How Do I Overcome Being Nervous While Interviewing?

Q. I have been looking for some time. When I get in an interview I seem to get nervous because I know I need the job. I think the nervousness is impacting how I interview.

I use two approaches with the people I coach to overcome this very common issue. The first one is lots of preparation and practice. We spend a lot of time preparing and then conducting mock interviews. I also insist that the candidate write out answers to frequently asked questions. Writing out the answers is critical. When you write the answers it forces you to think differently. It also helps you crystallize your thoughts on the question.  Writing out the answers and the mock interviews gets the candidate very comfortable and confident. Confidence is part two. I teach candidates that they must interview as if they had the best job in the world and didn’t need the one they are interviewing for. This changes the candidate’s mindset in the interview. Now they act completely differently. Their body language improves, they no longer appear desperate, the questions they ask are more probing and sometimes a little challenging, the answers are on target and complete, they demonstrate to the interviewer they are well prepared just as they will be once on the job. Managers want to hire confident people. Having this level of confidence is what gets them over the nervousness.

To download the free chapter on Conducting an Effective Phone Interview from our book “This Is NOT The Position I Accepted” CLICK HERE and then click on the Free Search Resources link.

How effective is your job search?  If you are not sure, download our free 8 Matrix Job Search Self-Assessment Scorecard. CLICK HERE and then click on the Free Search Resources link.

I welcome your thoughts and comments.

Brad Remillard

Four Things Candidates Do To Shoot Themselves In The Foot While Conducting A Job Search

As the job market begins to pick up, more opportunities for candidates will arise. For those candidates who have been looking for some time this may be your chance to land the job you really want. Here are the four things that I find that candidates continually do to mess up a good opportunity:

1)    Conducting your search the same way you did it the last time. Candidates  seem to think this is 2006 or 2007 and all they have to do is the same things they did back then to find a job. WRONG. It’s not only 2012, but the market and the tools are completely different than they were back then. Candidates need to come up to speed quickly. It is not unusual for me to meet candidates that wasted the first three months of their search.

To adapt to 2012 you must embrace social media. You must become an expert on LinkedIn and then leverage this tool, with groups, updates, postings and connections. Instead of sitting in your pajamas searching the job boards you now should be leveraging LinkedIn.

2)    Resumes and cover letters are another problem area. A one size fits all resume will not cut it. Companies are seeking very specific skills and experiences that more often than not a generic resume doesn’t address. It is acceptable to use this generic resume to post on the job boards, but if you are targeting a company, responding to an ad or attempting to connect with a recruiter for a search, you must redo the resume so it targets the specific issues they are seeking like a laser beam.

A cover letter is not a resume. You cannot just write a nice cover letter with these updates and attach it to the generic resume. What will happen if your cover letter gets separated from the resume? Then what? Take the time to update your resume.

3)    Interviewing is much more than explaining your background. It is about connecting with the interviewer. For most interviews, you wouldn’t even be there if the interviewer didn’t believe you met the basic skills and experience. So rule number one is listen, hear and answer the question asked. Do it in a way that connects with the company’s culture and the interviewer. For example, if your background is in very large companies and you are interviewing at a small company, constantly emphasizing how you managed a large staff and had a budget that was more than the sales of the company, is probably the best way to communicate that you need a large staff and a lot of resources to be effective. This is something a small company doesn’t have. You made the fatal error of not adapting your experience to the company. Think about your audience and what they want and need.

4)    Networking too often burns people out because they aren’t focused on the purpose of networking. Over the years people, especially candidates, have come to believe that networking is all about meeting a lot of people. Get a lot of first level contacts on LinkedIn. The one with the most contacts wins. Nonsense. Networking is about the right contacts not the number of contacts. The one that has the ability to take a contact and turn it into a connection generally wins. It is far better to have one hundred strong connections, than it is to have 1,000 contacts that don’t know you and forget you within twenty-four hours of meeting them.

Stop going to every networking meeting in Orange County. Instead, target three or four that really make sense for you. I suggest one in your functional area, one in your industry, one at a peer level, and one with the types of advisors that connect with the people who will hire you. Build strong relationships with the members of these four groups and it will do more good than running to all the other networking groups.

To download the free chapter on Conducting an Effective Phone Interview from our book “This Is NOT The Position I Accepted” CLICK HERE and then click on the Free Search Resources link.

How effective is your job search?  If you are not sure, download our free 8 Matrix Job Search Self-Assessment Scorecard. CLICK HERE and then click on the Free Search Resources link.

I welcome your thoughts and comments.

Brad Remillard

Starting a Job Search? Start By Knowing The Three Required “P’s”

Q. I’m just starting my job search after working for the same company for the last 20 years. What tips can you give me to help me get started and do it right?

I would start by knowing the three P’s required for an effective job search.

1) Presentation. I speak on this all the time. Candidates so often down play this or take it for granted. For some reason candidates just don’t focus enough energy here.  This is the most basic of basics. Remember, the most qualified person doesn’t always get the job. The person with the best presentation and some minimum level of qualification will often get the job.

2) Preparation. If the presentation is working, now it is time to start preparing. This is a big job and again so often taken for granted by candidates.

Prepare your marketing plan. Are you in the right networking groups? Maybe it is time to change the groups you are attending. Are you meeting the right people? Look back over the people you met within the last 3 months and evaluate who and what types of people have been helpful and those that didn’t provide any assistance. Identify companies and people you want to meet. Set up a plan to meet them. If you contacted a company 6–8 months ago things may have changed, so consider reconnecting or finding another way into the company.

3) Practice. This is probably the most important of the three “P’s.” Everyone has heard, “Practice makes perfect.” Well this applies in a job search. Practice your body language, how you use your voice to stress points, answering succinctly, and the important questions you want ask.

Practice exactly how you are going to answer the standard questions asked in just about every interview. I always have the candidates I coach write out complete answers to these. Then we practice them until the candidate has succinct answers. These should be so well rehearsed that they come off as if it is the first time you answered the question.

To download the free chapter on Conducting an Effective Phone Interview from our book “This Is NOT The Position I Accepted” CLICK HERE and then click on the Free Search Resources link.

How effective is your job search?  If you are not sure download our free 8 Matrix Job Search Self-Assessment Scorecard. CLICK HERE and then click on the Free Search Resources link.

I welcome your thoughts and comments.

Brad Remillard

The Best Tip To Improve Your Interviewing. Guaranteed

Q. One way to significantly shorten your job search would be to improve your listening skills.

Interviewing is as much about your ability to answer questions as it is your experiences. The unfortunate part is that too often the candidate doesn’t actually answer the question asked. It is like listening to a politician on TV. The reporter asks a very specific question, requiring a relatively simple answer, yet the politician not only doesn’t answer the question, instead they start talking about something completely off the subject. In the politician’s case it is generally intentional; however, most candidates don’t even realize they are doing it so they leave the interview thinking all went well.

Learning to listen carefully to the actual question being asked and then answering the question will dramatically improve the interviewing process for many candidates. Recently in interviews I have been conducting, I often find myself saying to the candidate, “You didn’t answer my question.”   Too often I hear back, “What was the question?” Unfortunately, most candidates will not hear this as most interviewers won’t say anything. They will thank the candidate for coming in and then send a rejection letter.

Listening carefully is a skill that needs to be honed. If asked, “How many or how much” the person is generally looking for some number. If asked, “When did . . .?”  they are looking for a date. “Who” implies a name or at least some way to specifically identify a person. “Give me an example.” indicates the interviewer is looking for a specific example and not some general statement.

Practice active listening so you can demonstrate to the interviewer that you are not only a good listener, but you can do the job, and they will only have to explain something to you once. As they know you will listen.

To download the free chapter on Conducting an Effective Phone Interview from our book “This Is NOT The Position I Accepted” CLICK HERE and then click on the Free Search Resources link.

How effective is your job search?  If you are not sure, download our free 8 Matrix Job Search Self-Assessment Scorecard. CLICK HERE and then click on the Free Search Resources link.

I welcome your thoughts and comments.

Brad Remillard

Too Often Candidates Aren’t Focused on the Same Issues as the Company

I recently asked approximately 30 people in-transition what candidates mean when they say, “I’m qualified for the position.” The answers were, experience, skills, can do the job, etc. All hard skills listed on the resume. Then I asked what they think a hiring authority means when they say, “I think this is a good candidate.”  The answers were, fit, liked the person, work well with others, etc. All soft skills, which are not visible on a resume. So in reality, candidates and hiring managers are measuring different things in the interview. This is why someone might be a great candidate, but not the right candidate.

I don’t believe candidates spend enough time researching and understanding the soft skills required to get the job. They walk into an interview prepared to talk about all of their skills and experiences, yet the interviewer is not only listening to those but also evaluating the soft skills. Chances are they already know you have some level of hard skills or you wouldn’t be there to begin with.

This is an area candidates should focus on more as they prepare during their job search. Understanding how they present themselves from the moment they walk in the door, how they sit in the chair, use their hand motions, the speed at which they talk, how they listen to the questions and answer them, including how they mirror the interviewer should not be taken for granted. These are all relatively easy things to do and learn. There are many helpful books, videos, and webinars available for candidates to help them prepare. Just fine tuning a few things in your presentation can give you the edge you may need to beat out the competition.

To download the free chapter on Conducting an Effective Phone Interview from our book “This Is NOT The Position I Accepted” CLICK HERE and then click on the Free Search Resources link.

How effective is your job search?  If you are not sure, download our free 8 Matrix Job Search Self-Assessment Scorecard. CLICK HERE and then click on the Free Search Resource link.

I welcome your thoughts and comments.

Brad Remillard

Use The Power Of First Impressions to Win the Interview

First impressions are so important in the initial meeting that one would not be too far off base if they argued the most important part of the interview. First impressions set the tone for the interview and often determine the types of questions, length of the interview, and ultimately the outcome. Making a strong first impression is often the deciding factor in who makes it to the next round. If the candidate makes a strong first impression they are immediately liked by the interviewer. This candidate just moved up the point scale towards the next round and they haven’t even been asked one question. On the other hand, if the candidate makes a weak first impression, the candidate starts out in the hole. This hole if often so deep  that no matter how well they answer the questions, the interviewer cannot overcome their first impression. In fact, they may have decided right in the lobby that this person isn’t getting the job.

Tips to making a strong first impression:

· Good eye contact.

· Remain a comfortable distance from the person.

· Firm handshake – even if you think you have one ask someone who will be open and honest. Many don’t, so don’t assume you do.

· Strong introduction coupled with a smile, a strong handshake and eye contact. Practice this introduction.

· Have a couple of conversational questions prepared in advance to engage the interviewer.

· The most important of all are the four “A’s.” A VP of HR at Rockwell Corporation gave us these. They are so important more than 25 years later we still remember them.

1. Appearance
2. Articulate
3. Assertive
4. Affable

Bring these four to the first impression and you will move up the scale – not down.

Study after study reveals that likability is the single most important factor used when determining who ultimately gets the job. Underestimating this is a failure of many candidates. Those that make a strong first impression will often do better in an interview than candidates with better experience.

To download the free chapter on Conducting an Effective Phone Interview from our book “This Is NOT The Position I Accepted” CLICK HERE and then click on the Free Search Resources link.

If you would like to know if your job search is fully utilized and you are doing the right things, download our free 8 Matrix Job Search Self-Assessment Scorecard. CLICK HERE and then click on the Free Search Resource link.

I welcome your thoughts and comments.

Brad Remillard

Are You Coming In Second Place Too Often In Your Job Search?

Q. Last year I came in second too many times. I seem to get interviews and get asked back for additional interviews, but always end up the bridesmaid. I would like to change that in the new year, what do you suggest?

The good news is that a lot of things are working in your job search. Your resume is getting you in the door, you are uncovering openings, and companies want to talk with you. Getting up to bat is key to getting a job. Things are falling apart at the interviewing stage. It might even be that you are not in second place after the first interview, but being asked back just to be compared to other candidates. So I recommend spending a lot of time honing your interviewing skills in the new year.

Reflect on the interviews you’ve had and start by identifying some of the same questions asked in each interview, make a list of the standard questions asked in most interviews and develop a list of questions around your specific function that are often asked. After you have these lists write out answers to the questions. Yes, you must write them out. This is rarely done, but this exercise brings great clarity to how you answer questions. It forces you to stay focused, helps ensure you are actually answering the questions, and begins to make sure you are prepared for just about anything. Then practice answering these as if  you are in an interview. However, make sure you don’t come across as if you are reading a script.

To download the free chapter on Conducting an Effective Phone Interview from our book “This Is NOT The Position I Accepted” CLICK HERE and then click on the Free Search Resources link.

If you would like to know if your job search is fully utilized and you are doing the right things, download our free 8 Matrix Job Search Self- Assessment Scorecard. CLICK HERE and then click on the Free Search Resource link.

I welcome your thoughts and comments.

Brad Remillard

Is Interviewing An Art Or Science?

Interviewing is an art more than a science so it does take preparation and practice to ace the interview. Here are some things to help you ace your next interview.

1) Confidence I find this lacking, especially with candidates that have been in a job search for a long time. As candidates become more and more desperate they tend to exude less and less confidence. This comes across in a number of ways that I believe most candidates don’t even realize. For example, body language,  how you sit in the chair, eye contact, tone of voice, confidence when answering questions, staying so general when answering a question for fear that getting too specific or detailed may rule you out, or giving long rambling answers so as to encompass everything in the hope that you have covered what they are looking for.

Nobody wants to hire a person that isn’t confident. This is especially true at the manager level and up. Most candidates are more confident on the job than in an interview so it is very important that the interviewer sees the same confidence you will bring to the job.

2) Preparation This is the solution to having confidence.  Taking the time to properly prepare is the biggest thing that candidates fail to do (or do properly) and I have  seen this happen over and over again. Poor preparation is just as bad as no preparation.

When I coach candidates here are some of the ways we prepare:

1.    I have the candidate write out answers to frequently asked questions. Candidates know that the questions about their ideal job, why they want to work here, compensation, why they left their last company, their strengths/weaknesses, management style and so on are going to be asked. Take some time to have prepared and practiced answers to these questions.

2.    Video record yourself in a mock interview. This is one of the most powerful things you can do to prepare. This helps you see what the interviewer sees. You will see how you answer the questions, your body language,  if you look at them when answering, how often you say, “UH” or “like,” if  you actually answer the question the person asked you and if  you come across confidently. These small things make a big difference in an interview.

3.    Years ago when I first started recruiting, a Vice President of Human Resources at Rockwell told me the four “A’s” are critical to any successful interview, so you should consider these while preparing to interview.

•    Appearance – This is not just how you dress for the interview, it is much more than that. It includes your body language during the interview, your handshake, the appearance of your resume and cover letter, the appearance of any materials used during the interview, presentation skills, and I hate to say it, but it does include physical appearance.
•    Assertive – This is mostly about how you project yourself during the interview. Please take note, the word was not “aggressive.” There is a big difference between aggressive and assertive. Most interviewers respect an assertive person and dislike aggressive people. Do you come across as confident, do you answer the question with a strong voice, do you engage the interviewer during the interview, do you ask probing questions or just sit there and answer questions, do you mirror the interviewer, and does your body language and voice have a strong presence?
•    Affable – Are you friendly, outgoing, easy to communicate with, engaging and even have a sense of humor? Does the interviewer feel comfortable talking with you, are they relaxed and feel at ease,  on the way from the lobby to the interviewing room are you able to engage the interviewer, are you comfortable with casual conversation and are you building rapport with the person the second they lay eyes on you?

•    Articulate – How well do you communicate? Do you listen to the question? Are your answers sharp and succinct? Do you have proper language skills, syntax, avoid using the word “like”, proper sentence structure and use of verbs? Do you ramble in the interview to make sure you hit every point in your background or are you able to quickly get to the point? This is one of the easiest “A’s” to master. It takes practice and rehearsing.  Many will probably need a coach to help with this one.

On the surface, as you read these, they seem so obvious. Most are thinking, “I already know this stuff.” This may be true, however, knowing something and mastering it are substantially different. Good preparation and practice will help you master interviewing.

To help you focus on your job search be sure to download our free radio show recordings. They are in our candidate audio library. CLICK HERE to enter the library.

To validate whether or not your job search is effective, we have put together a job search self-assessment scorecard. You can’t fix what you don’t know isn’t working. This free download will help you identify weaknesses in your job search. CLICK HERE to download your free copy.

Tired of sending resumes and hearing nothing back? Try this cover letter. It has proven over many years to increase responses from recruiters and companies. Download a sample by CLICKING HERE

If you like this post please share it with  your Facebook friends and LinkedIn connections.

I welcome your thoughts and comments.

Brad Remillard

Work Ethic: What is it and do you have it?

Sabbatical from Writing About Job Search

Brad and I are back after a month-long sabbatical where we’ve been working our hearts out preparing for 2011. We’ve got so many initiatives underway, including a couple of new e-books, an entire on-line learning university, a job board for $100k plus job seekers.

A lot of people tend to think of December as a down month, a month to kick back, relax, take time off, not work very hard. For Brad and I, this was a very busy December and we’re excited about the job market and hiring possibilities in 2011.

What is Hard Work?

Onto the real blog subject – what is hard work?

Candidates claim they have a high work ethic.

Employers desire candidates with a high work ethic.

Why do I want to tackle this subject? It came up in conversation with my girls HS basketball team the other day. We were discussing why we win sometimes and why we lose.

I told the girls that most of the teams we play are evenly matched with us in skill. Sometimes we win because we play with a higher work ethic than our opponents, and conversely sometimes we lose because we have a lower work ethic than our competitors on the basketball court.

Is Hard Work the same as Work Ethic?

How do I define work ethic – I define it as outworking those around you. Those around you could be your co-workers, your teammates, the opposing team, a project team – any group of people who are competing with you for attention, rewards, recognition, influence, promotions, more money, more playing time, etc.

Many of these other people are smarter than you. It doesn’t matter. In the end, outworking others will usually trump pure intelligence and educational background every time. It’s not what you bring to the table in a game or at work – it’s how you apply it in getting results.

Usually the people who have a high work ethic, or who outwork their peers have a variety of traits that support and reinforce their ability to outwork everyone around them. These traits include being proactive, showing initiative, working longer hours, being the first one to turn on the lights in the morning, and the one who turns the lights out at night, doing more than you’re asked to do, going the extra mile, anticipating what needs to be done, and bouncing back from set-backs and adversity with renewed energy.

Who works hard and who doesn’t?

I’m going to suggest that less than 5% of the population has a high work ethic or demonstrated ability/desire to outwork those around them. I’m not referring to workaholics nor am I referring to compulsive disorders. These top achievers simply work harder than everybody else.

The other 95% of the population is satisfied or complacent with being average or mediocre.

A few tough questions about working hard

Where are you on the spectrum from complacent to “outwork everyone”?

Could you offer examples and illustrations in an interview to demonstrate how your work ethic/ability to outwork others – is head and shoulders above your peers? Do you stand a chance of getting a job in a tight job market if you can’t demonstrate these traits?

Perhaps this blog has challenged your conventional thinking about the term work ethic – where most people associate work ethic with the willingness to work long hours – which is a small element of outworking other people.

Who is your role model for outworking others?

Barry Deutsch

How Can You Find the Best Job Search Content?

Who are your favorite bloggers that you read regularly to discover how to improve your job search?

Oh wait – let’s take a giant step backwards before we try to answer that question.

Are you searching, reading, devouring the content about effective job search put out by some extraordinary individuals who offer tons of golden nuggets in every post?

Could you rattle off the top ten bloggers on job search who are at the top of their profession? Who are the most respected on the Internet for publishing how-to articles, helpful hints, case studies, and step-by-step tactics to improve your job search?

You might respond back by saying “Barry – I just don’t have the time to search these blogs, follow the various authors, and digest all the information I can on a daily basis – it borders on overwhelming.”

If you’re that person – we have a solution for you.

We’ve created a site that aggregates ALL THE TOP BLOGGERS on job search in one place. No longer do you need to type various search strings into Google, try to remember which blogs you visited, and how to stay current on best practices.

This resource – our IMPACT Hiring Solutions FREE Job Search Resources Blog –  pulls the best bloggers into one place, allows you to subscribe by RSS or email, features reviews by Brad and I, and incorporates articles/links from our various job search archives and libraries.

Take a look – subscribe by RSS – and never worry again about being up-to-date on the latest best practices and trends in conducting an effective job search.

The site is http://www.impacthiringsolutions.com/freesearchjobresources

Barry

P.S. Don’t forget to join our LinkedIn Discussion Group where we discuss many of the best practice topics related to conducting an effective job search.