The current job market, whilst lively and full of positive news, is still a highly tough and competitive environment. What can you do to stand out in the crowd of candidates going for that position you really, really want?
Take a look at these tips for improving your chances of striking gold at your next job interview…
Find a trusted ally
One of the smartest things you can do to improve your job prospects right from the start, is to sign up with a great recruitment agency. Find an outfit that listens hard to what you are looking for and that only sends you to interviews that fit your profile 100 per cent. If you are in the wider London area, specifically Essex, sign up with a leading Brentwood recruitment agency such as Active Recruit. For a Brentwood recruitment agency covering most areas in and around the capital and offering skilled consultancy services across multiple sectors, make Active recruit your first port of call.
Get organised
If you are making multiple applications to many organisations and companies, you will need to be uber-organised. If your CV and applications are impressive enough to be securing you plenty of interviews, you need to be certain of what you are doing for each one. Even if the role you are applying for is essentially the same, the employers won’t be – be vigilant about keeping on top of the ‘who, where, what and why’ of job interviews. At all costs, you want to avoid the terrifying experience of being stuck in an interview for a role you know nothing about in a company you’ve never heard of.
Are you the right candidate?
If your recruitment agency is doing their job properly, you shouldn’t be sent to interview for any unsuitable positions. Before you make an application, study the job description in great detail and make sure you really are well suited. It is a waste of everybody’s time if you turn up to an interview for something that does not match your experience and qualifications.
Train for tough questions
There are moments in every interview where you wished you had answered a question better. Avoid such scenarios by training yourself for awkward and difficult questions. You-tube is stuffed with tutorials on how to respond to certain tricky questions in job interviews – and when you watch enough of them, you get a feel for how to react. When you prepare for the worst, it often never happens, so training up for a nightmare set of selection questions isn’t a bad idea.
Look sharp
Don’t kid yourself, every second of an interview you are being judged. It’s not just what you say, it’s how you look, your clothes, body language, demeanour… So be sure to dress suitably and present yourself as well groomed and personable. This may sound really obvious, but it happens in interviews so often, it can’t be said enough: Iron your clothes, brush your teeth, clean your fingernails and wash your hair – minimum. If you don’t care enough about how you are perceived, neither will anyone else. They’ll just say, ‘Next!’
Try and chill
A job interview isn’t the most relaxing of situations to be in, but when you are able to relax, you tend to perform better. Getting tongue tied over questions, forgetting stuff, nerves – all these can be eased if you use simple relaxation techniques. Deep breathing, stretching exercises to relieve tension and a gentle stroll around the block before your interview can all help steady you down, clear your head and get you focused.
Personal touch
If you come out of an interview really, really feeling a lot of love for the organisation and that if you could secure the position, your happiness would be complete – then really go after it with a passion. Send a follow up ‘thank you’ note saying how much you enjoyed meeting everybody and how you would be very happy to get the job. You can also gently remind them why you are the perfect person for the position. If there are two candidates that have scored equally on suitability for the role, this type of approach shows real tenacity and may swing it in your favour.
Striking gold in the job hunt is more about preparation and hard work than luck – and when all your pre-planning and research starts paying off, that’s when the gold rush starts…Happy hunting!
