Page 58 - You're Hired! Interview Answers

do is be unsure – for it to have an impact on their assessment of you – and duRing the inteRview
not for the better.
n Be interesting. As part of your preparation you will have recalled some
relevant examples of your experience to illustrate your capabilities. Some
of us are much more factual in our ways of describing things, while
others tend to be more colourful, painting a picture of what happened.
Clearly there is a balance to be found here, but it is worth going over your
examples and ‘stories’ to assess their interest level. If necessary, think
of ways to add richness (while sticking to the truth) to the story, people,
places, events that make your description more vivid (but not more long-
winded!).
n Be interested. All interviewers will be concerned to assess your motivation
to come and work in their organisation. You need to signal your interest,
both in response to specific questions and when you get the chance to ask
some of your own at the end of the interview (see next page).
n Protect your credibility. In Chapter 2 we suggested that as part of your
preparation you should ‘take a look at yourself in the mirror’ to see if you
need to be aware of any quirks or mannerisms that are likely to affect an
interview situation. The same holds true for what you say. If you have led
an outrageous and bohemian youth, then you may want to consider what
effect sharing information about it will have on the interviewer. Remember
that they will have very little other information about you to go on – you
don’t want to scare them with stories about your riotous behaviour when
they have no context for interpreting it! In the same way, you should
mention unusual hobbies or pastimes carefully. Highly colourful examples
will stick in the interviewer’s mind, so be sure that they are the images you
want them to have.

The interviewer will be more reassured about your
answers, and therefore your capabilities, if they
feel they are dealing with the ‘real’ you.

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