My Top 3 Interviewing Tips
I’ve interviewed over 1000 candidates as an executive. I’ve prepped hundreds as a career coach. Here are my Top 3 interviewing tips for external job searching or internal career moves:
1) Demonstrate that you’re running TO something not FROM something. Leave negativity out of it.
Recruiters and hiring managers are like horses. They can smell fear. If you’re telling negative stories, talking about what’s wrong with the place you want to leave, you’re sending signals to the interviewers that something may be off. You plant a seed of doubt that the issues at the other employment may actually be with you. Prep thoughtfully about any stories you want to tell that cast a negative light on your current or previous employment. Focus your preparation and energy on what you want to be attracting, not what you want to leave behind. Be running TO this new role, not FROM the old one.
2) Control your narrative when an interviewer asks any of the following:
1) tell me about yourself
2) walk me through your resume
3) why have you decided to leave your current position?
4) what interests you in this company/this role?
5) why are you a good fit for this role?
Always be prepared to answer with your themes around "why this role, why me, why now." If you crystallize your messages around "why this role, why me, why now," you'll be ready for just about anything.
3) Don’t ask lazy questions. Lazy questions are the ones interviewers hear over and over and don’t require much prep on your part either. These questions are boring for the interviewer and non-differentiating for you, such as:
1) what is the culture like here?
2) how did you decide to come work here? (or what's kept you here all these years?)
3) what do you like most about working here?
4) if you had a magic wand to change one thing about working here, what would it be?
Prep more thoughtful, insightful questions that demonstrate you did some work. For example:
1) I saw the recent acquisition announcement. What excites you most about that opportunity for customers? for employees?
2) Are there any experiences this role requires that I haven't touched on in my examples so far? Any areas where you'd like to explore more?
3) Your company Core Values are aligned with mine, and that's important me. How can new employees get involved in initiatives like ERGs and D&I initiatives?
Let me hear how your interviewing is going and what's working for you.
