Interview Tips

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• 
• by
  • blessed2behome
  on Jan. 9, 2009 at 1:04 AM

• Interview Tips will be posted soon.
  

• 
• by
  • blessed2behome
  on Jan. 9, 2009 at 1:27 AM

• Effectively Ask For The Job Interview In Your Cover Letter
  
  #1.  Attract attention with a great headline using Bold Title Caps right below the greeting in your cover letter.
  
  May We Meet In Person To Discuss This Position?
  
  #2.  Focus on your qualifications in the beginning of your letter.
  
  I feel confident I'm one of the applicants best suited for this position. I'd welcome the opportunity to meet you in person so we can discuss how I might best be suited to help [company name]. Here are some of the responsibilities I've held over the past five years.
  
  #3.  Be specific about time in your final paragraph.
  
  I'd like to schedule an interview with you in the next two weeks. What day and time work best for you? I promise to keep our meeting short and specific.
  
  #4. Communicate enthusiasm at the end of your letter.
  
  I'm excited about meeting you in person to discuss my qualifications. You can reach me immediately on my cell phone: 555-555-5555. Thanks again for your time.
  
  Give up the "wait and hope" job search technique. Use the "ask for the interview" method instead and you will land quality meetings that bring results! Take charge of your future now by asking for what you want.
  
  - Jimmy Sweeney ©
  

  Written By Jimmy Sweeney President of CareerJimmy and Author of the new, Amazing Cover Letter Creator.  Jimmy Sweeney is the president of CareerJimmy and author of the brand new, "Amazing Cover Letter Creator." Jimmy is also the author of several career related books and writes a monthly article titled, "Job Search Secrets."

• 
• by
  • blessed2behome
  on Jan. 9, 2009 at 1:35 AM

• 6 Interview Mistakes

  Interrogation versus Interview: Most candidates expect they will be interrogated. An interrogation is when one person asks all the questions and the other gives the answers. An interview is a business conversation where both people ask and respond to questions. Too many job seekers believe an interview is an interrogation. With this attitude, candidates do not ask questions and hence do not make their best impression. You need to ask questions throughout the interview. If you don't, you force the interview to be an interrogation.

  
  

  Making a Positive out of a Weakness: Unskilled interviewers frequently ask candidates "What are your weaknesses?" Conventional interview advice recommends you highlight a weakness like "I'm a perfectionist" and turn it into a positive. Interviewers are not fooled. If you are asked this question highlight a skill that you wish to improve upon and (most importantly) describe what you are proactively doing to enhance your skill in this area. Interviewers don't care what your weaknesses are. They want to see how you handle the question and what your answer indicates about you.

  
  

  No Questions: Every interview concludes with the interviewer asking if you have any questions. The worst thing to say is you have no questions. Having no questions prepared indicates you are not interested and not prepared. Interviewers are more impressed by the questions you ask than the selling points you try to make. Before each interview make a list of 5 questions you will ask.

  
  

  Only Researching the Company, What about You? Candidates intellectually prepare by researching the company. Most job seekers do not research themselves by taking inventory of their experience, knowledge and skills. Formulating a talent inventory prepares you to immediately respond to any question about your experience. You must be prepared to discuss any part of your background. Creating your talent inventory refreshes your memory and helps you immediately remember experiences you would otherwise have forgotten during the interview. Interview Mastery gives you a talent inventory template and many other job search downloads.

  
  

  Leaving Cell Phone On: We may live in a wired, always available society, but a ringing cell phone is not appropriate for an interview. Turn it off before you enter the company.

  
  

  Waiting for a Call: Time is your enemy after the interview. After you send a thank you email and note to every interviewer, follow-up a couple days later with either a question or additional information. Contact the person who can hire you , not HR (Human Resources). HR is famous for not returning calls. Additional information can be details about your talents, a recent competitor's press release or industry trends. Your intention is to keep their memory of you fresh.

  - Michael R. Neece

  
  

  CEO Interview Mastery

  
  

  Interview Mastery is the Internet's first and only web-based multi-media software for job seekers. Since its introduction in March 2002, this award winning product has rapidly become the #1 job interview skill software on the internet. Interview Mastery delivers pre-interview, during-interview and post-interview strategies. Interview Mastery develops your confidence to be your best when it matters the most in your job search.

  
  

  http://www.interviewmastery.com

  
  

• 
• by
  • blessed2behome
  on Jan. 9, 2009 at 1:40 AM

• 6 Must Ask Interview Questions

  
  

  1. What happened to the person who previously did this job? (If a new position: How has this job been performed in the past?)

  Why You Need to Ask: You need to know any problems or past history associated with this position. For instance, was your predecessor fired, or was he promoted? Is this a temporary position or brand-new? The answer will tell you about management's expectations and how the company is gearing to grow.

  
  

  2. Why did you choose to work here? What keeps you here?

  Why You Need to Ask: Although you may like this company, you're an outsider. You need to find out what an insider has to say about working there. Who better to ask than your interviewer? This also forces the interviewer to step out of their official corporate role and answer personally as an employee and potential coworker.

  
  

  3. What is the first problem the person you hire must attend to?

  Why You Need to Ask: You need to be on the same page as your new manager, as well as be clear on what the initial expectations are and that you can deliver. What you don't want is to allow yourself to be misled about the job's requirements and end up overwhelmed and over your head after the first week on the job.

  
  

  4. What can you tell me about the individual to whom I would report?

  Why You Need to Ask: It doesn't matter how wonderful the company might be; your time will be spent working for a specific manager. You need to find out who this person is and what kind of manager he is -- earlier rather than later, before personality clashes develop. If you're an independent type used to working through solutions on your own, for instance, you'll chafe when you find you're being supervised by a micromanager.

  
  

  5. What are the company's five-year sales and profit projections?

  Why You Need to Ask: You need to know about the future of the company you plan to spend several years of your life working for. It doesn't have to be this exact question. For example, you might want to ask about the company's future plans for new products and services or any planned market expansion. Of course, you've done your own research, but nothing can beat an insider's observations and insights. This also shows you've done your homework and are serious about this company.

  
  

  6. What's our next step?

  Why You Need to Ask: This is your closing and the most important question to ask at the end of the interview. You need to know what happens after this point. Many books advise asking for the job now, but most people may feel too intimidated to bluntly do so. And with more candidates already scheduled for interviews, they're not likely to make you an offer yet. You may also need to do some additional research on the company, making it too early to ask for the job.

  
  

  A good compromise: Take the lead and set a plan for follow-up. You'll also be able to gauge their enthusiasm when they answer. Don't forget to ask for your interviewer's direct phone number and the best time to call.

  
  

  What to Remember

  As a job seeker, the key to a good interview is to find out as much about your potential employer as possible. Asking these six questions will not only make you appear more committed as a candidate, but will also give you better insight into both the challenges and opportunities that may lie ahead for you.

  [As a recruiter, Joe Turner has spent the past 15 years finding and placing top candidates in some of the best jobs of their careers. He makes it easy for anyone to find and land the job they really want -- all on their own in the shortest time possible. Discover more insider job search secrets by visiting Job Change Secrets: http://www.jobchangesecrets.com

• 
• by
  • blessed2behome
  on Jan. 9, 2009 at 1:43 AM

• 7 Steps to Prepare For A Phone Interview
  

  Step One: The Rehearsal

  Practice in front of the mirror, or with a friend or your spouse listening to you, asking questions and playing the part of the interviewer. Make a list of questions you expect the interviewer to ask and have good answers prepared, but have them on the top of your head in general and not memorized. Memorized answers can sound canned and not real, and will not help you. You need to appear genuine and real.

  
  

  Step Two: Why are You Right for This Job?

  Prepare and practice two or three ideas that you want to get across to the interviewer as to why you are the right person for this job. If you are having trouble thinking of ideas, read your resume again. Look for the key points, qualifications or accomplishments you have written, and be ready to discuss them.

  
  

  Step Three: What's in it for Them?

  What can you do for the company? The hiring manager really doesn't care why you would like the job; they care about how you can help the company if you are hired.

  
  

  Step Four: Dress to Impress (Yourself)

  On the morning of the interview, get dressed. Wear the same clothes when you are on the phone that you would wear if you were in front of the interviewer in person. Dress for success and your attitude will reflect it. Dress in your pajamas or an old sweat shirt and your attitude may reflect that as well.

  
  

  Step Five: Smile

  Smiles are contagious, even if they can't be seen. Good salesmen know this and practice smiling on the phone. There is something in your voice and attitude that is conveyed when you smile, and the person on the other end of the phone can sense it. There is truth in the old saying, "Smile and the world smiles with you." It is basic human nature.

  
  

  Step Six: Speak Clearly

  It is important to speak clearly and to enunciate your words. Use a good quality phone, a land line not a cordless. If at all possible do not use a cellular phone for the interview. Crackling noises are distractions and bad cell sites, leading to dropped calls, are a negative. You only want positives during your phone interview.

  
  

  Step Seven: Relax. Be Yourself

  During the interview itself, try to relax and be yourself and do your best. When it is over remember to thank the interviewer for his or her time, and offer to provide any other information they might need to make a decision. Be professional and you may well be rewarded with a job.

  
  

  About The Author:

  Heather Eagar provides reviews of the top

  http://www.resumelines.com that put you in charge of your

  career so that you can get the job you deserve. Sign-up for

  your free http://www.resumelines.com/ecourse.html E-course.

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