Wednesday, December 08, 2004

Interviewing Tips from the Master(?)

Someone asked for a few tips on interviewing. Out of the 4 '2nd level' interviews I did, I only got 1 offer, so I don't know how qualified I am to give tips... but being unqualified has never stopped me before.

  • Study Up - At the end of your interview, you will always get asked "Do you have any questions?" You know you're going to get this question... so be ready to answer it. Appeal to their love of their company... ask them about a new product that is coming out, why its so much better than anything else.
  • What to drink - Once you're at their office for an all- or half-day interview, you're going to be doing a lot of talking. DO NOT DRINK CAFFEINE. This is going to be hard, because if you're like me, you were up the whole night before because you were too excited to sleep. But coffee, soda, etc will dehydrate you, and give you cotton mouth during your interview. Which instantly leads to bad breath (and if you had coffee your breath will kill small children). Drink water, or something that isn't bad for you. At my Expedia Interview I was fighting a sore throat, so when they offered me a drink... I had some warm tea (worked like a champ).
  • Study Up - When in the courtroom, a lawyer never asks a witness a question that he/she doesn't already know the answer to. You should put yourself in a similiar situation. Know what the interviewer is going to ask you. Talk to people who have interviewed there. Before I went to my Deloitte interview, I called one of my friends from high school who interviewed for the same job in Pittsburgh. He said he was asked to do an ER diagram from Video Rental store. I got the exact same question, and was unbelievably ready for it.
  • Don't Give Up - If you think you screwed something up earlier in the interview, and are sure you're not going to give you a job anymore... it doesn't matter... keep giving 100% in the interview. A good finish can cure a bad start. At my Navair Interview, one of the guys I was interviewing with started the day off, by greeting our would-be manager with his pant's fly open. He still got an offer.
  • Study Up - They're going to spend all day trying to find an excuse to not hire you. Don't give it to them. Whats the job you're being interviewed for? Make sure you've studied everything you've ever learned about that job. Are you applying for a Consulting job with an accounting company? Go over everything you've ever heard a professor say about accounting. Go over all your old tests. An interview is the ultimate Final Exam.


And read this 2 articles, they're hilarious and really informative.
one
two

Thats all I can think of right now.

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