Interviews are the epiphany of showcasing ourselves; it brings voice to our qualifications and accomplishments. Are you prepared for the potential types of interviews? We will cover a high level overview of the various types and how being prepared is more than just your value you bring to the table, but provide more importantly tips to consider that are often overlooked when preparing for your next opportunity to be interviewed. This is part two of a series of episodes exploring the wide variety of services that Your Speaking Voice LLC provides to interested clients.

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Intro/Outro By: Michael Dugan, Podcast Host: Voice4Chefs

Welcome to the podcast where relationships, confidence, and

determination, all converge into an amazing, heartfelt experience.

This is Speaking From The Heart.

Welcome back to episode number 19 of Speaking From The Heart.

Today, we're going to be talking about interviews, which is another type of

service that Your Speaking Voice, LLC provides to clients that are interested in

not just getting to that next level when it comes to our professional development,

but maybe even impressing someone that we need to be able to showcase not

only our values, our aspirations, our knowledge, our skills, our abilities,

but to handle the different types of interviews that come alongside of it.

Now, I have to admit that for many of us, we might often think of interviews

as being the traditional sit down, one person to one person asking a bunch of

questions for one hour, maybe less, and then moving about making a decision as to

whether we should be hiring that person.

Well, it's a lot more than that nowadays, and it's not like your father's or your

mother's interview, and I think that it's so important to talk about how interviews

have evolved, especially for not just those that are looking for any type of

blue collar, white collar or any collar job, it's looking at how we can use some

of these techniques that are universal in nature, and apply them to the different

types of things that come about doing what we do, especially during interviews.

Now, I have to say also that not only are we talking about the concepts itself

that we have that allow us to become that best person or that best candidate that

stands out in front of everyone else, but even in the previous episode in which we

talked about resumes, we are talking now, after getting through what was written,

is really backing up what you have already written down that that person has made

a decision to call you in and be able to qualify what you bring to the table.

I know that for many of us, we are going to already start with a conversation

about, "Well, I really exacerbated my opportunities that I have on

my resume, and now I'm in trouble.

What should I do?"

This is why it's so important starting out, especially if you

have an interview with someone, is to lay everything out on the table,

especially with what you are supposed to be doing at that job interview.

What do I mean?

Let's clarify a couple things that you should be doing even before

you set foot in front of that interview panel, that person, or

even doing it over your computer.

First off, we always talk about having a checklist ready, and we do that at my

business in order to have the resources available so that you are ready to be

prepared for that interview, and we do a preparation checklist because it

makes sure that we not only have the qualifications of what we're looking

for, to have that available to us during that interview, but we're also

ready for anything that comes along our way, so a few things that I list on my

own checklist include the following: researching the company and even the role

that you applied to, because it might have been a while since you looked at

that position description that was being considered, and you haven't even looked

at the company possibly for quite a while.

This is the time to go through that again before you walk in the door, because

nine chances out of ten, a panelist will ask you why you are interested in

the job, or what do you know about the company in the first place, that allows

you to be interested in that position.

This even includes looking at your resume.

What did you submit?

What was the cover letter, if you prepared one that you sent in that showcases

those qualifications that you have?

Cover letters oftentimes are becoming a forgotten art but are still important

in order to showcase and spell out what are the things that you bring to

the table that are specific to that position, so it's always good to review

that before you enter the interview.

Another aspect is to even look at where your location of the interview is at,

especially if you're going in person.

Being familiar with even the technology that you're utilizing,

whether that is Teams; maybe you're using some sort of mobile device

that allows you to go on Zoom.

Being familiar with those technologies and practicing with a colleague, a friend, or

a family member can help you get a long way, but more importantly than anything

else is to practice what kind of decorum you might expect during the interview.

Now, I have to be honest.

Maybe you're going to an interview in which you are going to be

doing a lot of heavy labor.

Do you think that dressing in a suit will impress those people?

Probably not, because those people might be in a casual format.

They might be wearing jeans, they might be wearing a button down shirt.

They might not be wearing a tie or any sort of suit whatsoever, so knowing what

your proper attire is, is so important, especially to match the culture in which

you're trying to interview, because having a great fit will help you get a long way.

Even with all those things prepared for, we might be scared, afraid, petrified of

the questions that might come our way.

There's a listing of all kinds of different types of questions that

you can access online of all kinds of different databases that provide you

with a lot of different resources, which some of them I even give to

my clients, especially starting out.

This includes some of the questions such as: Why are you motivated to be

part of this career in this X industry?

How do you handle changes to a plan?

Tell me about a time which you had to resolve a conflict of a coworker or a

contractor, or how do you ensure that projects are completed within budget?

These questions amongst many, many multitudes of different other ones are

available not only through what I provide because of the experience that I've had

going through the interview process in a variety of different industries, but

they're also available on databases such as Interview Buddy, Leekcode, Gainlo,

Found It, and even Glassdoor, which many people might have heard in the past.

Some of the more traditional ones, such as Indeed and even interviewing, which

interviewing.io is another great tool that allows you to practice interviews,

provide a lot of different resources so that you're helping yourself not only

stay in focus of the interview panel for that matter, but it allows you to

stay in touch with other people that are like-minded in the industry, sharing

that information and knowing more about what to expect during an interview.

That leads into my underlying point.

No matter what interview type it might be, it's always good to have as much

insider information as possible, but also take it with a grain of salt.

You really want to be your authentic self when you're bringing your best

game to the interview, no matter if it's with one person or a panel of

individuals; whether that is a first interview, second interview, or even

a third interview for that matter, and I've even heard of other people

going through a fourth and fifth round.

Having that ability to sort yourself and make yourself stand out in front of all

the other candidates is important by being able to practice what you'll be able to

do by utilizing some of the resources that I've provided even in this episode,

but even being able to help yourself understand how you can move from point A

to point B without jeopardizing or even feeling like you're inadequate for being

able to prepare for that next interview.

Now, for many of us, like I mentioned earlier in this episode, we can do all

kinds of traditional types of interviews, whether we meet face-to-face, some

might even do a phone interview or a video interview, which are similar

in nature except that you might see them, you might not see them; group

interviews and even panel interviews for that matter, but have you ever

been involved with stress interviews?

Maybe a case interview?

Maybe even being interviewed during a job fair?

Maybe you've been interviewed on the job in which you are doing something in which

you are performing a task or a service that the client or the person that you

are getting hired from potentially wants to see what kind of work you're able

to do, but there's other types, such as behavioral interviews, how you react,

how you respond to different types of situations, which in most service-oriented

firms, such as even being a police officer, or even being a prison guard,

those can be types of interview tactics that are used so that we know a little bit

more about how you interact with different people, but there's also others such

as having a competency based interview, maybe even having an informal, or what

is called an informational interview.

All of these are different types of ways in which you gather information

and resources about different types of things and people that allow

you to create some of those best interview tactics for yourself.

I always stress, especially for my clients, going through interviews that

not only is it about understanding these different types to bring your authentic

self, but it's also about understanding how to create different conversations,

different dynamics, to not only make yourself stand out from that other

person or that other group of people, but it also allows you to interview with

passion, with commitment, with having that understanding that you really want to have

that job and that you will never take no for an answer unless they tell you no.

Those are the types of things that you want to be able to do in order to create

opportunities for the panelists to ask and to dig more deeply with you about.

Now in the next monologue episode, we're going to talk more about how you could

be more confident, especially when it comes to speaking, but when it comes

specifically to interviews, it's about not just knowing what you have inside

yourself that provides that resource or that opportunity for the company to hire

you, but it's also about understanding a little bit of ways in which you can just

enhance, right in the interview, your own impromptu speaking skills itself, so let

me give you a few tips that I've learned over the years that have helped me to

stay calm, remove the jitters that we often have, even after we practice so many

different times, but more importantly, allows us to be called back again.

Now, I have to tell you, I have always been in interviews where the next person

that comes after me might be much more qualified, maybe more able to provide

their background, and they are considered for the next interview round and not me.

I have been on that side and I totally understand that and that

doesn't mean that you don't bring anything to the table, and it doesn't

mean that you're not good enough.

Always remember that even after you receive rejections, but when you are in an

interview position in which you're being asked questions, ask immediately, as one

of my first ideas, to see if there's a copy of the questions that will be asked.

Usually, oftentimes there are questions already written up that

you can review, and even as you're answering or even waiting for the

interviewer to write down the response that you provided to read ahead.

This will allow you to think ahead of all the different types of responses

that you can mention that will address that future question that's being asked.

It never hurts to ask.

The worst thing that could happen is that they say no.

The next thing that I would mention is that when you are being asked a

question, you don't have that list in front of you, ask for it to be repeated.

Make sure that you're clarifying every single piece of information that is needed

for that question to be responded to.

I can't tell you enough as being someone that has been an interviewer, interviewing

potential individuals for a position, that don't fully answer the question,

nor do they take the opportunity to re-ask the question to be repeated.

It can help so much to have that clarity and direction of information,

so that allows you to feel like you're confident enough to move

forward and responding to all the different information that is needed.

Don't be afraid to ask for a repeat.

Even during the interview, this repeat technique can buy you some more time,

even if you know the answer, to help yourself get more calm and even eliminate

some of the jitters that you might have, especially with responding to a

particular type of question that might be more technically involved with the

answer that you will provide, but another tip that I will give you is that no

matter what kind of questions that they ask, whether they ask it a round robin

format, especially if there's multiple individuals, or if it is one-on-one,

being yourself also means understanding that you could throw a little bit

of appropriate humor into the mix.

Now, you might be saying, "Really?

You're going to bring humor into this?

This is a very serious interview.

I'm trying to be considered for this job", but if you think about the fact

that your personality is something that is being considered indirectly for this

position, noting whether you'll be a good fit for that next project that's being

considered, or for that team that you are going to be managing, it's really

important to show your true personality.

It doesn't mean over embellishing, and it also means being very careful about

not just using humor that's appropriate and being able to utilize that so that

you feel more comfortable with yourself, but it means being able to understand

that sometimes those answers that you give are going to be a direct impact

on how a person or a group of people will feel about you, but if you add

humor and even excitement for that interview, for somebody to be hiring

you, that can make such a big difference.

At the end of the day, one of the last things I always tell my clients to do

is make sure that you follow up and even during my own process of following up,

I give a checklist for them to consider maybe some of the ways in which you can

find out where you're at on the stage of development for that interview.

Sending a thank you email, or even sending follow up items, are so important to

the panelists that have considered you.

Always thanking them for their time is something that I truly try to do

even before I leave the room, but I also do when I follow up, because it

allows them to know that I'm still interested in the position, but I also

appreciated the time that they gave, but always check in with your references.

References are part of the process in which you might have someone that's

close to you getting that important phone call to see if you really bring

that extra bang for the buck that they really need, and if you don't alert your

references of this potential job, you are going to not only catch them off

guard, but they might not give you the best recommendation that they could of

if they would've been more prepared, so it's always good to make sure that your

references are up to date and you check in with them to see if they were contacted.

Now, with all of that said, we are rendering a new world of virtual

interviews in which we are trying so hard to become able to fit in no

matter where we're at across the globe.

Even with all the types of software and connectivity that we have,

it's always important to think about the virtual interview format

as the same as the in-person.

If you're able to do that, you're going to be a very good candidate for them

to understand the different types of technology that you can master: being

able to look at the camera, being loud and projecting into the microphone that

you have built into your computer, or maybe stationary or separate, and also

having the information available to those individuals that are interviewing you

are all important considerations that you could share on the fly and be able to

provide them with whatever information's needed to make yourself stand out.

Interviews are something that I can go on and on about, especially in this

episode, but I think that for many of us, interviews is about unlocking who

we really are in front of a panel of interviewers that allow us to see what we

are truly capable of doing, and as long as you are adequately prepared and you

feel confident and you're able to speak clearly about who you are, especially with

what you've written down in that resume, it's not only going to help you stand

out, but I could even help you get to that next level, so don't be afraid to reach

www.yourspeakingvoice.biz and learn more about how I can provide you

with interview preparation techniques, especially even mock interviews in which

we can conduct right in my office, or even through the phone or video conferencing,

to simulate the real life experience to help you get to that next level, because

it is about not just selling yourself, but it's about showing you and others

that you have what it takes to become not only that best person as part of that

next team project, but maybe having that security that we all desperately want,

that we all able to do because we're showing our true best versions of ourself.

Thanks for listening to episode number 19 of Speaking From the

Heart, and I look forward to hearing from your heart, very soon.

Thanks for listening.

For more information about our podcast and future shows, search for Speaking From

The Heart to subscribe and be notified wherever you listen to your podcasts.

Visit us at www.yourspeakingvoice.biz for more information about potential

services that can help you create the best version of yourself.