Job Interview - General advice please

F Me In The Brain

DS1119 wrote:

dcfaithful wrote:

Would it make a difference if it's a Monday? He might not have loose ends right?

Am I thinking too much?

Avoid Mondays. Most people are not in a good mood Monday mornings. Flip it around on the interviewer. When you call to schedule ask him "I can schedule my interview for ten on Tuesday or Wednesday...what is most convenient for you"?

Written like a true salesman! Always be closing....

DS1119

F Me In The Brain wrote:

DS1119 wrote:

dcfaithful wrote:

Would it make a difference if it's a Monday? He might not have loose ends right?

Am I thinking too much?

Avoid Mondays. Most people are not in a good mood Monday mornings. Flip it around on the interviewer. When you call to schedule ask him "I can schedule my interview for ten on Tuesday or Wednesday...what is most convenient for you"?

Written like a true salesman! Always be closing....

ABC...

_

What a great collection of advice!

I agree that around 10 AM is good. But it's not really THAT important, so make sure it really is a good time for you to take off work so you're not rushing or stressed. I think it's fine to mention your weekday job since this is just on weekends. Don't make it sound like it's a hassle for you to take the time to interview though.

Attitude is one of the most important things people look for, so just have a positive attitude in general & regarding problem solving. RELAX. Be confident (but not cocky). If you're not confident in yourself, they won't be confident in you. Remember: you want this job, but you don't need it.

Be prepared to explain why you want the job & show your passion/enthusiasm for this kind of work.

Dress nicely. Don't wear a suit, but wear a tie. Invest in something sharp if you need to (if you can afford it). Make sure your clothes are clean & pressed, not sloppy. Don't wear white socks. Check to be sure your fly is up. Don't wear any cologne and don't smoke any time between getting dressed & the interview.

Bring a notebook & pen. Write down your questions if you're afraid of forgetting them. It would only make you look prepared.

Send thank you cards to everyone who interviewed you AND those who facilitated your interview. (I once had an applicant send cards to the ten people with whom she interviewed for less than an hour each but left out the staff person who spent all day walking her from one interview to the next, etc. I was not impressed.) It's usually a good idea to ask for business cards so you can be sure to spell everyone's name correctly. I think thank you cards are more impressive than thank you emails. If they say (when you ask them directly at the end of your interview) that they'll be making their decision in the next couple of days, drop the cards off at the front desk the next day instead of waiting on the mail. Proofread the thank you notes just as carefully as you would proofread your resume.

Have a snack before the interview so your stomach doesn't growl and your hunger doesn't distract you. Make sure you don't have crumbs on you though.

Use correct grammar. Don't use too much slang.

But, all that being said, the most important thing really is that you are confident, thoughtful, & enthusiastic. Don't let any if the advice stress you out. They're obviously impressed with you already if you're one of their top three candidates. That's a big accomplishment already. (Congratulations! )

(My best advice for real: Do not make radio your career.)

Good luck! You'll do great! :thumbup:

LikeAnOcean

Ask lots of questions. Remember, you are also interviewing them for the job.


Be friendly, show you're interested in what the interviewer is saying, and use their name when talking to them when possible. It makes it more personable, but don't use it too often. Say something like "thank you John for your time.." etc..


You can never over dress, unless you are applying for McDonald's.. otherwise, it shows you are serious.



I don't know what else to say. I've been on maybe 7 or so job interviews in my life and landed 5 of those positions, which ain't bad.

mookeywrench

brianlux wrote:

Regarding how you dress- I've often heard that you should dress one step above what you would wear to work on a daily basis- maybe a little more but I think you can be over-dressed and of course you don't want to under-dress.

Good luck and let us know how it goes!

This is right, always go one notch above the company dress code. If you overdress, it shows you have not researched the company's culture. Google and Facebook have been known to turn down interviewees for showing up in a suit and tie.

For a college campus job I would go slacks, dress shirt, tie optional.

Go Beavers

mookeywrench wrote:

brianlux wrote:

Regarding how you dress- I've often heard that you should dress one step above what you would wear to work on a daily basis- maybe a little more but I think you can be over-dressed and of course you don't want to under-dress.

Good luck and let us know how it goes!

This is right, always go one notch above the company dress code. If you overdress, it shows you have not researched the company's culture. Google and Facebook have been known to turn down interviewees for showing up in a suit and tie.

For a college campus job I would go slacks, dress shirt, tie optional.

I once overdressed just in a shirt and a tie. It was a group interview with about 12 hippies. They thought I was a big stiff and kept asking me questions about what I do to unwind and relax. I tried to convince them that relaxing was not a problem at all!

Claireack

Lots of good advice DC, I probably couldn't add anything more as it's been over 10 years since I had to have an interview for anything and I'd probably mess it up.

Just wanted to wish you well and if you need any references (not sure if you call them that over there) from a listener I would be really happy to do so.

chadwick

dcfaithful wrote:

Thoughts on when to schedule the interview? It seems he has placed the ball in my court on the time.

I'm thinking pre-lunch is better.

4am. if 4am is a bad time tell him fine no later than 3am. be there with bells on.

Halifax2TheMax

Don't bring your Mom. I'm sure she's nice and all but it'll show your independence and that you don't need hand holding. Seriously, though, don't be afraid of the "challenging situation" question if you don't have a specific instance related to radio. Use an example from a previous or current job. Say something like, "well my current radio experience has been really challenge free, nothing that has really come up to pose a problem or be an issue/conflict but I'll tell you about the time when I was working as an aircraft mechanic and this colleague............."Try to use an example from a job on your resume as it'll give your story more plausibility. And get a good night's rest the night before. No karoke with the gang the night before. Have a list of at least 5 questions that you want to ask pre-written out on your notepad with space for an answer. It makes you appear very well prepared and thoughtful.

You've gotten a lot of great advice here and you have thought a lot of this through so I think you'll nail it. It'll be yours if you want it.

Peace.

PS: If you land the gig, any chance we could tune in over the interweb? Ask 'em if you have time and its appropriate. Just tell them you have a very large family spread out all over the place who would love to tune in (donations might go up)!

Suziemay

Hiya,

Lots of good stuff here already, but I'll add my 2 cents. I've also interviewed lots of candidates over the years, here's what I look for:

- Passion, interest and commitment to the job/position you are applying for. You clearly WANT this job badly. You don't want to come across as being desperate, but definitely be able to convey that you want THAT position, it's not just one of 10 positions you are applying for because you need a job. Sit up straight and speak with excitement with your voice. It's a big turnoff to me when I speak to candidates who just sound bla even if that's their normal demeanor.

- Thoughtfulness. You definitely can't be prepared for every single thing they are going ask you and they won't expect you to. When I interview people, I don't expect them to have all the answers, but if they can think through something on the fly and explain to me their rationale, it helps me understand their thought process and identify if they have the right goods upstairs for the job

- Understand the position you are applying for. For example, since this is with a college radio station, they probably want to be able to depend on you to uphold their values so maybe work that into your conversation somehow.

- Be able to explain "red flags". For example, I will always ask someone if there is a gap in their employment, I want to know what happened and what they did with their time. I don't judge if someone's been unemployed, but if they can't explain it, I would have issues with that.

- One of my favourite questions is asking someone what has been the greatest challenge in their life so far (professionally or personally) and how they have overcome it. I ask this because to be honest, we get a lot of strong candidates that look really good on paper, and what differentiates people for me is their character. Something else along those lines is I might ask if they have had to work with difficult people before, and how they dealt with those situations.

- Above all, BE YOURSELF and be confident in your abilities. You are qualified for this job and you want it, so you really shouldn't be worried. It's ok to be nervous, but don't psych yourself out to the point where you aren't able to think straight. I tend to do that, and the way I've learned to handle that is to ask myself "What's the worse that could happen?". In this situation, the worse case is you don't get the job. That's really not the end of the world as far as bad outcomes go.

As to your specific questions:

dcfaithful wrote:

Suggestions on what to wear? I don't want to overdress, but I want to look professional...

Agree with others saying to take it a step up above what is "normal". Are you interviewing with an office-type or someone who is more of a peer/on air-type? Someone in an office might be in a suit or shirt/tie, while a peer probably will not be. When in doubt, over dress rather than under dress. Worse case, if you are in a suit and no one else is, just take off your jacket so you look less formal.

dcfaithful wrote:

Also, would it lessen my chances if I made it known that I work a full-time job during the week? I'm trying to schedule my interview and am wondering if I should openly tell them that I would need to schedule time off to make the interview.

I think it's generally given that people know you'd have to take time off to interview. Most people hold jobs currently and can't just walk out as they please to interview with another employer You don't have to make it a big deal, just say, "that doesn't work but how about x day at y time?

dcfaithful wrote:

Is it deemed appropriate or "acceptable" to have said notepad w/ your questions on them? I'm afraid of trying to remember all my questions because I'm sure I'll be nervous and have a scattered brain.

Absolutely acceptable. Don't keep referring to it and go off memory as much as you can. What I find when I interview people (or when I'm interviewing) you get so much into the conversation that your questions just naturally come out. If you get the nagging feeling there was something you really wanted to ask but you can't remember, just say, "I know there was something I really wanted to ask you but I can't for the life of me remember, do you mind if I take a look at my notes?" It's also OK to take a few notes here and there, but don't be scribbling furiously when the interviewer is talking. My big thing is eye contact. I need to make eye contact with the person I'm talking to otherwise I feel like the other person isn't listening.

dcfaithful wrote:

1) Is it necessary to bring the resume when they already have it on file? I'm assuming the answer is yes, but is this just a personal preference depending on the interviewer, or is it a common sense good practice for the interviewee?

Always have copies of your resume. The person may not have his copy, he might have an outdated copy, or they might switch up the person you are talking to and this person might not have seen your resume yet. No one will ever think negatively of you for having copies even if they don't need it.

dcfaithful wrote:

2) I was wondering about the attire because frankly my collection of dress/business clothing is not impressive. I have three ties, black, white, and then a patterned one. My dress shirts are about the same. I have a typical blue dress shirt, a plaid one that has been labeled "young" by my girlfriend, and a black dress shirt. Looks like I might need to bite the bullet and go buy a nice outfit?

I'd go plain shirt, patterned tie if you want to look business-y (NO PLAID!!!). It wouldn't be a bad idea to have a business outfit in your arsenal, but you don't have to spend a lot of money on it. Try Banana Republic, they seem to always have 40% off everything deals. Most important thing is you need to be comfortable and feel like a million bucks. It does wonders for your confidence.

dcfaithful wrote:

Thoughts on when to schedule the interview? It seems he has placed the ball in my court on the time.

I'm thinking pre-lunch is better.

I would think around $10 or so. The later in the day, the more distracted the interviewer will be. I personally don't mind Mondays. They will probably be in a better mood on Friday. But you should also factor in when you think you'll be at your "peak" too.

Suziemay

Another thought, think of what you would ask if roles were reversed. Write down those questions then think about the answers.

GOOD LUCK!! We'll be cheering you on.

Thoughts_Arrive

Just do as Sharon does here...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RO9wiK27iHM

chadwick

bring your axe and squirrel pelts

dcfaithful

Again, thanks for all the posts & encouragement. This thread is a mine of information in regards to this subject. I really appreciate it.

I went to Kohl's today and invested some money into a nice outfit. I purchased some nice black Docker's, a white shirt, a sharp but not overwhelming and loud tie, and an argyle sweater (thanks for the idea, mfc2006!). I look pretty snazzy in it. A worthy investment as I really like the outfit, it didn't cost me too much, and it's something that will be useful in the future too. I'm not too worried about overdressing. If I was interviewing someone, I would appreciate the obvious effort to look pleasant and presentable. Even if the station is a casual environment, I think making a good impression in an interview is a universally known (and expected) part.

My next obstacle is to figure out how to tie the tie. ... :? :oops:

dcfaithful

Halifax2TheMax wrote:

PS: If you land the gig, any chance we could tune in over the interweb? Ask 'em if you have time and its appropriate. Just tell them you have a very large family spread out all over the place who would love to tune in (donations might go up)!

You can stream the station! Visit www.kuer.org. If I land the gig, I suspect that my responsibilities would be announcing the programming scheduled for the day, give time/traffic/weather updates intermittently.

It would be an interesting, and different experience than what I've had so far.

DS1119

dcfaithful wrote:

Again, thanks for all the posts & encouragement. This thread is a mine of information in regards to this subject. I really appreciate it.

I went to Kohl's today and invested some money into a nice outfit. I purchased some nice black Docker's, a white shirt, a sharp but not overwhelming and loud tie, and an argyle sweater. I look pretty snazzy in it. A worthy investment as I really like the outfit, it didn't cost me too much, and it's something that will be useful in the future too. I'm not too worried about overdressing. If I was interviewing someone, I would appreciate the obvious effort to look pleasant and presentable. Even if the station is a casual environment, I think making a good impression in an interview is a universally known (and expected) part.

My next obstacle is to figure out how to tie the tie. ... :? :oops:

:wave: :wave: :wave: :wave: :wave: :wave: :wave: :wave:

Go get it!!!!!

SVRDhand13

Wear a suit. Anything less and you are automatically one step behind the competition.

Thoughts_Arrive

dcfaithful wrote:

My next obstacle is to figure out how to tie the tie. ... :? :oops:

I didn't know until I looked it up on youtube.
Classic Windsor knot...

Suziemay

http://www.tie-a-tie.net/windsor.html

jethrojam420

SVRDhand13 wrote:

Wear a suit. Anything less and you are automatically one step behind the competition.

I agree with this. Its 100% necessary for ANY job interview. Mookiewrench said that fb and google turned down applicants who wore a suit - this rule does not apply for 99.9% of all open jobs...and 100% of jobs in Utah of all places...