Asking questions in the interview shows your interest in the job, as well as your intelligence and enthusiasm. The answers you get will uncover information you need, and make the interview conversation flow.
Related: How To Answer 5 Tricky Job Interview Questions
However, two questions in particular will do more for you in the interview than any others. You may not have ever asked these questions in your job interviews, but you absolutely should because they will help you get the job.
1. What would a perfect candidate for this job look like?
Toward the beginning of the interview, you want to ask about what they really want. What would an ideal person for this job have? A certain education? A special background? Particular experience? Whatever it is, you want to know: What would a perfect person for this job look like?
It may seem counter-intuitive to ask about their perfect person, because you're not perfect. Why should you highlight your shortcomings? Don't worry…that isn't what you're doing here. What you're doing is finding out what this hiring manager (your interviewer) really cares about. Once you know what that is, you can talk about the things in your background that align with that.
The reality is that this interviewer already has his or her perfect person in mind, and the candidate who gets closest to that 'wins.' By asking straight out about this imaginary ideal, you give yourself a huge advantage in the candidate competition.
2. Based on what we've talked about today, do you agree that I would be successful in this job?
This is the question you ask as the interview is beginning to wind down. Basically, you're asking, “So how did I do?" This kind of question is called a 'closing' question. It's a technique borrowed from sales reps, who ask this kind of question to close the sale—they are asking for the business. Has the customer made up their mind, or is there something else they need to know? The reason this kind of question works in job interviews is because the job interview process itself is a sales process. You are essentially a 'product' for sale that provides some kind of solution or feature that the company (the customer) needs.
What you are going for with this question is one of two different outcomes:
You will prompt them to say, “Yes, I can see you being successful," in which case they become an advocate for hiring you after you leave, significantly boosting your chances of actually getting the offer.
You will get them to say, “I'm not sure because of _____." This is a much harder answer to hear, but it's still good. Whether you hear this answer or not, they are thinking it—and they will be thinking it after you leave. Find out what their doubts are about you now, while you have a chance to change their mind. Sometimes their objection or doubt about you is something you can't change—but sometimes it is something you can correct. Maybe you forgot to mention something in your background that they wanted to hear, or maybe they have some misconception about you. When you correct whatever that is, you can get you the job offer when you would otherwise have lost it.
If you've never asked these questions in an interview, you may feel hesitant—but trust me and give them a try. I have heard back from countless candidates who did, and had a fantastic result. These questions will foster better, clearer, stronger communication between you and the hiring manager, and that's always a great thing.
If you'd like to become a better interviewee and get more job offers, spend some time with an interview coach. It's a great investment in yourself.This post was originally published at an earlier date. Disclosure: This post is sponsored by a Work It Daily-approved expert.
Is your job search turning into a grind with no end in sight? It may be time to take a step back and reevaluate your entire approach.
In cold weather climates, the beginning of spring is a time to clean the house and get organized—a practice known as spring cleaning. Through the years, spring cleaning has taken on a larger meaning with people using the time to organize and declutter things in their lives.
For professionals on the job hunt, a little spring cleaning (metaphorically speaking) could be a great way to reinvigorate your job search. Here are a few strategies your job search spring cleaning should include.
Reevaluate Your Job Search Approach
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Make a list of the last handful of jobs you applied for and see if you can identify any positive or negative trends. Consider things like:
How did I learn about this job?
How did I apply for the job?
Did I earn an interview?
What was the ultimate result?
A lot can be learned about your job search approach just by answering these questions and identifying patterns. For example:
Negative Trends
You discovered five jobs through job boards, applied to all of them via the job boards, and never heard back from any of them.
The common pattern here is applying through job boards. This isn't to say that job boards don't serve a purpose in the job search process, but they have their limitations, and you can't run your job search entirely off of them. When you apply through a job board, there's a good chance that your materials will never get past the applicant tracking system (ATS) and never be seen by an actual person.
One simple fix is to research who the hiring manager or recruiter is that posted the position and email your materials to them directly.
The more efficient fix would be to take a proactive approach by putting together a bucket list of companies that you want to work for and start making connections on LinkedIn with people who work at those companies. You may already know some people who work there or have connections that can refer you to some individuals.
This is a great way to network your way onto a company's radar.
Positive Trends
You applied to three jobs via referral, were invited to two job interviews, and made it through multiple rounds of interviews for one of the jobs before being passed over for someone with a little more experience.
The pattern here is that getting referred to a job by a professional acquaintance is a great way to land a job interview. This indicates that you're leveraging your network well and you should continue to focus on your networking efforts.
The next step is to review the interview process and determine what went well and what needs to be improved. Sometimes the interviewer will provide feedback, and that feedback can be valuable. However, not everyone is comfortable with giving feedback.
Chances are you probably have a good idea about areas of improvement and the skills you need to gain. Put together a plan for addressing those shortfalls.
The good news in making it deep into any interview process is that it indicates that the company likes you as a potential employee (even if the timing just wasn't right) and the experience could be a roadmap to a job with that company at a later date, or another similar opportunity elsewhere.
Give Your Resume & Cover Letter Some Much-Needed Attention
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Are you continuously sending similar resumes and cover letters to each job opening with only minor adjustments? If so, your strategy needs some serious spring cleaning.
The reason why it's so important to tailor your resume is that throughout your career, you acquire numerous skills, but the job you're applying for may only be focusing on 6-8 of those skills. In that case, those skills must rise to the top of the resume with quantifiable examples of how you successfully used those skills at previous jobs.
Remember, recruiters go through hundreds of resumes. They need to be able to tell from a quick glance whether or not you're a potential candidate for the position.
While updating your resume, you could also spruce up your LinkedIn profile by highlighting the skill sets that you want to be noticed for by recruiters.
As for writing a good cover letter, the key to success is writing a disruptive cover letter. When you write a disruptive cover letter, you're basically telling a story. The story should focus on how you connect with the particular company and job position. The story could also focus on your personal journey, and how you got to where you currently are in your career.
If your resumes and cover letters aren't unique, now is the time to clean things up and get on track.
Build Your Personal Brand
Just because you're looking for work doesn't mean that you don't have anything to offer. Use previous career experiences and passions to build your personal brand.
Ask yourself, "How do I want other professionals to view me?"
Pick an area of expertise and start sharing your knowledge and experience with your professional network by pushing out content on your LinkedIn and social media accounts. Good content can include blogs, social media posts, and videos.
By sharing content about your experiences and passions, you slowly build your personal brand, and others will start to notice. The content could lead to good discussions with others in your network. It could also lead to reconnecting with connections that you haven't spoken to in years, or making new connections.
You never know when one of these connections could turn into a job lead or referral. The trick is to get on people's radars. So, when you're cleaning up your job search, be sure to build a plan for personal branding.
Maintain Healthy Habits During Your Job Search
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Your job search is important, but it's even more important to know when to pull back and focus on personal health and spending time with family and friends.
There are actually things that you can do for your own enjoyment that could help your job search in the long run, such as:
Grab coffee with a friend - It's good to engage in light conversation with friends during challenging times. And if your job search does come up, remember that most people have been through it themselves and you never know when a friend may provide you with a good idea or lead on a job.
Volunteer - Volunteering is a great way to get involved in the community and help others. In addition, if you develop a little bit of a career gap while looking for a job, you can always talk about how you filled that time volunteering, if you're asked about it during a job interview.
Continue to focus on other passions - Are you a fitness nut? Blogger? Crafter? Continue to do the things that bring you happiness. And if you're in a position to profit from your passion through a freelance job or side hustle, even better!
Spring is the perfect time to clean up and improve your job search so you can land the job you want. If you're struggling to find a job, follow the tips above to reinvigorate your job search—and watch your career blossom!
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This article was originally published at an earlier date.
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