Interview tips

Being Proactive Pays

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Literally! We all know the concept, but I want to share with you a true story of how it was used in practice for job search. My friend (Mary – a false name) was laid off just a month ago and was told her last day will be July 24. What does she do?

Mary immediately calls her old company she previously quit (to get this current job) to see if her old position is still open. (Kudos to her for being so open minded and for keeping a good relationship even though she quit) To her surprise, her old position was still open. They were just finalizing on an internal candidate when Mary called and said they were willing to consider her, but it would need for them to open the job in HR to the public in order to hire her from the outside the company. They said they will get back to her next week. ...  read more

Job Search Advice from a Senior Headhunter

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In addition to writing from my own experience, I also want to share career advice from experts in the field. Last week, I spent 90 minutes chatting with one such expert – Steve Meyers, a senior recruiter in executive searches. I met Steve a few years ago at a Wharton MBA alumni networking lunch. ...  read more

15 Interview Preparation Tips

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An interview can be the gateway to a great job. The key to acing an interview lies in interview preparation. No one is naturally ready for an interview, even if you know all your experiences by heart. You need to prepare for every interview so that you can show:

  • You have done research on the company, and understand current news surrounding it.
  • You know why you are a good candidate for that particular position, and are prepared to tell credible stories about how your experiences support your candidacy.
  • You have prepared meaningful questions to find out more about the company.
  • You are prepared to answer unexpected questions with calm and clarity.

With that said, here is a checklist of interview preparation tips you should follow: ...  read more

How to show confidence when answering an unexpected interview question?

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Another great question from my friend’s job search networking group. Even after all the preparation and practice for interviews, there still bound to be some questions you don’t expect and may not be prepared to answer in an interview. There are two types of questions that can fall in this category – behavioral questions and case questions. Behavioral questions usually start with “tell me a time when you …..” and there is no right or wrong answer. Case questions could be “Please estimate the size of the iPhone marketing in CA” and interviewers who give case questions usually are looking for specific things in your answer. ...  read more

The Perfect Candidate

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You may think “wow, I wish my resume or experience is more perfect. Then my job search would be so much easier” Well, think again. One of the top six pet peeves for recruiters today is a “Perfect” candidates – someone with all successes on their resume and often times can’t see any more ways to improve other than to work less. ...  read more