We are Testudo, and we believe that everybody has a home. And by home, we mean a company that is ideal for you. We spend are a large portion of our time working with people to give them the very best chance of getting the gig. Unfortunately interviewing is not fair and it is not easy, especially when you really want the job! We are here to make sure you don't blow it, so our team has come together to give you our perspective on how to nail it and bring home the bacon!
1 reason why most people fail at interviews
You have finally landed the interview at the company you really want to work for. Everything about the role is perfect. You get there 15 minutes early and the receptionist ignores you... 5 minutes later you are offered the cheap vending machine coffee, Bloomberg is on the flat-screen TV on the wall and you have to sit and watch people come and go, suit after suit. 30 minutes go by and you are still waiting for your interview.
Finally, someone shows you to a room where two people sit on the other side of the table from you. The seat is still warm from the person before, and you forgot your crap coffee in the reception room.
The interview plays out typically, they ask you a question, you answer.
Here is the trap, and the lie you have been sold or you sold yourself. In our opinion, It is not only common, but habitual, and you MUST recognise one very important factor:
"THEY NEED YOU, JUST AS MUCH AS YOU NEED THEM."
Companies have a way of appearing more important with their assets on display, and it may be unintentional but we feel it. The big office, lots of people and you being treated as not so important. It is like you are entering the king's castle but you should not let those big walls distract you from the real opportunity, that they have to hire someone like you.
Do not put your interviewer on a pedestal. They are human like you and me, and we need to interview them just as much as they are interviewing us, especially if you are considering leaving your current employer for this new company.
Let's make it a two-way street. Example:
Interviewer: "Tell me about yourself?"
Candidate: "I'm a legend" (Obviously not in those words but with a brief work history of your career)
- Insert 40 seconds of talking about yourself -
Candidate: "Can you tell me about your experience working here and how you joined the company?"
Now, I do not expect you to follow this word for word. What we really want you to realize is that good interviews are a two-way street, and if you want to have a great interview you need to get the interviewer to open up to you about the job, and then you can apply your most relevant experience based on his answers.
Most importantly, value yourself enough to realize you are the prize but do not be too arrogant, that would be a one-way street out the door...