During a recent survey involving almost 800 Canadians, all 100% of respondents admitted to stretching the truth during job interviews. But it's worth noting that not all of them did it solely to try to make themselves look better in the eyes of those interviewing them.
Instead, many of these people said they've lied during job interviews simply because they got nervous during them. This inevitably led to interviewees embellishing their backgrounds more than they would otherwise.
It can be difficult to take part in a successful interview when your nerves get the best of you. That's why you should work to prepare for the job interview process ahead of time so that you aren't feeling too anxious when it begins.
One easy way to do this is by learning about some of the most common job interview questions and considering how to answer them effectively. It'll make both in-person and phone interviews go more smoothly.
Take a look at a few of the questions you'll likely be asked during a job interview below.
Some job interviewers might dive headfirst into asking you very specific questions about the position you're applying for. But more often than not, they'll look to break the ice at the start of a job interview by asking you a more open-ended question like this one.
Take full advantage of this by giving the interviewer a brief overview of your personal and professional life. It'll give them a look into who you are as a person before you get into discussing the position you're trying to get.
Keep in mind that a job interview will only want to know a "little bit" about you and not your whole life story. You don't necessarily want to let this portion of the interview process drag on for too long as you break down every accomplishment from throughout your entire life.
But you should feel free to fill an interviewer in on what you do now when it comes to work, how you ended up in this position, and what you like to do when you're not at work. It'll get your interview off to a strong start and make you feel more comfortable from the beginning.
After you've spent a few minutes letting a job interviewer know more about yourself, they'll likely want to segue into talking about the position you're interviewing for. To kick things off, they'll probably ask you to explain why you decided to interview for the position in the first place.
Be ready to touch on what it was that made you want to apply for a certain position. If possible, provide an interviewer with several well-thought-out reasons that illustrate why you were so excited to put in an application for this particular position.
The more reasons you can provide for an interviewer, the more passionate it'll make you seem about a position. You want your passion to shine through since it'll help you leave a much stronger first impression.
If you're able to convey just how excited you were to apply for a position, it'll bode well for you. But this clearly won't guarantee you the job. You'll also need to be able to prove that you would be a fantastic fit for a position.
A job interviewer will more than likely ask you to tell them why you feel you'd be a good fit for a position. You should be prepared to break it down for them.
A good approach would be to discuss each job requirement and how you meet them. This will show that you read through these requirements before applying for a job. It'll also suggest that you check all the right boxes for a job opening.
Ideally, you're going to have a wealth of previous work experience that would help you in the position you're applying for. Don't be surprised if a job interviewer asks you to talk more about this experience and explain how it'll benefit you if they decide to bring you on board with their company.
You should be prepared to clearly convey how your previous work experience will come into play if you get hired. You can lay out some of the responsibilities that you've taken on in the past and touch on how they'll help you in the position you're trying to get.
You might also want to let a job interviewer know about some of the things you've been able to accomplish in your current position as well as in any positions you've held in the past. The success stories you share will paint you in a more positive light and show that you're ready to build on your successes and take your career to new heights.
At some point during almost every job interview, you'll be asked to list some of your biggest strengths. It should be relatively easy for you to come up with a long list of things that you think make you a strong candidate for a job.
It won't, however, always be as easy for you to come up with a list of weaknesses if you're asked to list them. It could result in you either providing weaknesses that could scare an employer off or you saying something like, "I can't think of any weaknesses at all!", thus making it seem like you're not as self-aware as you should be.
Your best bet might be to prepare a list of weaknesses that could also be seen as strengths by an employer. For example, you might want to talk about how you haven't always been the best listener but you've worked hard at becoming a better one to turn yourself into a better leader.
By doing this, you'll highlight the fact that you recognize you have weaknesses. At the same time, you'll also shed light on the fact that you're someone who seemingly enjoys working at weaknesses to transform them into strengths.
A lot of employers are wary about hiring people who see their companies as little more than stepping stones. In a perfect world, they want to hire people who will take jobs and then work hard to move up the corporate ladder within their company.
For this reason, you shouldn't be too caught off guard if a job interviewer asks you to talk about your career goals. It'll help them get a better grasp on where you see yourself going over the next few years.
You want to try your hardest to come across as someone who is ambitious and always looking to take their career to the next level. At the same time, you also want to make sure you're not someone who is always looking too far ahead.
Write down a list of career goals at the beginning of your job search and target positions that align with these goals. Then, be prepared to talk about these goals and explain how you plan on reaching them. Don't be afraid to sprinkle in your thoughts on how getting the position you're applying for could help you inch your way closer to the goals you have in mind.
There are some job interviewers who will avoid talking about salary expectations with you. But there will be others who will make this a part of the initial conversation so that they don't put you through multiple rounds of interviews only to discover that they can't pay you what you're looking for later.
With this in mind, you should have a general idea of what your salary expectations will be when interviewing for a position. These expectations should be rooted in research you've done on what the average salary for a specific position usually is.
You might also want to stress that you're willing to negotiate on salary if this is the case. It could lead to a more productive conversation about salary down the line and result in a more successful interview overall.
Interviewing for a job can be extremely stressful. You'll obviously want to have the most successful interview possible. But once your nerves get involved, they might complicate things.
You can put yourself in a position to have a successful interview every time you interview for a new job by getting the right coaching. CareerHD can provide you with the interview coaching you need to succeed.
Contact us now to book a consultation for interview coaching.
