This may seem odd coming from a Graduate with only 3 weeks experience of working in the industry, but…
I would like to share my experience and offer some advice for Job Seekers!
I know that December is already stuffed full of turkey, shopping and festivities but it is also a great time to reflect on your career and what your aspirations are. If this involves a fresh start in a new career, whether you are an Intern, Graduate or Executive, why not get ahead of ‘job change January’ and brush up on your interview skills with me and The 3 Wise Men this December? ?
To begin, our first Wise Man offers solid GOLD tips for before an interview:
Amazing! you’ve been invited to an Interview!
Now for the homework, start by researching the company, this shouldn’t be too hard as you would have seen some information while applying for the position! Make sure you fully understand what the company does, you could even use LinkedIn to find the person interviewing you (if you have their name) or the main people in the business! From this research, you will need to plan questions for the interviewer!
Ensure you dress appropriately; the outfit you choose should show professionalism but make sure you are comfortable, put the Elf shoes back in the cupboard!
Bring a copy of your CV, and check it twice! You can learn how to write a great one on our previous blog ‘How to Write a Great CV‘!
To arrive on time, if not early, you should make sure you know the route to the interview, will you need to plan around public transport? If something goes wrong and you are running late, make sure you apologise once you arrive!
Be prepared for ‘stock’ questions, what are your weaknesses? Biggest achievement? You should be able to plan answers for these questions; the interviewer is trying to get to know you and how you work so it is useful to give examples of previous experiences during your answer!
If you have one, use your recruiter! They are your shining star on top of your Christmas job search! They understand your position and can help with any problems you are having, even if you just need a chat to calm nerves. clockworkTalent’s recruiters love getting updates from candidates and can be an extremely useful tool to get extra information on the role you are going for, remember they have been speaking to the employer!
Finally, turn your phone off!
Our second Wise Man offers interview tips that make sense with a hint of frankincense:
Sometimes interview questions don’t sound relevant to the role, but no matter how odd the question sounds, don’t panic! The interviewer could be trying to test the way you think or solve problems so stay calm, tell the truth and speak confidently. We have also written another blog on ‘killer’ job interview questions and how to ace them!
During the interview, smile and keep eye contact, body language is important when selling yourself, show enthusiasm and pay attention, there is nothing worse than talking to someone that looks bored.
Don’t tell them everything! If you hated your last boss or had lots of problems in a previous role, avoid speaking about this for too long if at all, the interviewer doesn’t want drama at their business!
If you only take one thing from this article, make it this – ask questions! Not questions that can be answered in the next stage of interviews or in a contract, such as Christmas holiday allowance, but questions that show your enthusiasm for the position. For example, ‘what are the prospects for growth in this position?’ ‘can I have a quick tour of the office?’; These questions show you are seriously considering the role and want to see if the workspace will suit you!
Don’t assume the interviewer knows you want the position, without begging, let them know that you would love to work with them!
The third Wise Man offers you the gift of Murr – what to do after an interview, even if it was all a blur!
You survived! Now the first thing to do after an interview is to call clockworkTalent to let us know how it went! Your recruiter is your best friend when it comes to an interview, they might have even been in contact with the employer and have tips or feedback for you from them!
You can then thank the interviewer by email to reiterate the fact that you want the position. While doing this, stay away from the post button! Sharing any information about the interview or company on social media is a huge NO NO! Remember the employer is probably checking you out online! Click here for our tips on using social media to help your job search!
Lastly, prep your references for a possible call – You should keep them up to date all through the interview process, especially if a second interview is planned, and even more so if your current boss is your referee!
My final pearls of wisdom would be: don’t get disheartened by rejection. I recently graduated from the University of Portsmouth and know how it feels to be a bit lost in the world of Digital Marketing. I began my job search during my final year of University. Many jobs I applied for didn’t even send back an automated confirmation, let alone a ‘thank you for your application, you will hear from us within the month’ email! This does wear you down after a while!
My advice here would be to turn this feeling of rejection into determination, no matter your experience or position, if an employer can see that you are determined and enthusiastic you will get there! I am now in my 3rd week of working in the Digital Marketing industry with clockworkTalent and could not have wished for a better outcome after my Summer of job hunting!
For more, we have a Pinterest board of interview tips in infographic form!
You can keep up to date with our Digital Marketing surprises every day the December by using clockworkTalents Christmas countdown advent calendar! Have a Merry Christmas! And please feel free to share this post on our social media: Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or Google+ to calm the nerves of fellow December job seekers! ?
