Advanced Interview Preparation

The level of interview preparation before meeting with a hiring manager can be the difference between being a strong candidate on paper and landing the job. Although researching the common interview questions should be an important part of your job search, being able to answer each question with confident sincerity is more impressive. To prepare for any interview question you may receive, learn how to practice your interview alone and with others.

Self Interview Preparation

Drilling through possible questions with a friend is the ideal method of interview preparation, but because it’s not always possible, there are still ways to prepare on your own. If you can, print out a list of possible interview questions and write down your responses to each. During this exercise, make sure you take the time to mull over each answer, as the interview is your time to dazzle the hiring manager. Since you’re working individually, it’s not necessary to answer rapidly. Instead, come back to the tricky questions after you’ve had time to develop a complete response.

Once you have an answer for each question, practice speaking them aloud. Did your responses sound natural? If you’re like most people, you don’t write the way you speak, so it may be necessary to rework some of your phrasing. Of course, the goal isn’t to memorize things verbatim or you’ll risk sounding insincere during the interview.

Individual Interview Preparation

For interview preparation with another person, make sure you provide him or her:

• A copy of your resume
• Details of the position
• Potential interview questions
• Any additional information you know about the company, industry or interviewer.

Give your interview preparation partner several minutes to review all the information. Even if you’re working with your spouse or best friend, try not to stop in mid-interview for feedback or advice. Act as though this were the real thing from start to finish to get a true idea of your level of preparedness. Your partner can take notes as you go to provide you at the end of the exercise.

For best results with this interview preparation method, try to practice with at least two different people to gain a sense of interviewing with different personality types.

Group Interview Preparation

Group interview preparation can be more difficult to arrange, but is extremely beneficial when your job search involves executive positions. To practice, you’ll need at least three people to mock interview you at the same time. This preparation technique will teach you how to build rapport with multiple personalities at once, while ensuring you pay equal attention to each person.

If you’re working with an executive search firm, headhunter or placement agency, group interview preparation may already be a service they offer. Schedule a time for your mock interview and arrive in their office just as you would for the real interview. Depending on the company, they may record the session for an intensive critique of what went well and what needs improvement.