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How to Prepare for an Interview – 10 Top Tips

Part of my job is to coach candidates on how to prepare for an interview and perform their best on the day. Some of the advice on this post may be obvious and some less-so. Here are my top 10 tips….

Tip 1 – BE YOURSELF

I have put this as the first tip because I truly believe it is the most important. It may seem obvious, but a lot of people try and imagine how the best candidate for the job would present themselves and then position themselves as that person at interview. This is good practice, however at the end of the day, the only way to get a clear view on your suitability for a role and how well you will work with the team is to BE YOURSELF. Be the best version of yourself, but be yourself and let your personality shine through.

Tip 2 – DO YOUR RESEARCH

Before meeting a company, in any context, but particularly during an interview setting, DO YOUR RESEARCH! I have put some tips below regarding what to look for and how to prepare;

The Market
Start broad and funnel deeper into the detail as you go. I recommend researching the market in which the recruiting company are operating in… what does that mean? Have a look for commercial insights and trends that you can fashion into well-thought out questions. Some questions to consider are;

What are the biggest challenges this industry is currently facing?
Who are the leading companies in this space?
Who are this company’s competitors?
What is the latest news in this industry? – Pay attention to mergers & acquisitions, new partnerships announced, movers & shakers in the senior leadership teams amongst the top companies in this space

The Company
So you know the area in which this company operates…. now it’s time to dive deep into this business. My top tip here is to look for the most recent Annual Report. All publicly listed companies publish them, they can normally be found on the website, or through a quick google. If not, see if you can find a company Fact Sheet or draw what you can from the ‘About Us’ section of their website.

During this exercise, you should be looking to learn the basic facts (size of company, where they are based, who their customers are), but also more about this company’s financial performance, information on their product portfolio or suite of services, familiarise yourself with the leadership team and draw conclusions on where you view this company’s strengths and weaknesses to be.

The Role

Read the job description! Put yourself in the hiring manager’s shoes and write a list of the key skills & experiences the qualified candidate should have. For each of these skills & experiences, prepare a short example to demonstrate how you are qualified. You should structure your examples in a way that clearly describes;

The scenario or task at hand
The actions you took
The impact it had

The Person

Lastly, make sure you know who you are meeting. This information isn’t always provided to you when an interview is confirmed, but if you can ask someone for it – then go for it! Once you have the name of the person/people you are meeting, look them up on LinkedIn to familiarise yourself with their background & experience and a top tip here is to search google for any interviews or promotions this person might have worked on – it may help you anticipate how this individual likes to communicate.

Tip 3 – DRESS TO IMPRESS

I am a firm believer that it is always better to be overdressed than under-dressed, especially for an interview. You want to look presentable, but referring back to Tip 1 – be yourself. Don’t be afraid to wear a bit of colour… I used to think that business attire had to be black and boring. It’s not the case. After all, this is an interview, not a funeral!

Tip 4 – DON’T BE LATE

Prepare your route there in advance. Allow extra time for unforeseen circumstances and plan to arrive at your destination early so that you can grab a tea/coffee/water before going in. I would recommend checking in at reception 5-10 minutes prior to your interview.

Tip 5 – KNOW YOUR STUFF

In addition to researching the company, you need to make sure you also know yourself. Take a read through your CV before the interview and be ready to provide a clear rationale behind why you want this job and why you want to work for this company.

Tip 6 – ASK QUESTIONS

Always prepare questions to ask at an interview. And then prepare some more. There have been so many times where I have prepared a list of questions which I find are already answered throughout the discussion and then I have nothing left to ask at the end! Good questions are an indicator to your hiring manager that you are interested and understand the challenges you may face in the role. Top tip here is to fashion your questions around the research you did on the market, the company, the role and the individual you are meeting. At the end of the interview, I will always ask the hiring manager how they felt I performed and how well aligned they think my experience is with the role.

Tip 7 – FUEL YOUR BRAIN

Ever eaten a huge burger for lunch and had to pin your eyes open to get through the rest of the day? I know I have! Eat appropriately ahead of an interview. Don’t go too carb-heavy and make yourself lethargic (I’d save that for after), but also remember to eat something so that your mind doesn’t get distracted by your rumbling tummy!

Tip 8 – BE HONEST

There is no point lying about your experience in an interview. If you set an unrealistic expectation at interview, then people will be disappointed when you start in your new job and quite clearly were dishonest. If there are areas where you have less experience, be honest about it being a development area for you, but try and think of transferable skills that help demonstrate your ability to pick up new things quickly!

Tip 9 – CREATE COMPETITION & URGENCY

If you have other interview processes running concurrently, make sure you tell them! You want to show you are interested in the role, but also that you have other options. This can help create urgency which means quicker decision-making! I recommend asking for an idea on timelines for decision making, either at the end of interview or as a follow up. This will help manage your own expectations on when may be appropriate to contact them again for feedback.

Tip 10 – BE PREPARED TO FAIL

It is not the end of the world if you don’t get the job. Interviewing is great experience and there will always be something to learn from. If you didn’t get the job this time, try to understand why and make sure you work on doing it better next time. A no today means you are one step closer to a yes. Keep your head held high and make sure you boss the next one.

I hope you find this post interesting and maybe you even learned something new! Feel free to comment your interview tips/experiences below, I’d love to read them! And Subscribe to my mailing list to receive updates whenever I post new content!

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My First Blog Post

Stay Tuned…

“Be an amateur. Not everything you do has to be good, especially at first.”
— Ann Handley – Chief Content Officer | Marketing Profs

Here comes the cliche opening line… I have been thinking about starting this blog for a long time now. Except it’s true… I really have. And I’m finally going for it!

Hi! Welcome to my new blog! Behind this screen is a 25 year old woman, coffee fanatic and full-time ‘girl boss’. I have been working in the competitive and misunderstood field of recruitment for 7 years. I started my first role in the industry when I was just 18 and all of these years later, I have learned invaluable lessons about building yourself a career in sales, with no University Degree and little self-confidence.

I have started this blog to share my thoughts, tips struggles and experience (the good AND the bad) in the hope that it may help other career girls & boys out there on their journey.

Stay tuned for more. Share your thoughts, feedback and comments – get involved! And Subscribe below to get notified when I post new updates.

This is the first post on my new blog. I’m just getting this new blog going, so stay tuned for more. Subscribe below to get notified when I post new updates.

A Career in Sales – The good, the bad & the ugly

I have been working in Recruitment/Sales for the past 7 years. My experience has been a roller coaster of good times and bad times and more than once I have convinced myself this isn’t the career for me… yet here I am!

In today’s post, I wanted to share some of the ups & downs I have experienced working in sales. Whether you are considering a move into sales, already work in sales or have no interest in sales at all, I hope you find this an interesting read!

Why a career in Sales?

One of things I love about sales is the versatility. The skills you develop through working in sales can be applied to all industries and even in everyday life. I am super thankful for my ability to negotiate a better deal when buying a new phone, insuring my car, or even purchasing something from a market stall! With good sales experience, you will improve your ability to build strong professional relationships, a quality that is essential in most aspects of business.

Most people I speak to who work in sales, no matter the industry, will almost always say it’s something they “fell into”. Not many people grow up thinking they want a career in sales, but the fact that almost anyone can find work in a sales role brings me onto my next point. I love the diversity you find in this line of work. I didn’t have the opportunity to go to University, however I work alongside colleagues with MSc degrees in Biology, Politics, Psychology, Law… the list is endless. Good salespeople come from so many different backgrounds and the diversity in age, education, experience, nationality etc. is fascinating to have in the team.

Let’s talk money. It’s no joke that good salespeople, within good companies, can earn A LOT of money. A career in sales is one of the only places you can earn such good money, with little-to-no educational requirements. Commission based roles can be extremely rewarding, as how much you are paid is a direct reflection of your achievement in the role. For the ‘work-hard-play-hard’ type, this is one of the most appealing parts to a career in sales.

The not so nice….

So far, a career in sales sounds great doesn’t it?! And it can be…. but it is also hard graft and certainly not for everyone. Working in sales generally means working in a targeted environment. The focus on KPI’s (key performance indicators) will generally differ from company to company, but when you are targeted to make sales, there is almost always going to be someone tracking your performance and daily output. This can become incredibly high-pressure at times, especially if you are low on sales for the month, and can limit the amount of autonomy you have in your role. When assessing whether to make a move into sales, make sure you understand what your daily, weekly, monthly and annual targets are… it’s good to be ambitious, but are they realistic? If someone asking you for an update on your performance at the end of each day doesn’t appeal, maybe re-think the choice to move into sales.

The bad days are hard..
More often than not, things don’t go your way and it can have huge implications for your company/team and yourself. When you choose to work in an environment where big deals mean big pay slips, it can be devastating to lose out on a deal or have business drop out meaning you have to pay your commission back.

No one is your friend… one thing that I have found in sales is that most people are out for themselves! I have seen colleagues go behind each others backs to get deals done and quite often it ends in arguments. Not all sales environments are quite so cut throat, but it’s good to know what you’re getting yourself into upfront. If you are hugely driven by teamwork, then choose a sales role that requires a team effort. If you are hugely driven by independence and love a bit of competition, then you already have the makings of a good salesperson and can be less selective over the environment you work in.

Would I recommend it?

YES! The good days are great and the bad days are devastating. But working in sales means working in a fast-paced environment that focuses on the development of strong business relationships. I look back at my career so far with no regrets. Sales has given me the platform I need to accelerate my own development, with no formal education… just a good work ethic, the will to succeed and a lot of perseverance.

Thanks for reading my new blog… I hope you like the content so far. Please join the mailing list to receive updates every time I post and feel free to leave your thoughts and feedback!