This is how to sell yourself in a job interview!

A successful job interview requires a thorough preparation. In this article we review the steps which should be taken before the interview, what kind of questions should be prepare for, we examine the process of the job interview and we will touch on the wage negotiation as well.

One of the most important steps, is to know well our CV and the dates in it. According to the level of the applied position it is worth preparing from the company: for example, in case of a commercial position you should know the products and the services of the company, it is worth mapping the competitors; in case of a marketing positions review the communication of the company, the advertisements of the products, in case of a HR position examine the ongoing job advertisements and you should have an opinion about, for example, how the career page of the company is handled.

It is worth writing in tabular form next to the expectations set out in the job advertisement what could we provide in case of a given position. If we do not meet something, we should think about what we can say at the job interview about it. For example, active language proficiency is an expectation, but we are not at that level yet, then tell that we can develop it to the required level in 1-2 months. It is worth write down the answers to be fixed more easily.

The next step is the preparation for the most frequently asked questions during the job interview.

A general advice for all questions to aim for concise and clear answers, do not hesitate, choose your words. If you have the opportunity, tell stories, because it evokes emotions from the interviewer and remembers you easier. Pay attention to the non-verbal communication, keep eye-contact, our hands should be visible on the table, because it suggests openness, try to be friendly, easy.

The interview questions most often refer to the following areas:

• Past and present position: they may ask the question why there is career break in the CV? You may answer it honestly, what matters here is that they see we spent the time usefully.
• Career goal: if we want new challenges, it worth considering what do you mean by that, for example, learning new technologies, bigger responsibility and more complex tasks; do you have leadership ambitions or maybe you wish to have an expert position in the given area.
• Reason of the change: you can have such questions like for example, what are you looking for in this job that you did not get in the previous one? It can be a nearer workplace, a more stable employer or you just want your work to be recognized more visibly.
• Motivation: to the question of why we are applying for the position it is worth being aware of how we like to work. We need a calmer space or we can handle the fast-paced work and working in an open office.
• Behaviour or assumption-based questions: they refer to how we behaved or would behave in a given situation. For example, tell an example when you promoted the teamwork. It is advisable to formulate the answer in 3 steps: 1. Explain the situation, what was the starting point, 2. Tell how you have behaved in the team and during the given task, for example: we determined the deadlines, we helped distributing the tasks etc. 3. Talk about the result. An assumption-based question is for example: what would you do if your job was constantly changing? In this case we have to tell honestly our attitude to change. You should communicate what will not be a problem for you later on.
• Leadership skills: we can expect to be asked what makes someone a good leader. Here too, it is worth considering our previous experiences.
• Strengths and areas to improve: try to collect strengths that go beyond the generalities. For example: I see the point, I do not go into too much details or I organize my work excellently. It is good if we can support it with an example. The areas to improve is a more delicate issue. In this case it is worth answering in a professional direction: for example, I would like to deepen my expertise or, as a beginner. We can say that I do not have experience in this field yet, but I would like to learn and develop in it. Concerning skills: I’m impatient when someone hinders my work and I can’t meet my own deadlines, or I’ve been told I’m too active, I’m interrupting, so I pay attention to this and try to involve the passive people in the conversation. The answer should suggest that we’re working on it and that the part to be developed should be a strength.
• Results: the question may arise: what is your biggest result? First of all, take a result at work as an example: I am proud of the fact that…, that I’ve achieved with my hard work. Where you can quantify it, then we should strive for it.
• Qualification and self-education: in this case they ask about qualifications and courses. IF we have not finished the course, we must honestly admit it and tell the reason. At the same time supported by our ability to fill the position.
• Integration: what is the ideal working environment for you? This is also worth thinking about before the job interview, what kind of people we can work with best, e.g. I like active energetic people who make decisions easily.
• Work-life balance: how we maintain a balance between our family and work. It is worthwhile to be honest so that the background factors that may influence the work are not revealed afterwards, e.g. overtime, flexibility in work.
• Difficult questions and puzzles: give an example when your work was criticized? It is worth telling the specific situation, how we reacted in the given situation. Here they ask whether we accept criticism, do we acknowledge ourselves in some way and are we able to change?
• Payment claim: What payment package would you be satisfied with? It is also worth considering carefully at home, so that the question does not come as a surprise. When preparing for this, it is important to define the minimum expectations. This is not the goal but we have to be aware of the extent of that, because we will not take the given work under that. Let’s indicate a realistic salary and an ideal salary that we would be very happy with. It is worth starting the salary negotiations with the latter, because you can still decrease this if your salary demand is negotiable. It is always the employer who brings up the subject of salary during the interview. However, even before a face-to-face meeting, you may be faced with this question when you apply, when they ask for a salary request during the telephone interview. When giving the answer, make sure to indicate that the wage demand is negotiable, given the responsibility and wage package. During salary negotiations it is important to know the allowance structure and the range of responsibilities. In the case of a mid-year entry, ask how the benefits will change and what you will be entitled to. If you managed to get a lower salary, than you thought, it’s a good idea to ask about your eligibility for next year’s raise. It is important to justify the salary expectations and list our past performance. In the course of the salary negotiation, no specific feedback is to be expected in the first round. If we see that they have a problem with that amount, we should ask about it and take the conversation to negotiation.

• Closing questions: typical question concerning the date of starting work. When can we start? To answer your question, you should be aware of the notice period. It might also tell you why we’re choosing you. It’s also a good idea to prepare an organised answer: you must tell them your results, your good qualities, and how you can use this to your company’s advantage.

It is important that we also have questions at the end of the interview. If we don’t ask, we will have the same effect as if we didn’t prepare from the company.

We can ask:

• What is the company culture?
• What is a typical working day?
• What is the hardest part of the job?
• What would be the most important, most urgent goal that I need to achieve?
• What are the day-to-day expectations and responsibilities of the position?
• What would be the most important task that needs to be solved quickly in that particular area?

The following is a summary of what happens during the interview and what you should pay attention to:

• Introduce yourself clearly and shake the interviewer’s hand.
• The average interview duration is 45-60 minutes.
• First, the interview is introduced with a mood-enhancing conversation, e.g. was it easy to get here and so on.
• This is followed by the introductory sentences where they tell you what the whole conversation will look like.
• The interview continues by touching on the previously mentioned questions.
• At the end of the interview it is very important to say thank you for your time and tell them that we look forward to hearing from you. Be polite throughout and shake hands when leaving.

Now let’s look at what we have to do after the interview:

Few of the applicants use the follow-up tool. While we are waiting for feedback, we can use a short email to remind the interviewer of the benefits of hiring us.

Let’s consider our own decision Are we satisfied with the position in all respects? It is important to feel comfortable with the company in the long run.

In case of a successful selection, the larger companies will send the offer in writing, if this does not happen, we ask for it in writing. It’s relatively rare, but sometimes things don’t work out the way we planned, so it’s worth putting your offer on paper.

Ask for one day to accept the offer, to really think about the content, but after that, don’t waste time.

If we still cannot reach an agreement, it is important to make a good impression on the employer and to remain a good candidate.

Source: Self-development Academy – online presentation; Flóra Nagy career orientation counsellor