Review these cards just before the interview so that you have your strategy well on hand. Also have these cards handy during the interview for quick reference. A final step of interview preparation is to review a checklist prepared from the answers to the question, "Knowing what you do now, what would you have done differently?" from your "Post-interview Analysis" of each interview to date. Try to get a few mock interviews with a friend or two before you start the whole interviewing process. Ask your friends to make them as realistic as possible. In developing your answers to questions and your presentation of your PARs you may find it useful to talk into a tape recorder to listen to how you sound.
Now let's see how you should conduct yourself in the interview.
You may want to prepare sequentially staged or multi-tiered answers for the difficult questions, for example, "Why did you leave XYZ?" The first-tier answer gives the most acceptable interpretation of events possible, such as, "I was ready to move on to a new position," or, "When Jack Smith took over as sales manager, four of his seven department heads left within a year." Stop, and do not go on unless the interviewer demands more information. If he or she does, you might then say, "There was a philosophical difference between my boss and me as to where we were trying to take the operation," or "There was a great deal of turmoil after Jack Smith arrived. What had been a good atmosphere producing good results turned into a jungle." But that's only if you're asked for a second-tier answer.
(Most interviewers won't pursue the line of questioning a second time - they are usually satisfied with the first-tier answer.) Hold the third tier in abeyance until asked directly; then your answer might be something like, "I was fired, because he wanted his own man."
Receiving responses in stages leads interviewers to feel that they have been answered and they have to ask for more if they desire it. This helps an applicant who is nervous about having left a previous job under a cloud to know that he or she has a carefully prepared answer which will defuse the issue. After you answer each question, try to redirect the conversation by asking another question, for example, "We were talking earlier about sales training, would you like to hear more about that or how we were able to increase sales by 35 percent in two years?" Asking a question in this way directs the interviewer to choose a subject involving a problem of interest to him or her. Or perhaps, "Many people feel I'm too results-oriented. I've always prided myself on being able to get a lot done." If the implication is that you're overly aggressive, you might want to add, "But I've always been able to get things done and maintain a good relationship with those I work with." Here are some alternate strategies for answering difficult questions:
- Answer the question with another question. "Aren't you overqualified?" "What makes you think I'm overqualified?"
- Take the offensive in your answer by turning an apparent liability into an asset. "Why didn't you go to college?" A good answer might be, "I am self-educated. I have competed continuously with college-educated people and have won out." Or if an employer asks, "What is your greatest weakness?" a good answer might be, "Some people say I'm a workaholic."
- Acknowledge the statement and then rebut it (for example, the "yes, but...." answer)."It's true, I don't have machine-tool industry experience, but I didn't have metal-fabricating experience before I went to XYZ. In a matter of six months, I was able to straighten out a messed-up computer operation." A second-tier answer might be "Didn't Bill Farlow come from the steel business and Virginia Wheeler from a rubber company?"
- "I don't know," may be the best answer you can give to certain questions.
- If you are asked a new key question in an interview, add it to your list and prepare an answer for it.
- Develop a strategy for all the questions you feel vulnerable on.
