It is the list of prospective employees I visit everyday, inspired me to write this series. I have met people across polarities of intelligence and soft skills, some gifted with amazing pedigree, while some possessed skills bestowed on them by God, some earned their resume by hardwork and some had enviable network. On the contrary people fail miserably in the interview attributed to various reasons, some fail due to sloppy resume, some flunk due to knowledge rather lack of it, some get subdued by their lack of communication, some ill-possess vice traits and the list is endless. These realities made me to look at what is required in a job and how prospective employees should approach the employers when there is a meeting arranged between the two.
In each part of the series I will try to provide some insights into the expectations of the employer and the desired attributes from the employee.
As the adage goes “Face is the Index of the mind” it is obvious that people like to be pleasantly presented under all circumstances. We would neither be happy to be served by an unclean attendant in a restaurant nor a steward in an air travel. As the famous saying quotes “Trifles make perfection but perfection is no trifle”; only seemingly unimportant but deciding factors influence the success or failure of an interview.
The deciding moment of truth lies in the first meeting between the employer and the candidate. In this instant a good impression has to be formed sustained and enhanced further by the candidate during the interview. The employer is equally interested and anxious as the candidate himself as he is waiting for new guy to join his team. The candidate should create reasons for the employer to continue discussing with him and consider him for the position.
However I experience that many candidates miss this golden moment by simple mistakes. I have seen candidates in skin tight jeans, low hip trousers, flashy buckles in the belt, goggles, sports shoes, lipsticks, stenchy perfumes, huge ear-rings and other taboos of the interview. It is advised to avoid any such ostentation in dressing while attending a formal interview.
The list can be endless, but the rule is simple. Make yourself presentable to the interviewer. Don’t make your interviewer feel that you have come for a celebrity rendezvous. Nicely pressed trouser and shirt, neatly polished shoe, non-smelling socks!, slim and fitting belt with unflashy buckle should be more than sufficient. Remember these simple rules when it comes to attires
- Wear right fitting and attitude claiming dresses
- Ensure cleanliness and organisational compliance
- Use neatly washed socks
- A full sleeved shirt is always better than half sleeved or shirt with folded arms
- Comb your hair firmly and neatly
- Don’t go the interview with unshaven moustache or beard
- Wear smile on your lips. It is very important
- Wear the top most button of your shirt
- Avoid multi-coloured nail polishes, bangles, etc. Use accessories of subdued colours
If attire is what crown is to a throne, attitude is the king. Without the right attitude, attire alone can be helpless in competitive world. Incorrect understanding of the term attitude leads to undesirable effects on people most of the times.
Last week a guy came for a position in Change Management. The moment he entered into the security area, his so called expression of attitude had begun. He was utterly unfriendly with everybody in the whole process and was single-mindedly concentrated to prove his fitness for the job, desperately. He was uncooperative to the security procedures of the organisation, extremely tight lipped to the fellow candidates, forcefully trying to extract information from unwilling employees of the organisation and to beat it all unbearably thrasonical with the interview panel members, all he did consciously to gain attention and acceptance. He was more oriented at establishing his control over this new place even without knowing that it is not yet the place he belongs to. At the end of the whole process, one of the panel members was very particular to reject this guy permanently for any position in the organisation. It is very important not to consider stark imprudence as absolute confidence.
It is extremely important to have good attitude but it is more important to be considerate. Be friendly to the people in the process chain. They are there to help you get your job, not otherwise. When you first meet the interviewer, be gentle and kind to him, wish him a good day, and share a pleasantry. The magic is to take him to yourside so that you can be on his side once the interview is over. The success of the interview depends on how the candidate makes the interviewer feel important and happy.
The first time you face the interviewer; don’t forget to offer a handshake. A handshake is one which can inspire a novelist to write a book, a poet to write an epic and university to start a course. Yet simplest rules of a handshake are provided below.
- Let your handshake be handshake and not fingers shake. The palms should hug each other and share the vibrations of the mind.
- A handshake should be soft, firm but not rough and barbaric.
- Make your hand sweat-free for a handshake. If possible wash your hands well in advance if it is sweaty
- While making a handshake, make eye to eye contact with your counterpart
- Share a honest and pleasant smile
- Wear your confident but friendly attitude in your face
- Be conscious about the firmness when sharing a hand shake with the female colleague.
Once the initial tryst ends and the actual interview process starts, the candidate gets into the groove of discussion. There are issues related to resume, the actual discussion, conflicting situations, and closing the interview.
We will talk about the Resume in the next part…….
