In 1986 all you needed to nail an interview was a firm handshake and a winning smile. Those days are over. Here's my tips to NAIL an interview in 2018

I am so over reading dreary posts on how to execute a successful interview using a firm hand shake, and strong eye contact.

Those tips and strategies might have worked in 1986, but this is my take on some things we can do to nail an interview today, in 2018…

Step 1: Chase and lock down the Interview:

Don’t sit on your arse, hiding behind your Mac, waiting for the email that tells you that you’ve got the interview. Pick up the phone (it’s that giant thing in your back pocket that also has a function that allows you to talk to other humans), and call the Employer, or the Recruiter you’re using, and say “Hey, hope you don’t mind, but I submitted my CV a couple of days ago for this role. I’m super keen, and was just wondering when you were scheduling interviews, and hoping I could be included in the first round!”

Step 2: LinkedIn:

But before that, before your CV lands on the desk of your future Employer (regardless of whether it’s direct or via a Recruiter), make sure you have an absolutely schmick LinkedIn profile. Why? Well, you can guarantee that as soon as your CV hits your prospective employer’s inbox, within 4 seconds, they’ll be cross-checking you on LinkedIn to make sure you seem “normal”. So, best to avoid random photos like sitting on a beach, back to the camera, watching the sunrise, pondering life. Instead, and here’s a whacky idea, why not have an actual photo of your actual face? Oh, and here’s another whacky idea… Why not smile on that photo, looking like a normal (and highly employable) human being…?

Then, once you’ve made sure that your LinkedIn profile is married to the dates on your CV, and you’ve filled it with lots of interesting and relevant blurb about your successful career to date, then, and only then, do you send an invite to the person who’s going to be interviewing you.

Accompany the invite with a very simple message like “Hi John. Hoping to connect, and looking forward to meeting you next week, for our interview. Kind regards, David”.

This demonstrates a couple of things that will make the Interviewer think you are awesome before you’ve even walked through the door.

It tells them that:

A)    You’re professional enough to have an awesome LinkedIn profile;

B)     You’ve taken the time to research your Interviewer, ahead of your interview;

C)     You understand the value of networking.

So, the interview hasn’t even happened yet, and you’ve already made a strong impression!

Step 3: Prepare and Research:

Now, this is an obvious one, right. But I’m not talking about memorising the dates of when the company was formed, and how many regional offices they have.

Dig a bit deeper.

Get across all the LinkedIn profile of all the people working there. Check out their backgrounds. Try and draw parallels between the current employees and yourself. Try and find that golden nugget, in your work history, and their work history, that suggests you’d be right for this organisation.

Then, talk about, and promote that fact in the interview itself.

Step 4: Understand who you’re meeting:

You’ve already (hopefully) connected with your Interviewer on LinkedIn. What a gift! You’ve basically got your Interviewer’s CV at your fingertips, an interview cheat that certainly wasn’t available to our parents.

So use it! Examine their background, their career moves, their significant career promotions or shifts, and think about how you can talk about that, and relate it to your own career.

So, for example, the Interviewer might say “So, Dave, where do you see your career in the next five years?”

You might respond with “Well, I noticed that you worked at ABC Consulting for 4 years before moving here, and it looks like that’s where you really cut your teeth, and accelerated your career. That’s exactly the career journey that I’m looking to enjoy, and doing it here would be a dream come true?”

Step 5: Be energised! Be enthusiastic! Be positive!

Understand that your CV, once you walk through that door, becomes dramatically irrelevant. Not entirely irrelevant, but totally secondary to who you are, and who walked through that door.

Your personality should take over, once you enter the interview arena.

Let’s be honest, nobody wants to work with a dull, uninteresting, lacklustre deadbeat. Even if you’re applying for accountancy job. (Sorry, couldn’t resist that very obvious jab!)

Be interesting! Be engaged! Be happy! Smile, have a joke. A bit of banter is fine, and will probably help.

Ultimately, the Employer is asking two very basic questions: Is this person qualified to do the job? And can I see him fitting in here?

If you’ve got the best CV in the world, but you’re dull as dish water, you’ve probably blown it.

I’m not suggesting you go in with a well-rehearsed Chris Rock routine, and deliver it verbatim. I’m just saying, smile, and be the best version of yourself you can be.

Dig deep, and find that energy.

Step 6: Sell yourself, with expansive, achievement based responses:

It is not enough to answer a question simply, basically and factually. Don’t leave the Interviewer guessing, or wanting more.

You need to answer it, expand on your points, and sell yourself.

Each and every answer is an opportunity to demonstrate your capability, competency, and ability to do this job better than any other candidate.

So talk about success, talk about achievements, talk about ambition, talk about the future!

NB: Be careful not to talk too much. And don’t brag. And don’t waffle.  Nobody likes a waffler. Nobody likes a waffling bragger. And nobody likes a waffling bragger wearing a mankini. (More on mankinis later).

Step 7: Go above and beyond:

Any Interviewee who can present or demonstrate something that hasn’t necessarily been asked of them, gives themselves a massive advantage.

It takes the Interviewer by surprise, for all the right reasons. Again, it gives you a distinct advantage over the other candidates.

It makes them remember you.

So, for example… If you’re applying for a job in say, high end furniture sales, maybe you should go into the interview with a mini-business plan of who your key competitors are, who your key clients might be, what your network in that space already looks like, and how you intend to open up the market.

Step 8: Ask LOTS of interesting questions throughout:

So, don’t go in there with the plan to wait until the end before you ask three of the most boring and predictable questions known to man, that your Dad gave you on a post-it note.

Ask your questions throughout. When a question pops into your head, without interrupting, ask it! There’s no rule book that says you have to wait until the end!

Don’t look at this as an interview. Treat it as a conversation. A meeting of minds. An opportunity for you to interview them, as much as they’re interviewing you.

Challenge them. Put them on the spot.

Ask the why they work here. And them why they stay here when they get headhunted. Ask them, when they have a bad day, what they’d change about working here. Ask them what this job can give you that you can’t get anywhere else.

Step 9: Within reason, wear what you want:

This one requires a bit of common sense, but gradually, and thankfully, the days of needing to wear a full suit to an interview are becoming a thing of the past.

Think about the type of job it is, the industry it’s in, the image that exudes from the employer’s website and LinkedIn photos, and dress appropriately.

Mankinis and Tie-dye shirts are probably out, in general, for any job interview. But other than that, just apply common sense.

Turning up in a suit, for a digital marketing job, will probably work against you.

Step 10: Close the Interview:

You only have one chance to genuinely tell the Interviewer how you feel about this job opportunity, and that’s when you’re still in the room.

So tell them! Make it perfectly crystal clear.

And how I would put it, is something like this: “John, just before we wrap things up, can I just let you know that I’ve thoroughly enjoyed today’s interview. What I’ve seen and heard today about ABC Consulting really ticks my boxes. I can tell you right now, that I’m very keen to continue this interview process. Is there any reason why you won’t be inviting me back for a second interview?”

Then, shut your mouth, stay silent, stop breathing, and await John’s response.

Assuming you’ve nailed the interview, he’ll tell you he feels the same and can’t wait to get you back in.

If he doesn’t feel the same, and gives you some negative feedback or constructive criticism, then deal with it. Tackle it head on. Fight your corner. If you want this job, overcome his objections.

Step 11: Follow up:

So, you’ve nailed the interview (well done), but you haven’t got the cigar yet.

There’s one more simple thing you can do…

Email the Interviewer, and politely thank them for their time, reiterate your high level of interest in the role, and tell that you hope to hear from them soon with news of the next stage.

They’ll be impressed.

Not everybody will do this.

It makes you stand out from the crowd… You know, all those boring, waffling, squares weirdly turning up for interviews in mankinis.