SUBTEXTat ease. Most interviewers are bound to be a bit nervous even if
they have been in personnel work for a long time. A good opening
question is "What kind of person are you looking for?" This buy
you time to relax and gives you some insight into the company
I asked just this question in my first job interview. The answer
was a surprise. The interviewer leaned back and, looking up at
the ceiling, said, "We're looking for someone a little far out
someone who can write but hasn't been in the medical field before
We want fresh ideas."
That reply threw me for a moment, but luckily I rallied and
took the chance to explain my own credentials as a free-lance
writer, as well as to talk about some projects I had worked on
but had left out of my resume as too unusual. I had been nervous
about those projects until that moment. Now I realized why they
were interviewing me, a person with no real experience in the
field, and I relaxed. No need for pretense any longer!
When you do answer questions, stress your strong points in
relation to the job, not your weaknesses. Watch the interviewer
and understand his or her subtext. This will clue you in on when
to expand on a point and when to cut it short. Watch for lack of
interest or genuine interest.
An excellent tool that will give you a clue to the subtext of
the interviewer is the head nod. A nodding interviewer means an
agreeable one, one who understands you. The head nod is also a
clue to expand on what you're saying because you're on the right
track.
As a candidate, you have to persuade the interviewer that your
abilities mesh with the company's needs. You must sell yourself
without sounding as though you're boasting. It may be that you
are looking for a better opportunity and are changing jobs of your
own accord, but if you were fired and you try to suggest that you