How to Make a Good Impression in a Job Interview

If you can make a good impression in a job interview, then you will have a good chance of getting the job. If you make a bad impression, then your resume will end up in the trash can.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Nice clothes

1. The first thing that you need to attend to is your grooming. The better groomed you are, the less chance you have of making a bad impression. So wear your best clothing and that means trying them on a few days before and making sure they aren't wrinkled. Clean and trim your fingernails. Make sure you smell nice, but don't use too much perfume or cologne. Brush your teeth and get a haircut, but make sure you get the haircut a week in advance so you won't have a nasty surprise the day before the interview if it goes badly.

2. Study the company. Try to contact people who have worked there and ask them questions. Read their financial statements if they are a publicly traded company. Try to understand their culture. Try to figure out what type of people work there. Know how they make money and what sort of work you will do. Don't go in without sufficient knowledge of the company or you might be blindsided.

3. Be confident. That means that you should maintain eye contact, keep your shoulders straight, and use a firm voice. Don't be too meek.

4. Use good grammar. While you may think that grammar isn't important, using incorrect grammar could make the employer doubt your abilities. Those interviewing you may think that if you can't speak correctly, then you won't be able to do other things correctly.

5. Don't use too much slang. You're at a job interview, not hanging out with friends.

6. If you can, as soon as you go in and meet people, write down everyone's name on a copy of your resume in front of you. It is awkward at the end of an interview when you are saying goodbye and you can't remember anyone's name.

7. Know your resume. If you wrote it, you should know it well. If a recruiter rewrote parts of it, make sure that you received a copy of the updated resume before the interview and had time to look it over.

8. Try to make the interviewers laugh at least once in the interview. It can really help. But don't overdo the comedy routine either. Most everyone that made me laugh a few times in an interview got a thumbs up.

9. At some point you may want to imply that you have been in a series of interviews, so as not to make your options appear limited. Don't lie, but imply.

10. At the end of an interview, when it is time to ask questions, have at least one question prepared from before the interview. Have a second and third question from things that popped into your mind during the interview. To do this, keep a pen in front of you and a copy of your resume, so you can write down those ideas for questions and you won't stutter at the end of the interview.

11. When it's over, don't fret. Just know that if it's for you, you will get it. Nervousness or fear will shine through, so try not to place too much importance on the outcome.

[anniewrites]

on 2/15/2009 Very good suggestions here. Thanks!

[sharishops]

on 1/24/2009 Great suggestions! I've been the one doing the interviewing and I find it amazing how many people think it's acceptable to come to a job interview looking like they just got out of bed! *****