Interview Tips

After being busted, questioned, & interrogated by my creative director, co-workers, and wife, I realized that I am probably the only one reading articles about job interview tips & strategies when not looking for a job. I’ve been with this company for over 12 years and I have no plans on leaving; recently I’ve surprised people in my office by reading job interview articles. My response is usually a laugh and then, “Do you think I’d actually read these at work if I was really leaving?”

I read about job interview skills because I do business development and marketing. Every prospect meeting is like a job interview and I’m working on getting a new client, otherwise known as a new J-O-B. Think about it, both prospective client meetings and job interviews:

Someone looking to hire – In my case, they are looking at hiring a company instead of an individual, but the prospect is looking to grow their team or fill a spot from another company that quit or got fired.
Punctuality – If you don’t show up on time (actually early), you will have a tough time “selling” the interviewer.
Need to dress professionally – You do not necessarily need to be in a suit, but you need to “dress up” in response to the profession and industry. I honestly struggle with dress because my clients range from suits to jeans, I work to fit in and still show my personality.
Focus on the job at hand, while thinking long-term – The interview is filling a void, but it never hurts to talk about the long-term or as a previous client put it, the long view.
Follow-up – Business development is all about the follow-up and so are interviews. Nearly every article I’ve ever read about interviews suggests some type of followup.

One big difference between business development and a job interview is with business development, you are representing an entire company as an extension of the brand.

Great resource for job interview tips is CBS Money Watch. Also, check out this image about what matters to interviews (talking to students) from Sekho.com,