If you are looking for a job or a job change, you might be thinking about interviewing with people. I’ve been on the other side for the last several years. While I’ve been mostly thinking about how to probe and assess the candidates, I’ve also noticed how some candidates are much more skillful than others in handling the interview process. Ultimately, if both sides are playing at the same level, it will be your true personality and capability that determines your job prospect. However, some tips probably won’t hurt. Here is one.
Be a good listener. That’s it.
Quite a few of candidates rehearse a speech or a few canned responses before hand. Then they just pour it out the first moment they got. They forget the most important thing in interview – listen. Listen carefully what the interviewer is trying to ask/probe. Listen for the implicit questions. Listen for clues about the job, the culture and the expectations. By listening carefully you avoid lots of awful mistakes and come across as much more sensible and mature. You will also make the interview session much more productive, which is also a good thing ultimately.