The Voice of Job Seekers

Award-winning career advice blog & podcast! ★Hacking and reimagining an easier job search process for you!

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • iTunes Podcasts
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • RSS Feed

2021 is around the corner. 421 Modern Job Search Tips for 2021 is coming soon! Sign up now!

  • TVOJS Podcast
    • Guest Posts Topics or Podcast Guests
  • ABOUT ME
  • Media/ Media Mentions
  • Get the Free 2020 eBook
    • Guides & Resources
  • Contact Me
  • HIRE ME!
    • Testimonials
  • Hire Me for Content Writing
You are here: Home / Interview / 8 Ways to Foster Effective Job Interview Conversations

by Mark Anthony Dyson Leave a Comment

8 Ways to Foster Effective Job Interview Conversations

The best jobs or contracts I’ve had came from conversations initially called a job interview. My theory is most of us dread the interrogative approach. Well, actually, all of us hate interrogations. I wish more employers made an effort to stop the madness.

Some job candidates don’t have a chance to get off the interrogation freight train, a train that has no regard for stop lights, cars, bikes, or humans. It’s a process with fury the size of a category-five tropical storm. In this Psychology Today article, job candidates often expect one of two scenarios: either having a “casual” conversation or being interrogated.

Oh yeah, you know this takes practice, right?

You, as the candidate, can turn the interview into a conversation. But like anything else, it requires preparation and strategy.

Click To Tweet

The combination can invite a relaxed and balanced approach to solutions and contributions to the employer’s challenges attractive enough to bring conversation and intrigue from the employer using these suggestions:

1. Show you’ve done the research

If you don’t research the company you are prospectively seeking, you will never know what they need. Talk to several employees (even a recent former employee is helpful) and polish your message according to their needs at the time. Based on what you know, can you anticipate a need? If so, you can speak to solutions your job competition couldn’t.

Listen to: The Yin and Yang of Convincing Job Interviews with Thea Kelley

2. Give your hearers something to hold onto

What two or three problems do they repeat or what recurring problematic themes can you solve? Find ways to bring them up throughout the conversation through stories and examples. The CAR method (Challenge-Action-Results) helps you craft useful examples. Proper research and storytelling that demonstrate experience and skill place them (employer, interviewer, people you meet) on your career journey, and they likely will remember you.

3. Include resolution of business conflicts within your examples

People grow aware of how you will treat them through your scenarios involving other people. They’ll note how you made others feel and relate it to themselves. They’ll remember the tone and the volume, and your eagerness to take responsibility for the problems you resolved.

Read: The Audacious Follow Up Call After Your Interview

4. Reflect and be sure you answered all interview questions completely

You are juggling your precise answers and the employer’s information, and it’s possible you have unsatisfactorily answered a question(s). There is nothing wrong with stating you would like to go back and answer an earlier question.

Confusion and ambiguity never work in your favor. Don’t risk being misunderstood by the interviewer.

Click To Tweet

5. Follow up appropriately

Letters and notes as follow-up are great ways to follow up, but find out what kind of communication is preferred. The question is not should you, but how and when is best. Establish the expectations before leaving the meeting for clarity.

6. Hear what they say, and what they won’t say

Interviews are draining. You want to state your potential contributions while attempting to understand expectations. Your work isn’t done when the conversation is over. Reflect on what wasn’t said (i.e., Why did the interviewer ask how many hours do I work a week at my current job?) and what was said. Depending on where you are in the process, you will need to follow up at the next interview or follow up with a call or email.

Read: Time for the Job Interview! Are Your Quirks Ready?

7. Use your excitement to drive the energy to synergy

A good interview is a good date. The excitement of one person infuses the energy of the other person. If you’re not the one generating the enthusiasm, why would the other person continue? The interest you bring is just as significant as your skills. Candidates do not impress employers with talent alone.

8. Let your personality come through

Your uniqueness offers value in profound ways. One of the unwritten tests of an interview is your primary response to stress (you know interviews are stressful, right?). If your personality shines during a panel or one-on-one interview, it’s likely to leave a positive impression. Although showing your character doesn’t mean a stand-up comedy routine, a little self-deprecating humor can help your likability factor.

A consultant mindset establishes an invaluable relationship with employers, but it comes through the business conversation. You won’t foster a business conversation if you don’t have clarity of your vision of a position delivering what employers want. Confusion can muddy the compensation discussion and create more of a wall than a bridge. Decision makers base their decision on skills and abilities and will hire the candidate who resonates with them the most.

Related Posts

  • 5 Tips on Interview Prep From Thea Kelley5 Tips on Interview Prep From Thea Kelley
  • 5 Transferable Skills: From Raising Kids to The Job Interview5 Transferable Skills: From Raising Kids to The Job Interview
  • Craft Stories to Get the JobCraft Stories to Get the Job
  • 5 Ways to Show Job Interview Mastery to Employers5 Ways to Show Job Interview Mastery to Employers
  • Job Seekers Can Stand Out in the Job Search Using VideoJob Seekers Can Stand Out in the Job Search Using Video
  • Interview: 2012 Job Preparedness IndicatorInterview: 2012 Job Preparedness Indicator
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • iTunes Podcasts
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • RSS Feed

About Mark Anthony Dyson

My name is Mark Anthony Dyson, and I am the Founder of The Voice of Job Seekers. I am a career advice writer, but more importantly, I hack and re-imagine the job search process.. I've worked with hundreds of job seekers one-on-one helping them to construct a narrative and strategy that appeals to hiring managers and recruiters. I present at colleges and organizations, and facilitated many workshops including my volunteer effort through a Job Lab. I write and create useful job search content on this blog and write career and workplace advice for blogs such as Glassdoor, Payscale, Job-Hunt.org, Prezi and more. Media Feature highlights: Forbes, Business Insider, NBC News, Glassdoor, LinkedIn's #GetHired, and NPR Freelance writer and content contributor: Glassdoor, Payscale, job-hunt.org, The Financial Diet, RippleMatch.com and more. Contact me to contribute career, job search, or workplace advice for your site at markanthonydyson@gmail.com.

  • Mail
  • |
  • Web
  • |
  • Twitter
  • |
  • Facebook
  • |
  • LinkedIn
  • |
  • More Posts(599)

Filed Under: Interview Tagged With: Interview, Job

Listen to my NPR podcast interview on “Jazzed About Work” with Beverly Jones from 8/13/2020!

WOUB Digital · Episode 087 : Black job searchers face special challenges, says Mark Anthony Dyson

See my #GetHired LinkedIn Live with News Editor Andrew Seaman

Watch this interview about today’s job search!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJNTym48NVo&t=68s
Top Career Advice Websites
Jobscan Badge
Career Youtube Channels
Best Websites for 2020 job search logos
top 100 career badge
Banners for Top 20 Career Blogs 2018
Best Websites for Job Search 2017

Top Career Podcasts 2018

Best Career Blog
The Voice of Jobseekers
top career blogs

<script type=”text/javascript” src=”https://platform.linkedin.com/badges/js/profile.js” async defer></script>

Copyright © 2021 · Generate Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in