You only get one chance to make a first impressiontips on how to present at interview
Make sure your interview is not over before it starts. Geraldine Gault gives some light but candid advice on making - and maintaining - the right impression. Formally recruitment manager at a well known performance improvement agency, Geraldine is the Recruitment Advisor to one of the Thames Valley’s top design & marketing agencies. From first handshake to last she knows what she is looking for.
- Think about what you wear – it’s easy to distract with inappropriate clothes. Casual is never appropriate, even for creative jobs: save your ripped jeans until after you land the job.
- Shake hands firmly – ladies too – nobody wants to handle a wet fish.
- Think about what your body language says – too relaxed a posture and you’ll come across as casual and poor eye contact always makes you look shifty.
- Think in advance about what questions you might be asked and be prepared for the tricky ones such as "describe yourself in three words". "Lively, fun and friendly" might just not cut it in a professional environment.
- Similarly, when asked what your development areas are, don’t say you still need to master the backstroke.
- Always look at the company’s website – prospective employers expect you to have done your homework.
- Take time to listen carefully to the questions and consider your answers – after a day of interviews, employers will rely heavily on their notes no matter how impressive your presence.
- Prepare a list of questions to ask at the end of the interview but keep it short. ‘How good are the promotion prospects here?’ may seem like a good one but it’s likely to suggest that you have a low boredom threshold.