Article by:
Judi Perkins
There is much talk about Interviewing Styles: The Directive
Interview, The Behavioral Interview, The Stress Interview, The
Qualifying Interview, The This Interview, The That Interview.
Articles outline different styles, list typical questions for each
and tell you how to prepare for them, as well as suggesting
appropriate answers.
That's all well and good, but there's an
obvious question here that begs to be asked: how do you KNOW which
style you'll encounter? When you phone to schedule the interview, do
you ask, "Oh, by the way Mr. Interviewer, what interview style do
you use? I'd like to study that one and ignore all the
others."?
I absolutely endorse asking questions that you need
to know the answers to (when it's the appropriate time)......but
THAT question is obviously an exception!
So do you study all
of the styles? Memorize every question that applies to each style
and all the recommended answers to prepare for each one? And when
the interview begins, you say to yourself, "AHA! It's The Abstract
Theoretical Look Sideways Style!" and then you know exactly what to
say and do.
What if you missed a style? And you find yourself
saying "What the heck style is THIS? I don't recognize it! HELP!"
Which completely throws you off and you bomb the rest of the
interview.
Worrying about interviewing styles is ridiculous.
Not only is it too much information to memorize, but it's also a
waste of time. An interview is nerve-wracking as it is without
worrying about which style you're going to encounter.
The
interview is about the company and how your presence will benefit
them. The preparation (with the exception of your company research)
is about knowing who you are and what you're looking for. It's not
about the company or anticipating their interviewing
style.
Interview preparation is an absolute, non-negotiable,
unequivocal must, but preparing by learning different styles is not.
That's why your interview preparation needs to be focused on
learning about yourself, listing questions to ask, forming your
answers to fundamental interview questions.
You prepare by
focusing on yourself because you are seeking your perfect job. You
want to have the power to decide if you want to return for another
interview instead of giving that power away. You want to be in
control of your future.
An interview is a sales process. The
product is, essentially, you. And you need to be real about who you
are, AND be prepared enough to interview well. Do THAT properly and
the style you encounter is irrelevant.
Interviewing is 85%
prep and 15% common sense. Sometimes it does involve a bit of
mirroring, but again, some of that is common sense. Do it without
losing your individuality. For instance, if the interviewer is
chatty, longer answers are okay. If the interviewer is crisp and
serious, keep your answers focused and on the
topic.
Occasionally you'll run into an interviewer who wants
to make you sweat. You feel as if youre under a bright light -
they're grilling you, and you might as well have been fingerprinted.
There's no need to get all worked up (besides, they WANT you to). If
that's his interview style, what do you think it will be like to
work for him?
The answer to that should calm you down. You
won't care what he thinks, because you probably won't want to
return. Good money? Eventually you'll hate your boss, then you'll
hate your job, then your life will be hell, because the salary won't
be worth it. Short drive? Eventually you'll hate your boss, then
you'll hate your job then your life will be hell, because the drive
will STILL be too long - you don't want to go where you're driving.
Great advancement promised? After how long? How many people have
held that position in the last 6 years?
If you want to work
for a control freak or someone who needs to appear tough and
all-knowing, you've found the place. If he's rapid firing questions
at you, hoping to trip you up, let him feel important . Finish the
interview and then cross the company off your list.
Another
interviewer might leave you thinking "What's UP with this guy?" He
seems sort of at a loss as to what to ask you. His questions are all
open ended and don't seem to have any firm direction or point. Just
use common sense. You've done your interview prep work - jump in and
sell yourself. That doesnt mean talk non-stop, but you don't have
to sit there and be uncomfortably silent for long periods of time
either.
Ease the awkwardness. Help him out. Lots of holes?
Gracefully and professionally answer some of the questions you were
prepared to answer, even though he hasn't asked them. He may not
know how to interview very well.
(Face it, NO ONE - except
maybe a human resources person - should have a lot of experience
interviewing. If they do - they either can't keep a job....or they
can't keep employees!)
If your first interview is with human
resources, often they can be crisply black and white, detail
oriented, and by the book. Don't let it throw you. If you know
yourself and what you're looking for, you've done your research on
the company, and you've thoroughly prepped yourself for the
interview, you're much less likely to get flustered.
Mirror
their style, but don't drown your personality. SOME human resources
people are adept at giving you enough rope to hang yourself - so
don't be lulled into a warm cozy camaraderie. Watch their visual
cues - which can be subtle. Follow your instinct, but follow their
lead. They're screeners, but in that sense, they are also decision
makers.
Don't waste your time memorizing styles and how to
handle each one. There ARE different interview styles, just as there
are different types of people. The hiring authority's interviewing
style is usually a reflection of his personality. Stay aware of
what's happening at the moment, what you're saying, what you're
learning, and how you're feeling about what's taking
place.
The more you've done your homework in accordance with
what I've suggested, the more relaxed you'll feel. The more relaxed
you feel, the more confident and in control of your answers you'll
be, and the less likely you'll be to worry about interview styles
and types. When you know your background and who you are - the hows
and whys and whats - you're also less likely to be blindsided by an
unexpected "type" question.
So before you interview, it is
imperative for you to give significant thought to:
Why you
chose your current field
What environment you work best in and
why
What your personality traits are
Why you liked and
didn't like your previous jobs and what you learned from them
What your skills and talents are
How you've handled diverse
situations and what you might have done differently, or why what you
did was effective - be able to back it up
What you've
accomplished in your previous positions and how those
accomplishments contributed to the success of the department and the
company
In what areas you feel you need some work or
polish
Where you see yourself going and how you plan on getting
there
Why you chose to leave one company to go to the
next
In addition to knowing the answers to the above topics,
you need to think about the most appropriate way to phrase those
answers AND how they relate to what you've learned about the company
from your research on line or at the library.
In fact, some
of the topics on the above list you should already have given
thought to before you began your job search. If you don't know who
you are, what you want, in what circumstances you perform best and
in what circumstances you don't perform well at all, what type of
management style helps you to flourish and give back to the company,
and what the goal of your next job is - you won't know what you're
looking for, much less be able to recognize it.
Put effort
into making sure you know who you are and what makes you that way.
Know what you've accomplished and what contributed to those
accomplishments, what motivates you and what turns you off. Spend
time learning about the company with whom you'll be interviewing.
Make a list of questions to bring with you, and know what kind of
answers you're looking for. Be able to address issues by showing how
who YOU are will benefit THEM.
Then it won't matter what
style you encounter. You'll be comfortable with any style you meet.
And when they want you to come back for another interview, you can
decide if you want to....or not.
copyright: Judi Perkins,
VisionQuest
About
the Author:
Prior to starting, VisionQuest, Judi Perkins
was a search consultant for 25 years in both the contingency and
retained markets, including a short stint in the temporary and local
permanent placement markets. To sign up for her newsletter and learn
thousands of powerful concepts to find your perfect job go to http://www.findtheperfectjob.com/.
Article Source:
www.iSnare.com 
