Do you have questions and hesitations when interviewing? There are techniques to anticipate the questions and squash the concerns of your interviewer and the decision maker. The practice of manipulating situations to your advantage is popularly know as social engineering. Popular many different audiences from hackers to sales professionals, social engineering relies on human interaction and these techniques help you to interview better than your uncouth peers.
Orchestrate The Phone Interview
Confirm on your calendar
Don’t end up sitting on a conference bridge waiting for your interviewer. Set an alert and confirm by email your interview time 30 minutes before its start.
Doing this will give you plenty of time to do the other three steps.
Control your location
Find somewhere quiet where you can’t see other people. Your bedroom, an empty conference room, or a secluded booth are all excellent options. Faces and eye contact attract attention. To nail your interview, you want to focus on the speech of your interviewer.
Stand Up And Speak
Five to ten minutes before your interview stand up and practice speaking. Ask, “How is the weather in Albuquerque?” It doesn’t matter. Standing up and loosening your voice will project confidence to your interviewer.
Have An Exit Strategy
Any phone conversation has a logical next step. Try to confirm by email the time for an in person meeting or agreement on a small sample project as the solid next step to a phone interview.
But whatever the result, make sure you know the concrete action to take next. Even if it is passing on the opportunity.
Penetrate In Person
The Cloths Make The Man
Famously stated by elder author and statesman, Mark Twain, the cloths really do make the man. Make sure you observe two rules:
- Dress for the job. Wear the proper business wear for most occasions. Save the denim for a beer with your significant other.
- Wear the right shoes! No open toed flats for you, ladies. And lads this isn’t a music video in the 90’s. Leave the Air Force Ones on the floor.
- Also Aim for shoes that would impress your grandma, not shoes that would impress an Saudi prince.
No ‘Surprise Questions’
Research your interviewer on LinkedIn and see if there are other social media comments. Look up the position you are interviewing for on GlassDoor and LinkedIn to see if any interview questions are listed. Look for any information about the interview process as well.
Finally, Script Your Personal Elevator Pitch
On a blank page write down in one sentence for each:
- Main goals of the company
- How the role adds value
- The big challenge for the role
- What makes you unique
- And the biggest question you have.
Stand up and read that page aloud. Then repeat one or two times until you are speaking Sly Stallone smooth.
Artifact Your Next Step
Prepare a 1 – 2 page plan (400-600 words) on the topic, “How you will deliver $X of value in 3/6/9 months”. Include specific anecdotes, images, or other media to support the statement. Aim for brevity because lots of reading is a pain point for most managers in a hiring situation.
Apply to your life
How would YOU apply these techniques to your next interview or negotiation? Any tricks to use that really highlight each step?
Please contact us with your success stories and thoughts!
