- Always know where the interview is headed. Be aware of where the interviewer is leading you. Ask yourself what kinds of things they might be trying to learn about you. Is this interviewer going to lean heavily on your past experience, or are they going to be more impressed with qualifications from your present job? Do they want to review your past positions or hear only about the job you now hold? Do they want to see how you can conceptualize, or are they interested in hearing facts and figures?
- Always be alert to inferred meanings. You spend a relatively short amount of time in any interview, especially when you consider how much of your future life depends on its outcome, and it's easy for misperceptions to crop up. Listen for these and do what you can to adjust or erase them.
- Always be alert to any biases on the interviewer's part.
A common bias exists against single people. Beyond a certain age, a single man has always been suspect in the job market, and increasingly today, single women are suspect, too. Much of the suspicion that surrounds single men is simply jealousy over the assumption that they have freewheeling lifestyles. If they aren't encumbered by a family, then employers fear they won't have any reason to be serious workers. To counteract this prejudice, a single man may have to make a comment or two noting that his life is not all play and little work.
Kathryn Stechert, an expert on women and work, believes that single women are beginning to be discriminated against; they are not viewed seriously. Finally, you should realize that the interviewer may have biases you simply cannot overcome. Their biases may lead them to make decisions that are bad--such as not hiring you. Unfortunately, interviews with people like this are often either-ways, and you can't do much with them.
- Always be responsive during an interview. Don't plan that you're going to say next while the interviewer is talking. It always shows on your face. To show attention, say "Hmm" or "Yes" occasionally. Leaning forward in your seat is another way to show that you are paying attention to what is being said.
- Learn to recognize when you are losing the interviewer's attention. Actually, an interviewer does you a favor when he makes overt signals that you are boring him or say something that lets you know you have lost his attention. "You've lost the interviewer if they cut you off or interrupt you because you're going on too long or if they ask you a question that they just asked you a minute ago or one that is a non sequitur," according to Hecht. "You know they’re not paying attention because you just answered that question two questions ago.
"If you see this happening, it's best to let the subject go and get onto something that evokes a positive response. Give control back to the interviewer and let him redirect the interview. You can say, 'Well, look, I've said enough about that. If you like, we can get back to it later. What other things would you like me talk about? What's important to you? I want to use your time productively, so you tell me what you want to know.' This way you give them back control, but in essence, you have remained in control, too."
See the following articles for more information:
- How to Start on the Right Foot in Your New Job
- What Are the Sources to Find the Information You Need
- The Background of Application Process
- How to Network and Take an Information Interview
