Job hunting is a stressful business. Your financial well being is at stake, even to the point of losing your house and car if you don't find a job soon. And all that stress comes to a pinnacle during the interview.
Here you sit face to face with your prospective employer, and he will decide in a half hour (or less) whether you will be earning a nice salary or continuing to flail around looking for another opportunity.
To prepare for this performance, too many job seekers take courses and study the 150 most often asked interviewing questions. I think this is a waste of time. Instead, study the company and the interviewer. Know what they are seeking. Get into their heads. Your job during the interview is to convince the hiring manager that:
1. You can make more money for the company than what they will pay you.
2. You can make more money for the company than the other applicants.
Never lose sight of this fact. You are being hired to make money for the company. Too many job hunters think that they are being hired to be a graphic designer or an accountant. They feel that they must prove how good they are in their field. So they stress their abilities in a narrow niche, talking jargon to show their deep mastery of a narrow skill.
Instead, the hiring manager is evaluating you for other skills. You see, the hirer is confident of your abilities in your field, or you would have never gotten the interview. Don't bore him or her to death with the intricacies of programming or the award you received for Best White Paper on the Impact of FAR 121.618 on Airline Crew Scheduling.
To win over the person or group who is interviewing you, speak to their needs, not yours. Chances are the folks interviewing you have profit and loss responsibilities. This means that their bonuses are directly tied to how much profit their unit or division turns in this quarter.
They are looking for the applicant to speak three powerful words that, if true, can mean promotions, accolades, and bigger bonuses for all. These three words are:
I can sell.
Today's managers realize that everyone in an organization must be able to sell upgrades and new products to their clients. Anyone coming in contact with clients or potential clients must be able to move them toward the sales funnel. While talking to a recruiter just the other day, she told me that the hottest demand from her clients is for technical people who can sell.
Now that you have uttered this statement, you must prove it by selling yourself to the interviewers. Practice your pitch before the interview. Get a coach. They can help. If you don't have any sales experience, pick up some books on sales. Study and practice. It's not hard.
Go out and sell something. Get some practice. One of the best exercises is recruiting volunteers and/or donations for your charity. You've been doing sales since you were a kid. Remember when you convinced your Dad to buy you that new bicycle? Or just last week when you sold your spouse on the idea of going to the library instead of a movie? You have the ability, you just need to rekindle your inner fire and crank up your confidence.
When you say these magic words in your interview, don't be surprised when you see the hiring manager or interview board sit up and really pay attention. You see, you have just spoken to their needs and shown yourself to be knowledgeable about more than just your niche.
Plus, you have jumped ahead of the other applicants by proving your ability to not only function in your technical corner, but to bring in revenue to the company. The hirers will see you as so much more desirable and promotable.
So, be ready to say these three words with conviction, and use a story illustrating your ability. The hiring manager will love it.
D. Alan Johnson
http://www.dalanjohnson.com
