Back in the day – which means precisely 17 years ago, I didn’t want to have to interview without a current job.
In an ideal situation, I was a “passive candidate” to a recruiter if I were gainfully employed (and looking to cheat on an employer during interviews, or later file for divorce from the company).
Now, even though I am without job, aka “active candidate”, I’m relieved to report that it hasn’t affected my ability to network or interview. The hard part for me, is to retell the part about the company break-up. (Really – do I have to make it all sound positive AGAIN?) Oh Harry is an amazing guy. Oh he’s blah blah blah.
What I want to say is I was sacked and I’m in recovery and wondering if I will ever be happy again working for anyone other than myself. Nothing personal.
So now I need to prep for three hours of back to back interviews at a new company tomorrow. How to prepare? Here are some fast tips (and a partial review from past blog posts):
1. Know your answer to “what is your ideal” question or “describe a perfect work place or work scenario”. Yep. That question comes back (just interviewed and heard it 6 separate times).
2. Know your stuff about the company and what they do and customer relationships. Who are their clients? What’s their sweet spot? Be prepared to ask specific questions about the industry.
3. If you can get an agenda in advance and see the names of those you are interviewing, do some LinkedIn stalking and find out more about each person.
4. Culture fit is huge. Did I mention Zappos founder and his theory on firing over culture fit? You are interviewing them, too. Be prepared to adapt to the cultural cues when you are there so you blend in. If you don’t fit in, let your conscience be the guide before you decide to take it another step further.
Not to single anyone out… but a friend once told me her response to the how much do you need question was “I can’t answer that one right now, but I can tell you what I made in the past”. If this is you, you just told them what you are worth – and hopefully that number was a pay increase. Otherwise, avoid the “what did you make” question and keep it focused on a reasonable number (I like to use a range) if the hiring manager doesn’t give you a range first.
6. Don’t forget the thank you’s. I also follow up diligently if I haven’t heard. Don’t be afraid to reach out more than once or three times even.
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