Job interviews can be intimidating. Preparing for them is obviously important. Do you want to know a trick to prepare for any interview?
We all know the five w’s…. who, what, when, where, and why.
Have you ever thought to use them when preparing for an interview?
I’m serious.
Don’t jump to conclusions here thinking you already know what I’m going to say either.
These five simple words will help you outline everything you need to ace any job interview! Just write them out and start listing the details underneath.
Job Interview Prep: The Who
When asking yourself “who”, I’m not asking you to just write down the company you are interviewing with. I’m assuming you already know that.
I want you to know exactly who you are.
In order to be memorable and show a future employer you’d be a good fit, you need to take a minute and define who you are now and who you want to be in your next job.
You need to understand exactly what skills you can bring to your next job and you need to own it.
Every time I interview someone for one of my jobs, I know they are going to tell me why they want to work for my company. What impresses me most is when the person tells me about their plan for their career and what they want in their next job.
It makes it clear that you aren’t just desperate for a job. It shows that you are making a calculated decision to work somewhere you truly want to be.
Job Interview Prep: The What
I’m guessing you’re thinking the “what” is what the job is.
NOPE!
If you’re in a job interview then you already know what you applied for. The “what” has to do with what value you can bring to the organization. This one is a game changer.
When you stop thinking in terms of why you are a good fit for the job and start thinking in terms of what value you bring, everything changes.
There could be a hundred job seekers applying to my job with the exact same background.
When someone answers my interview questions in a way that allows me to see how they are going to make an impact instead of just filling a need, it’s eye opening.
I pretty much ALWAYS hire that person.
Job Interview Prep: The When
Again, I’m assuming that you know when you were employed at your past jobs.
For this section, I want you to think of different situations you’ve encountered and how you handled them.
For example, “When ….. happened, I…. which resulted in …..”
If you’re interviewing for a nurse position, this could be “When the doctor didn’t listen to my concerns over the patients vitals declining, I knew the patient was going to code if he didn’t get help. I went to a different doctor and had the patient re-evaluated. The second doctor agreed something was wrong which resulted in the patient being moved to the ICU. The patient ended up coding within 15 minutes of being moved to the ICU and we were able to save his life because I spoke up when the doctor wasn’t listening.”
In other word, think of the situation, what actions you took and what the result was.
Job Interview Prep: The Where
For the “where,” begin thinking about where you started and how you’ve grown.
Think of the past couple of positions you’ve held and how you grew into where you are now.
Are you self-made? Did you have a mentor? How did you learn a new skill that made you the “SME” or subject matter expert?
As a recruiter, I want to hear about how you have grit and how you persevere through challenges. I want to know where you started and how you got to be who you are today.
I love hearing the personal stories about how you were thrown into a project you knew nothing about and how you taught yourself the skills and soared from there.
Job Interview Prep: The Why
By the time you get to the “why,” you’ve laid out a lot and are pretty prepared to talk about yourself.
Now it’s time to talk about the company you want to work for.
Do a little research and find out their mission statement and values. Learn about their culture or their current initiatives.
Find which parts of the company you identify with most. Then, create a personalized and branded statement about why you would be a good fit.
It is so impressive to me when a job seeker tells me specific values that they feel connected to and why.
The big picture
Once you have a solid idea of who you are, what you bring, when you made an impact, where you come from, and why you identify with the company, you are pretty much set.
You are going to make an unbelievable imprint on the interviewer. It’s hard to pass on a candidate that is so strong and has proven the true value they will bring to an organization!