Great Job Interview Impression
Fine tuning your ability to make a great job interview impression will make you more competitive against other applicants.
Dress the part.
If you are going to meet people for the first, dress appropriately. If you are going to a swimming party, take a bathing suit. If you are going to a job interview, wear a business suit.
Be Odorless.
Aftershave or perfume may smell great to you, but also may annoy other people. If you are wearing aftershave or perfume on your hands and leave those smells on the hands of the people you meet, you will offend some people. I have having breakfast at a national sales meeting for Polaroid Corporation, and two women at the table were talking about the lack of professionalism of one of the men at the meeting. They said that his wearing aftershave into the meeting rooms was unpleasantly distracting and unprofessional. Everything that I have read about aftershave and perfume for business meetings says that you might as well have body odor as applying a distracting perfume or aftershave. Neither one will make people want to meet you again.
Be Prepared.
Always have an agenda for your meetings. Ask yourself, “What things do I hope to do in this meeting?” Write them down.
Focus on Listening.
“We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.” Epictetus
Listen to what other people have to say and respond in ways that help them feel you have connected with them and their message. If you have things that you want to say, you may find that those things are better said at another time that will allow you to make a point and not distract from the impression you want to make.
Sit up straight straight, open your arms, and smile.
Actors are professionals at communicating a message through body language and facial impressions. With simple gestures, sometimes with no dialogue, an actor is able to project an image of a character who is powerful, weak, sad, happy, confident, uncertain, and so on across the range of character traits and emotions.
Make Eye Contact
Most people look at another person’s eyes. I have read that for some people looking at a person’s nose is easier. If you have difficulty making eye contact, just pick a point on a person’s face and softly focus at that spot. I have found that if I am paying attention to what a person says, I will forget that I am looking at a person’s eyes. Rather I tend to have a broader focus of the person’s entire face.
Give Compliments that are In Line with Your Meeting
When you make relevant, positive comments about the interviewer’s career or education, the company’s performance or the workplace appearance, you show interest in the person and in the company.
