8 Job interview mistakes you should avoid

When you interview with a prospective employer, you probably have 100 things running through your head, and this may cause you much anxiety. However, if you can focus on the most important items of the interview, then you feel more relaxed and in control of the message you wish to send.

Top eight interview mistakes to avoid

In order to best prepare yourself for that all-important interview, make sure you avoid the following mistakes that could prevent you from winning that position.

1. Dressing appropriately.

Know the culture of the company. Don’t dress in business casual if many of the current employees wear more conservative clothes – you want to look like you already fit in.

2. Appearances that are loud, bright, excessive or extreme

Resist the temptation to wear perfume, bright colors, or loud nail polish; cover up all the tattoos. You want the interviewer to focus on your skills and accomplishments, not your appearance.

3. Being late for the interview.

This mistake pretty much speaks for itself. This leaves a bad taste in any prospective employer’s mouth. If you can’t be on time for the interview, how dependable could you be as an employee? Arrive at least 10 minutes before the interview begins.

4. Not asking questions.

Do not sit like a bump on a log during your interview. Show interest in the company by asking the employer what his or her biggest challenges are; what the average workday for this position is like; or what the next step is following the interview. The questions you ask are indicative of the interest in the position. If you don’t ask questions, the interviewer will assume you won’t accept the job offer if it is extended.

5. Asking about salary and benefits.

The appropriate time to discuss issues of compensation is when a firm offer is on the table. Don’t bring up the topic prematurely. Take the time to learn about the company and the open position. In the end, money isn’t everything. Career satisfaction comes in many forms (opportunity for growth, a collaborative team environment). Most individuals are seeking positions due to issues other than financial matters. So during the interview, concentrate on what really matters – the responsibilities of the job at hand.

6. Lack of resume copies.

Don’t assume that the employer already has a copy of your resume. Many employers now conduct group interviews, so you should always bring extra copies of your resume to pass around. This will demonstrate that you have foresight and consideration.

7. Being unprepared for the questions.

Avoid going blank during the interview by preparing your answers in advance to some of the most common interview questions. You will appear poised and confident to the employer.

8. Dishonesty.

Never ever lie to an employer to get a position. You undermine your own strengths and abilities and the trust of the interviewer. If you can’t get the position based on current and potential skills and accomplishments, then you probably shouldn’t be applying for this particular position.

3. Read this extract and try to prepare your own answers to these questions.

The interviewer’s questions

The people who are interviewing you are trying to find out about you, your knowledge of the job and the related issues. These are the most common questions asked at the interview:

About you:

• Tell me about yourself. Leave out the life history – this is a chance to show them you are normal and break the ice.

• Why do you want this job? Enthuse about how your skills are a perfect match

• What are your long-term aims? Keep them relevant to the job you’re after. Ambition is a good quality, so don’t hold back .

• What can you bring to this job/company? Highlight your relevant skills, strengths, experience and qualities.

• What are your strengths/weaknesses? Confidently state two or three strengths that match the job and one ‘positive ‘ weakness like “I’d like to have more skills and training in XXX area”.

• What do you enjoy most/least? What you enjoy most should be relevant to the job. What you enjoy least should be something you have no power over, such as those days when you achieve very little due to cancellations, interruptions and circumstances beyond your control. However, let them know, that, though you dislike it, you can handle it.

• What’s your greatest achievement so far? Keep it relevant to the job. Leading your pub-quiz team to victory won’t cut it.

• How would your colleagues describe you? Don’t be bigheaded, but don’t put yourself down. Be honest – and try to use real positive examples from your last appraisal, school report or discussion with a college counselor/tutor.

• Why should we give you this job? Unless this is the opening question, think about how your answers have gone down so far, and what you ‘ve been asked. For instance, if they have asked you a lot about your teamwork skills, make these one of your strengths you highlight in your answer.

Questions about the job or the company:

• What attracted you to this company? A good answer will flatter them, but make sense, like talking about the impressive training program. Mentioning high salaries and free lunches won’t go down well.

• What do you know about our business? – Show them you’ve done your research

• How would you fit in with our culture? If you are stuck, answer with the question – ask them how they’d describe their culture and then match yourself to the company

• What do you think the most important qualities for this job are? Show you know what’s actually involved in the post you’re going for on a daily basis. Match up your qualities to everyday tasks - you want them to almost be able to see you doing the job.

Text 3. Render the following text into English:

Собеседование или проверка?

Принимая на работу нового сотрудника, управляющий директор компании Peer 1 Hosting Доминик Монкхаус первым делом пытается его подкупить: предлагает 2 000 фунтов стерлингов за то, что тот проработает у него две недели и сразу уйдет. Что это: бессмыслица или нестандартный, но практичный подход к найму?

Монкхаус утверждает, что таким образом хорошо проверяется уровень лояльности новичка компании. Еще директор может на собеседовании вручить кандидату лист бумаги и карандаши и попросить соискателя нарисовать что-нибудь, что его особенно вдохновляет.

В традиционный набор (set) провокационных вопросов (loaded questions) на собеседовании входят, к примеру, такие: «Каким животным вы хотели бы быть?» или «Если бы вы написали книгу о своей жизни, как бы вы ее озаглавили?». Сторонников - как и противников – у подобного метода вести интервью много. Одни считают, что задавать кандидату провокационные вопросы нечестно. Возможно, кандидат хорошо подготовлен, прилежен (diligent), трудолюбив, но не хочет или не может говорить о себе в такой манере. Другие, наоборот, признают провокацию (provocation) хорошим способом проверки кандидата. Эксперты полагают, что реакция на необычный вопрос демонстрирует степень уверенности в себе, способность выйти из комфортной психологической зоны и приоткрывает завесу (veil) , за которой прячется личность. А ведь все, кто прошел коучинг по собеседованию, именно это и не хотят показывать работодателю.

Монкхаус считает, что о кандидате много могут рассказать рисунки. «Факты подтверждают, что человеку трудно скрыть правду о себе, когда он рисует, - говорит он. – И вообще они говорят о многом. Однажды я попросил человека набросать (to sketch) рисунок на бумаге, а он вместо этого нарисовал его на белой маркерной доске, посчитав, что это будет выглядеть необычно. Мне это продемонстрировало только одно: человек не умеет следовать инструкциям».

Саймон Долан, гендиректор SJD Accountancy, компании по ведению бухгалтерского учета, обычно спрашивает соискателей: «Вы ушли бы с работы, если бы выиграли в лотерее?». Ответы комментирует так: «В случае, если человек говорит «да», я спрашиваю: «Если зарплата вас не мотивирует, то что заставляет вас приходить на работу?». Кандидат чаще всего не соглашается с утверждением, что ему не нужна зарплата. А я ловлю его на слове (to take somebody at one’s word) и спрашиваю: «Так значит вас все же мотивируют только деньги?». И каков бы ни был ответ, я узнаю много о том, насколько человек предан работе и каковы его представления о рабочей этике»

Ответы варьируются, говорит Долан. «Но обычно кандидаты отвечают что-то вроде: «Я бы хотел чем-нибудь заниматься, я не мог бы сидеть дома и ничего больше в своей жизни не делать. Но, вероятно, я не стал бы работать». «Что мне говорит о работнике такой ответ? Что работа для него не слишком важна и не слишком интересна. И он никогда не думал о том, что однажды у него будет много денег. Похоже, за пределами работы у него тоже немного интересов. Одним словом, это плохой ответ.» , - объясняет Долан.

Второй любимый вопрос Долана таков: он просит кандидата перечислить тех, кому бы он отдал немного денег. Обычно все ограничивается рассуждениями о благотворительности (charity). Возможно, клиенты хотят произвести впечатление.

Но есть ответы, которые он запомнил надолго. Несколько раз он спрашивал людей, было бы им приятно принять от кого-либо в дар деньги. И те отвечали примерно так: «Было бы здорово иметь лишние деньги в кармане, но я получил бы большее удовлетворение, если бы заработал их сам». Эти кандидаты получили работу.

Защищая тактику неожиданных вопросов, Долан говорит: «В наши дни собеседования настолько стандартны, что кандидаты буквально зазубривают (to cram) информацию, которая поможет им пройти интервью».

Тем не менее ответ на странный вопрос отнюдь не решающий фактор при приеме на работу. Дэн Рассон, директор по услугам компании Xceed, которая оказывает услуги в сфере IT, говорит: «Тактика неожиданных вопросов дает работодателю ряд преимуществ, но таит в себе много рисков. Ответы показывают лишь одно: насколько кандидат умеет подстраиваться под вас, рассказывая вам то, что вы хотите услышать, и как он справляется с ответами на странные вопросы. Рассон продолжает: «Подумайте, как может отнестись к вашим вопросам кандидат. Плохие работники и середнячки (average performers) либо не обратят внимания , либо будут выбиты из колеи (to put somebody off one’s stride) странным вопросом. А хорошие работники могут посчитать неожиданный вопрос признаком непрофессионализма рекрутера. Если вопрос плохо сформулирован (phrased badly) , они не станут на него отвечать.»

По мнению Рассона, есть разница между неожиданными и трудными вопросами. Последние ( the latter) как раз и помогают проверить, насколько человек изобретателен (creative) , умеет ли мыслить логически. И все же, замечает он, неожиданные вопросы могут пригодиться в двух случаях: если нужно протестировать компетенции человека или если нужно определить, насколько образ мышления кандидата подходит для позиции, которую вы ему предлагаете.

«Можно, к примеру, попросить человека: «Продайте мне эту ручку» или «Опишите за три минуты без повторений как выглядит изнутри мячик для игры в пинг-понг». Но надо помнить, что эти вопросы могут понадобиться, чтобы оценить способности стажера (trainee), который претендует на невысокую позицию в сфере телемаркетинга. Однако они прозвучат неуместно (irrelevant) и оскорбительно на собеседовании с кандидатом, претендующим на должность финансового директора», - уточняет он.

( по материалам газеты «Ведомости», 05.06.12)

Text 4: Writing The Perfect Resume

You must never underestimate the importance of writing a great resume. The resume is central to every job search because it provides the first impression of you to a company or recruiter. Employers and recruiters first review your resume and then decide, based solely on what you have written, whether they should or should not invite you in for an interview.

Just as you should be well-dressed for an interview, the resume that will precede you must be beautifully formatted, clear and well-organized, detailed and send your reader the message that you are a professional and competent person, motivated to succeed.

Throughout it all, you must be honest because the truth opens doors and lies shut them. Everything in your life is explainable. No matter how nervous you might be about parts of your life history, never write things in your resume that are not true. Simply be honest.

Formatting

How your resume appears is as important as what it says, so you must learn how to create a beautiful, perfectly formatted document. Going online and using the staffwell.com resume builder feature allows you to enter all details into correct fields to produce a perfectly formatted resume every time. When you view the whole document, you will then understand exactly how a clean organized resume is constructed.

Length

Your resume should be as long as it has to be to give a clear idea of who you are and what you have done in your life. If you omit important information in order to keep your resume short, you may end up leaving out crucial information important to a prospective employer.

Language

You should write a resume in English as well as Russian if you are hoping to work for a western company, or a Russian company that deals with foreign companies. If your English isn’t good enough, ask a fluent English-speaking friend for help.

Getting started

At the top of your resume you should line your name, address, personal phone numbers and e-mail address.

Element of the resume

A good resume should have five main components: objective, summary, work experience, and an optional section or sections allowing you to highlight special skills, training or personal information.

Objective

The objective is a single sentence that states what type of job you are seeking. It shouldn’t blatantly cite the title of a particular job, but instead the occupational area and level you are seeking.

The objective can be more general, or show that you are pursuing work in several directions, if you are at a point in your career where you are open to change. But if you are in a certain industry sector and that’s where you want your career to continue, you want your objective to state that. Recruiters and human resources managers need to know exactly what you are seeking from the very start.

Summary

The summary should concisely sum up your work and educational experience, language skills and anything else that is pertinent to the new job you are seeking, in three sentences or less. Resist the urge to write a long summary. If you feel the need to restate your resume, use the cover letter to summarize your work and life experience more fully.

Work experience

Traditionally work experience is listed next. However, if you are young and seeking an entry level position, you should list your education right after your summary. If you have been out of university for more than a year, you should list your work experience and then your education.

The work experience section chronologically lists your jobs starting from your current or last job going back in time. List jobs you did at university only if you have been out of school floor less than a year or two. If you are older, don’t make the mistake of listing every job you held during and prior university; it looks unprofessional.

Under each job list your responsibilities, and then your successes and achievements. Perhaps, you surpassed a certain goal, expanded the team, finished a research project. For each job, list some achievements to tell a little more about you. If you were promoted, list your different titles and give a brief explanation of what your role in each new position was.

It is critical to list the correct month and year of each job in this section. Do your research ahead of time and get the dates right. When they are interviewed, candidates are often questioned point-blank about the exact months and years they worked. If they haven’t prepared, they can become confused. Don’t make this mistake.

Education

List the dates of your higher education starting with the most recent program and then going back in time. Only list high school if you have not attended the university. You should state whether you did or did not get a diploma in any program.

Optional sections

List all of your language capabilities. You should break them down into categories of fluent, intermediate and basic. If you have professional certifications and/or belong to professional organizations, this is important information to include.

If you have published any written work, consider including a section detailing your published work or written reports particularly if what you have done is pertinent to your targeted job.

A section of hobbies and interests is not necessary, but you never know when you might strike a chord with a potential employer through shared interests.

Things to omit

Leave out your driving license details unless you are applying for a position as a driver or one that requires you to drive a company car.

Photos are also not necessary. Sometimes they can even hinder you getting called to an interview if you don’t look physically appealing to the person reviewing the resume. However, if you are asked to send a photo, you should do so.

The last but most important step: Proofreading

No matter how perfect your resume content is, if the document is riddled with poor grammar and/or spelling, you might not get called to an interview. Use spellcheck and always get someone to proofread your resume before you send it.

(By Leslie Witt)

Class 7. Happiness

Text 1. Three keys to Happiness

1. Something to do. How many times have we felt unhappy with life because we simple had too much idle time? I know it has happened in my own life. When I get bored, I get down and I only snap out when I start to get busy again. The thing is, we have to recognize this pattern and stay busy to keep our mood elevated. Find a hobby. Volunteer your free time. Learn to cook. Coach youth sports. There are endless possibilities for “something to do” if we take time to look.

2. Something to love. Friends and family are such an important element to our ultimate happiness. During a traveling phase at my last job I spent a number of lonely nights hundred miles away in a hotel room on business. I was in foreign surroundings, working in a job I did not particularly like, in an industry I didn’t believe in. The one source of inspiration to get through these nights was my family. Even though my career situation has since improved, I still think of my wife and kids when I get down and can’t help but smile. If you are single, you may have a best friend that always knows just how to pick you up, or make you laugh when you want to cry. Pets can even be an incredible source of companionship, there to greet you at the end of a long day. I’ve had pets most of my life and marvel at their willingness to love us unconditionally.

3. Something to hope for. Everyone should have something to hope for. Something that drives them towards a goal. It’s been said that if you aim for nothing, you’ll hit it every time. Have something to aim for: a dream that you hold close and never let completely out of sight. When people lose hope they get complacent, and complacency often leads to poor attitude. This self-perpetuating cycle of negativity can lead to serious depression, and ultimately harm cherished relationships. I know, I ‘ve been a rut myself and I lost sight of the dreams I once held close. But all hope is never lost, you may just have to work a little harder temporarily to catch up and see those dreams around the next corner again.

“The only difference in a rut and a grave is six feet”. If you find yourself in a rut, stop digging. Start moving in the direction of your dreams and things will begin to improve. If your goal is debt freedom, stop charging to your credit cards and start paying all you can pay on outstanding debts. Do not be overwhelmed by the distance to finish the line. If your goal is to lose weight, do not focus on how far you are from your goal weight. Instead, take it one day, one meal, one bite, one workout at a time and begin to move in the direction of your dreams.

The bottom line is we are responsible for our own happiness. Government programs, promises from elected officials and pats on the back from bosses may offer temporary mood boosts, but ultimately happiness is self-induced state of mind. Be responsible for your own happiness.

Text 2. What is happiness

Happiness is the “overall experience of pleasure and meaning. A happy person enjoys positive emotions while perceiving her life as purposeful. “The balance here is key. Neither hedonism nor rat-racing delayed gratification can satisfy alone.

Allow yourself to be human

An important caveat: don’t expect to be happy all the time. You will sometimes be sad. You will sometimes be anxious or nervous, you’ll get dumped, and you ‘ll feel overwhelmed. These are human emotions. Don’t fear to be embarrassed of them. Instead, embrace them; they are part of life. Your life. As Dr. Ben-Shahar said: “there are some people who always feel happy, they’re called psychopaths.”

The goal should be that over the aggregate of your life you have a large number of pleasurable moments and feel, on the whole, engaged in meaningful activities.

Let’s get to the specific advice:

Tip # 1: set goals.

Research shows that the pursuit of goals that are concordant with your values can produce significant increases in your sense of well-being. Interestingly, the data show that achieving goals (or failing to do so) does not seem to matter so much. There is something about having to focus on something important that helps us get more out of each present moment.

Tip #2: Seek flow

This magic state for increasing wellbeing is to be neither bored nor overwhelmed. This means you should seek challenge that exactly meet or slightly surpass your current abilities. For college students, in particular, this translates to finding their perfect course load that pushes you intellectually without overwhelming you with more work than you can easily manage.

Tip #3: Simplify your life.

Psychologist Tome Kasser has shown that time affluence consistently predicts wellbeing whereas material influence does not. For the uninitiated: Tome affluence is “the feeling that one has sufficient time to pursue activities that are personally meaningful, to reflect, and to engage in leisure.” In other words, under-schedule what you have to do so you have plenty of time to deal with what you want to do at the moment.

Tip # 4: Focus on happiness.

Ralph Waldo Emerson said: “To different minds, the same world is a hell and a heaven.” The practical translation: put in an effort to both seek out happiness-boosting experiences and learn to express gratitude for what you find. There will always be crap lying around in your life. This will never go away. If you focus on it, your world will become Emerson’s hell. The real trick is to learn how to keep moving amidst this crap – acknowledging that its a part of life that spares no one – and continually seek out or construct experiences that make you happy. Don’t just have these experiences, but also reflect on them later and show real gratitude. It is proven scientifically that mindful reflection on what your enjoyed during your day can significantly boost self-reported wellbeing.