You did it. You got through the phone interview and now you will be meeting with the hiring manager in person. You’ve done your homework. You’ve researched the company, its mission, its values, and you know the position you are applying for backwards and forwards. But even the most prepared candidates may flounder during the actual interview. Here are a few tips to nail your in-person interview:
Slow down. Sometimes, when people are eager, excited, or nervous, they tend to naturally speak faster. This may be problematic during a job interview as speaking too quickly may give the impression that the interviewee is frantic or even desperate. Before your interview, practice speaking slowly. Record yourself and play it back so you can hear how you sound. Or perhaps practice with a trusted friend who will give you constructive feedback. Both of these techniques will help you figure out whether or not you are speaking too rapidly. Even if you believe you are speaking very slowly, you are probably speaking at just the right speed. So slow it down and remember you can still converse with passion, confidence, and determination without increasing the speed of your speech.
Give examples, lots of them. Giving examples and telling stories are effective tactics because they are memorable and they help demonstrate your skills and accomplishments. Instead of saying, “I’m a great salesperson,” tell a story about how you increased sales in your department. Or instead of saying “I’m very detail oriented,” give an example of a situation in which this skill helped you coordinate an event, program, or project. Stories allow you to demonstrate impact and results, which leads to our final tip.
Share how you will bring value to the prospective employer. Employers are interested in how you will bring value to their team, so make sure to explain how you will do this. How will you use your skills to augment their department or improve their processes? Ask questions to learn more about what obstacles the employer is trying to overcome, and then share your plan for how you will solve these problems.
