Updated June 13, 2023
Impress Your Interviewer – An interview is the most common thing every job seeker goes through many times in their career. It is an interaction between the interviewer and interviewee to understand each other properly and discuss any questions, facts, or statements.
While it is a two-way communication, interviewees hesitate to start the conversation with their interviewers because of the fear of rejection. They think asking questions from the employer may annoy them and create a biased and displeased feeling in their mind.
Not every interview is easy, and every individual is not confident about himself and the interview. There may have been some interviews in which you didn’t perform well, were nervous, or didn’t like the work environment or pay.
There may be some interviews in which you gave your best but were not selected by the interviewer, and you kept thinking all night about what wrong you did do in your interview.
Having the necessary qualifications and skills may only sometimes give you a 100 percent guarantee of being selected. Some other interviewer skills are essential to impress your interviewer and get selected apart from academic excellence.
You must possess the right attitude, personality, knowledge, and body language besides your academic qualification. Sometimes it is one of these factors only that companies reject individuals.
Sometimes, depending upon the type of job, a company may require an extrovert or introvert, frank or serious, fluent or full of skills. There are some others factors too that may result in your rejection. Sometimes it may be your dressing sense or inability to carry all the necessary documents.
Getting rejected in 3 or 4 interviews is a fine thing you don’t have to worry about. Start afresh and carry yourself positively. But it is a matter of concern if they are being rejected repeatedly.
You have to look deep and find out the factors you must work on for success. Look upon all the factors – external (dressing sense), internal (attitude, tone of voice, commitment), social (conversation skills), and personality-related (extrovert, introvert, frank, serious).
Here is a checklist about how to impress your interviewer and get selected for your dream job.
Interviewer Pre-Preparation
If you are serious enough about a job or a company, you may have to prepare beforehand for many things to combat any factors responsible for your failure.
- If not interested in a company or post: Even if you don’t find a job opportunity interesting, go for the interview anyway. This helps in building up future contacts for job opportunities. Moreover, you learn about the company and its work environment, and the interview conducted builds up your confidence in yourself for future interviews.
- Prepare a file with all necessary documents: Carry all the necessary documents in a well-organized file. Reorganize your CV according to the job profile and work on choosing the appropriate references too. Carry 2-3 extra copies of your CV, and remember not to forget any documents related to what you have mentioned in your CV. Always prepare your file according to the job profile. Carry the latest and eligible documents only. The interviewer doesn’t want to see the certificates of activities performed in your 10th
- Prepare a short story about your skills: If you are not good at describing yourself and your skills, prepare a short story about it. Stories are easy to remember both for you and the interviewer. You can also minimize any inability to speak by concretely preparing your storyline.
- Pre-search for the location and distance: Be on time. If, in the first meeting itself, you reach late, it will not yield a good impression of your punctuality. Search for the location, nearest points, and ideal mode of transport by doing research on Google Maps. Reach the destination 30 minutes early. However, avoid reaching out too early as it may pressure the interview conducting team.
- Do thorough research: Do thorough research about the company, its mission statement, history, awards & achievements, and product offerings. This is important as the interviewer often asks their candidates about their company. They want to check whether the candidate is serious enough about the job and company. Hence, research all the necessary information beforehand.
- Read up the current affairs: Have a thorough knowledge of current affairs and news related to your job. For example, if you are going for a financial analyst job, you should have full knowledge of current economic and financial conditions and new laws being worked upon.
- Re-organize your social media: Nowadays, there are many profiles for which the information of the social media channels you use is equally important for the interviewer. So delete any quotes, pictures, statuses, or discussions which may sound profane or object to your recruiter.
On the interview day morning
- Dress formally and avoid flashy ornaments: Truly said-“The first impression is the last impression”. Dress up in proper formal. Your hair should be neatly combed, and your nails should be trimmed properly. Never wear something too fancy for an interview. Accessories such as belts and small earrings are desirable, but avoid any accessory which is too fancy or flashy. Avoid any strong perfumes and fragrances which may distract the interviewers. Avoid heavy makeup and strong shades of lipstick. These are some small crumbs that, when not worked upon properly, can decrease your selection probability.
- Go for a short break: After reaching your interview destination, go to the restroom and check your hair, face, teeth, and clothes. Give the last touch-up to your hair, check for any dirt on the shoes, and wash your hands to remove any sweat or dust.
- Waiting room etiquette: In the waiting room, be nice to everyone. Be polite and avoid showing your hurry and nervousness. Avoid using phones as they are most likely to convey bad news that may distress you and distract your focus.
During your interview
- See for your body language: Your body language speaks a lot about you. The interviewer can know your personality type by noticing your hand movements, eye movements, and talking fluency. Never wear skinny clothes or uncomfortable footwear, which makes it uncomfortable for you to walk in for the interview.
- Greeting your interviewer: Greet your interviewer with a smile and a firm handshake. Remember, your hands should not be shaking or full of sweat. Don’t sit like a wax statue in a tight position. While talking, use your hands to explain things. Make eye-to-eye contact with the interviewer. Avoid laughing and being too frank while talking. Don’t move your arms and legs here and there. Avoid touching your face, rubbing your nose, manage hair strands. Proper posture and body movements should be worked upon thoroughly and maintained in the interview room and the waiting hall.
- Have an ideal tone: Whatever your voice tone, you must adjust it according to the conditions. In an interview, it is necessary to convey a polite and gentle tone. Your voice should convey your interest, courteousness, and commitment towards the job and company. Avoid opting for a voice that is too hard to hear and a tone too harsh to hear, which may also convey your arrogance and attitude. Don’t speak in a hurry. Speak everything clearly and give stress important words.
- Ask your interviewer a few questions: It is advised to ask your interviewer a few questions. It may be about the company, the work, challenges, etc. Ask what the company values the most, what you may be learning from your job, and what the company’s future goals are. If you don’t ask questions and leave without a conversation from your side, it implies you don’t understand the work or are uninterested in the company.
- Describe yourself and your talents: Give a fledged description of what interview skills you developed from your last experience at different companies. Showcase all your talents and skills with full confidence and energy. If, however, at any company, your experience was not good, never say bad things about your former employers. It builds up a negative image of you, and some employers may dislike this attitude of yours. Avoid talking about the salary in the first meeting. You can discussed these questions in the later stages of selection.
- Be sure about what you write: Never write any skill or talent you cannot confidently perform. If your interviewer tells you to show one of those skills, and you don’t do it correctly and confidently, it may decrease your points and make you feel embarrassed.
- Convince your interviewer: Display yourself so your interviewer is highly impressed with your personality, thoughts, and skills. Give examples of how you can prove to be an asset for the company, what you are having, and which others are lacking, and showcase your commitment towards the organization. Always tell the truth. Never boast your skills and talents, which may convey your egotism.
- Gather up easily: At the end of the interview, gather your files and documents calmly and with a smile. Gathering things quickly may lead to dropping things or documents, making you embarrassed. Have a handshake with your interviewer and say thank you. Walk towards the door slowly and with confidence.
- Send a follow-up mail: After your interview session, it is advised to send a thank you note to the employer through email. This might not seem fruitful, but these tiny doings can yield a good reputation and the employer’s liking towards you. You can build a reputation that people would look up to, and you would be considered to be amongst the best relationship builder.
The interview is a responsible and serious task both for the interviewer and the interviewee. The Interviewer also has a lot of pressure regarding who to choose, not to become partial or unfair with any interviewee, to select the right employee who proves to be an asset to the company and who becomes a permanent employee with his full commitment.
In the same way, an interviewee is nervous about impressing the interviewer, showing all the positive qualities and skills and hiding any negative ones, which may reduce his chances of selection.
Sometimes this pressure hinders and makes it difficult to go for an interview. You may need some personality development classes if you get too nervous about the interview.
Be positive, whatever the result be. With every interview, you will learn about what you are good at, what you have to work on, what impressed your interviewer, and what etiquette you must work on further.
Never think anything wrong with your interviewer. Place yourself in his shoes and feel pressure to select the right employee. Likewise, always recognize your weaknesses and work thoroughly on them.
Also, note that you don’t have to pretend you aren’t. Never pretend to yourself too much, which may shock the recruiter afterward. Though working on body language and personality is important, showcase only those qualities you can carry conveniently after the selection process.
Developing a responsible and committed attitude towards your job and company is important. Moreover, this feeling should come from inside, not during the interview day.
To conclude, always work to your full potential at every job. This will make up a good image of you in the eyes of the employer so that in future if you have to give his references, you feel confident to do that. Develop positive interpersonal relations in every work environment, which will create a good image of you and also improve your inner conversational and social skills.
