How To Master Your Interview Skills

How To Master Your Interview Skills

Whether you've just graduated or you've been working for years, how you talk about yourself and what you know is one of the most important skills to hone and sharpen.A recent survey showed 93% of people felt nervous before an interview. Nerves are common, but you can't let them hinder you from performing your best during an interview. 

The key to shining during an interview is confidence and preparation.

Answering interview questions confidently will help you leave a lasting impression.As a VIP Communications Pass holder, this article is packed with extra tips and tools to show you how to be a more confident communicator, including videos, downloadable tips, step-by-step instructions, and more! https://vimeo.com/891911967?share=copy

VIP Communications Pass: Mastering Interview Skills

1. Interview Questions

When you practice answering interview questions, it helps you articulate thoughts clearly and confidently. This preparation allows you to refine your responses, align your experiences with job requirements, and showcase your skills. The practice also helps reduce anxiety, giving you the confidence to shine. Consider these interview questions:

• Tell Me About Yourself - When answering this question, it is important to keep your answer brief and relevant. You can start by discussing your current position, highlighting relevant skills, and showcasing achievements that make you a strong fit for the job. You may also want to discuss your career goals and how they align with the company's mission and values. For example, you can say, "One of my career goals is to create intuitive systems to help facilitate data from hospital to hospital so patient records can be updated in real-time. I'm really excited about the mission of this company because I, too, want to help streamline healthcare and make it accessible for everyone." The key is to link what you do and what you've done with what the company cares about. 
• Why Are You Interested In The Position - A question like this gives you the opportunity to use power words. For example, you could say, "I'm passionate about the work your company is doing." When you start your answers with power words, it shows alignment. This signals to the other person you understand them and are excited about the company. This enthusiasm is what they want to hear. Once you've started your sentence with a strong power word, you can go into how your experience can be a huge value-add to the team and how it aligns with your goals and aspirations. 

Aligning your goals with the company's mission and including power words will help your answers stand out to interviewers.

 

2. S.T.A.R. Method

One of the most common questions you will be asked during an interview is, "Can you tell me about a time you overcame a challenge?" This question may make you feel nervous, but the key is to share an example showcasing your problem-solving skills and how you stay calm under pressure.To do this, you can implement the S.T.A.R. Method.

• Situation - First, you want to talk about the challenge you faced, and the situation surrounding it. For example, let's say you've been working on a program and discovered the program doesn't give the right results with specific data. You can talk about the challenge of realizing the problem and why it was challenging for you.
• Task - Next, you'll want to talk about the task or goal that needed to be achieved. For example, the goal of your program was to create reports that your clients could easily access.
• Action - When discussing action, you want to talk about the steps you took to overcome the challenge. For example, maybe you had to meet with your development team to figure out why specific data wasn't giving the right results. 
• Results - You'll want to end your answer by describing the positive results or outcome. For example, you can say you could determine why the data wasn't giving the right reports and how you remedied the program so that it worked the way you intended.

When it comes to this question, you want to avoid exaggerating. Instead, focus on honesty and sharing an example that focuses on positivity and a learning experience.

 

3. Best Practices

Successful interviews happen through preparation, including researching the company, understanding the job role, and anticipating common interview questions. You can do a few things to ensure you leave a good, lasting impression with the interviewers.Consider the following:

• Follow-Up Questions - You'll want to ensure you are prepared with follow-up questions during the interview. Most interviewers ask you if you have any questions for them. This is a great time to show you've come prepared. You can ask questions like, "Can you tell me more about the day-to-day responsibilities of the job?" Or, "How does the company measure success in this role?" Having a few questions prepared will showcase your executive presence.
• Answer Length - When answering questions during an interview, you will want to ensure your answers aren't longer than two minutes. You may lose your interviewer's attention if you talk longer than this. Remember, an interview is a two-way conversation. 
• Follow-Up Email - Once the interview is over, it is important always to write a short follow-up email thanking the interviewer for their time. This gesture shows thoughtfulness and can go a long way to leaving a good, lasting impression.

Being prepared for an interview gives you the confidence to engage in meaningful conversations.You never know when an exciting opportunity may arise. This is why it is critical to keep these skills sharp and practice answering questions so you can leave a lasting impression.__Whenever you’re ready, there are 3 ways we can help you:

1. Discover your communications style so you know where to start. Over 4,000 people have found theirs here.
2. Attend our monthly communication workshop to build communications confidence (new topics: public speaking, advocating for yourself, building credibility, etc) here.
3. Get your brand in front of 43k+ people by sponsoring our newsletter or Soulcast Media | LIVE LinkedIn events [contact: hello@soulcastmedia.com]