hire those who have what it takes to deliver on the job but those who are
also current on trends and events in their environment and more especially in
the industry/sector under which their organization is found.
To a reasonable extent, being current
on the events in the industry indicates how interested you are in building your
career in that industry. For example: A serious job seeker who is seeking to
build a career in banking will know at least the major banks in the country,
their strengths and weaknesses, some of the products they offer, their performance
in the stock market, their market share and so on.
6.
Work on Your Appearance
I was sent to represent my boss/company some
time ago in a seminar which top entrepreneurs were invited. As soon as I got
there, I met people standing but was offered a seat. I soon discovered that it
was because of my appearance. Your appearance communicates far more than you
are aware of. It registers a first impression in the mind of your interviewer.
Just by your appearance, one can tell how responsible you can be.
You need to know that the moment you
become an employee of an organization, you represent that organization wherever
you go. Employers know this and want to hire someone who will best represent
the organization any day any time.
There is so much to talk about in
terms of how to dress for an interview but the long and short of it is to
prepare to appear neat, modest, formal and responsible on the day of the
interview. This is not always about dressing in suit and tie but about
appearing responsible. And so it goes beyond just the clothes you put on to
your hair do, make-up and perfume, as well as the look on your face on that
day. Try to look elegant and sharp.
7.
Get Straight All Necessary Information
Finally, you need to be sure you have
up to date information about the place of the interview, the day, the time and
all the requirements. These are usually communicated to you when calling you
for the interview. However, if possible, call around the office of the
organization to confirm the information, at least two days to the interview.
Recently a friend of mine lost a
well-paid job she had gotten just because she was not up to date with the
information on when she had to begin work. She went to start work two days
after the day she was expected and when she got to the office, the opportunity
had been given to another person who initially was not offered the job.
Information is power but up to date information is greater power.
Let me end up by saying that on the
day of the interview, you must make sure you are at the place of interview at
least 30 minutes before the stated time. This will make you look more serious
than most of your fellow competitors. No matter what you see or hear, do not
panic.
With all the above steps in preparing
for your job interview, you are good to go.
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