How to prepare for an interview

How to start preparing for an interview

We all know interviews are not fun. Anyone who says otherwise is telling serious lies! It’s like a hangover, we’ve all experienced them - and some are worse than others. 

The difference is in how you prepare yourself. Let me tell you now that I’ve had my fair share of interviews - the good, the bad, and the downright bizarre. I was asked once before how I would go about making a sandwich - and no it was not for a cafe, or even a restaurant, but for a tech company! My point is that I can certainly offer up some advice regardless of the industry. 

Obviously, there's no one set way to prepare. However if you begin to implement some of the following tips, then you're off to a great start!

1. Know the company

This should be obvious. Research the CEO, company values, and the product/service and their USP (unique selling point).

2. Know the job 

Read the job spec - WHO are they looking for? WHAT skill set are they searching for? My advice would be to take one word from each sentence that sums up that main requirement. This will help you later.

3. Know yourself

Be able to talk about your experience, what skills you obtained from your various roles or college projects, and how these skills are transferable to the desired role.

4. Be able to provide examples of your strengths

Note examples that co-relate directly to your skill set. If you say you have 'great communication skills', be prepared to explain to an interviewer about a time these skills were put into practice and later developed. 

5. Draw comparisons between the job spec points and your own skills 

Now look at the job spec again and like before match up examples of your skill set to what the company is looking for e.g ‘highly motivated individual’ - prepare an example of a time YOU were highly motivated and what positive results came from this. 

PRACTICE. PRACTICE. PRACTICE. Research as many questions as you can and begin practicing your answers. It’s all fine writing it down, but take that penmanship and try to verbalize it and it’s a different story! Practice is key, and often the answer is in the question.