Nailing A Job Interview

Being prepared for an interview is vital if you want to land the dream job. My thought on candidates arriving to an interview un-prepared, un-researched is “WHY BOTHER?” Why waste your time getting dressed and coming to an interview when you are not prepared?

My philosophy on interviews is if you get the chance to sit down in front of the recruiter or the hiring manager should be “This is it”. This is your time to sell yourself and make the person sitting opposite you realise your potential and worth. I find the Americans do this very well!

In fact at times I believe they ‘oversell and under deliver’ whereas, Australian candidates generally ‘undersell and over deliver’. The problems is, you won’t get a chance to ‘over deliver’ if you don’t get the job!

From my experience speaking to various candidates, I find people find it hard to sell themselves. It’s hard tooting your own horn! There is also a fine line between confidence and arrogance. The candidates who come into an interview full of arrogance do not get the job!

When attending job interviews, 80% of the time the hiring manager will and should ask; why should YOU be given the opportunity? This is an obvious and valid question. Why should they give you the JOB? Why should they select you from the others that have also applied for the position?

Many candidates apply for positions yet find it difficult to answer this vital question. If that is you for whatever reason then I will give you my killer response. Business owners look at key attributes in staff and its very simple:

1. Dedication:

I want to know the person who I am hiring will be dedicated in their job

2. Persistence:

I want to know this person is persistent and won’t give up so easily. No matter which position you will be hired for, there will be days where you will be pushed and need to push to get an outcome.

3. Follow through:

They follow through on their tasks and promises. There is nothing worse then to constantly follow up staff on tasks that should have been completed.

4. Trustworthy:

The most vital of attributes. TRUST. This is obvious however often under estimated. The employee’s trust factor is crucial. After all, this is what an employer wants in a staff member in addition to specialised skill set. So, when planning a response to WHY you should be selected you need to list out the above 4 key attributes and relate them back to YOU.

For example:

1. I am a dedicated person.

2. I am persistent. I don’t give up easily and

3. I follow through on tasks given.

4. I am trust worthy and loyal.

Of course if you are not any of the above then I urge you not to quote them as one of your ‘attributes’. Quoting the above will help you represent yourself and articulate your strengths in a more strategic way to help ‘toot’ your own horn without it seeming obvious or ‘arrogant’.

Remember, if you want to achieve success then be PREPARED.

Be prepared:

• With possible answers so you don’t stutter you’re way through an interview


• Research the company who is interviewing you


• Google the person who will be interviewing you if you are informed of their name


• Research the address and plan your time so you don’t end up lost and late


• Attend the interview dressed well, clean and 10 minutes early


• Ensure you bring a copy of your CV (unwrinkled & clean) as a backup in case the person interviewing you doesn’t have it

It takes 3.2 seconds to make a first impression, being prepared helps make your first impression last.