The Moment Of Truth In The Interview, Will YOU Be Ready?

After putting in the exhausting amount of work it takes to?secure an interview, in addition to the extensive networking, speaking with recruiters, pitching, and filling out job applications, you're hopeful that?your resume and connections speak for themselves when you walk into the interview room.?

It’s clear you are talented; otherwise you wouldn’t be there, right???

This is a common mistake that should always be avoided. What you must remember is that you still need to sell yourself…ok, I’m kidding, please don’t do that!? Instead,?allow yourself to be bought,?only “selling” what is needed to prove to the hiring manager why you are the person for the job and why they should bring you in immediately.

Restrict your self-promotion to the clearly required elements of the position that you have experience with.?

Avoid being overly confident?at this stage of the game as it can be the difference between getting the job and never hearing from this employer again.?

There are?five key steps?you should take to prepare yourself for an interview with a hiring manager…?

1. Anticipate ?Anticipate Anticipate:

It’s crucial to understand and anticipate what the hiring manager is looking for. Reading extensively about the job, who you will be working with, how you will fit into their team or what you will need to do to be a successful leader are all things hiring managers would want you to know AHEAD of meeting with you.??And yet most candidates fail at this first step. The way you prepare for this interview will translate to how well you do the job.?

2. Know How to Answer the Hard Questions:

Anyone who has ever been in an interview has had to answer the dreaded – “where do you see yourself in five years?” question, or “tell me about yourself” inquiry. It’s expected and all too common. You’ve got to be prepared for those, but how? If Googling the top five answers prepares you…go for it. But buyer beware…it will probably generate an answer the hiring manager has heard all too often – you won’t be distinguishable from the next interviewer repeating these answers.? (I'll let you know the best way to answers those in a future post).

Or you can do what I always advise my career coaching clients to do…write down a list of 10 or so questions you think you’ll be asked, and write down?answers to each?(tons of studies have shown that things stick in your brain longer when you put them from pen to paper!) and begin practicing saying them out loud.?Keep the answers short and to the point?(no inspirational stories about Grandma, your college professors etc please).?

Don’t be stuck in a position where you are “hoping” they don’t ask you that dreaded question. Be prepared to respond to anything they ask you! A good way to do so is by following rule #3…?

3. Use the PnP Rule:???

When you find yourself up against a hard question in an interview that may have some negative connotation about your prior work experience or lack of specific job requirements, always use the PnP approach.?Start with a strong positive statement (the capital P in PnP), then touch on the negative part of the question with a brief comment (the little n in PnP), and?end with another positive statement?(the final P in PnP). ?Most people in conversations are only focused on and truly remember the beginning and the end of a comment / response. ?If you have to discuss why you were let go of your job, I would recommend:

“It was an amazing opportunity for me to work at (Company ABC) with some fantastic colleagues,?despite being caught in?a?corporate downsizing.? However, it was a blessing in disguise, as I found this to be a great opportunity to explore other areas of interest and potentially bring my expertise and skill set within (specific industry knowledge) to a vibrant and growing firm like yours here at (Company XYZ).”

Be creative and?always end with a positive. Even if the reason you left your last job wasn’t your choice, you can turn the situation around and show the hiring manager how you learned from it and can bring additional experience / "wisdom"?from it. Hiring managers always prefer hiring “cup is half-full” candidates, those who saw the positives in previous positions, and they will see you as someone who?will have a positive impact?on your new team members.???

4. Be ready?with?original?questions:

If you think an interview is one-sided and you should be the only one prepared to answer questions – you are wrong.?You’ve got to come to the interview with questions, especially those that relate to the business. This is a crucial opportunity to flex your strategic thinking skills and show them you are truly looking at your future there.??

Instead of asking them the same boring “what are the responsibilities, what is the team structure, what is a typical day like” questions,?ask them a question that not only deals directly with what they do for the company / group, but best of all,?ask their opinion, especially regarding an industry-related question.

People love giving their own opinions, and always like to be asked. I have yet to meet a hiring manager who wouldn’t prefer to hire someone who wants to know their opinion (and giving that hiring manager a feeling of being respected) versus a candidate who?spouts off their own thoughts on things.

5. Practice Practice Practice:?

If you don’t practice for the interview, you won’t get the job. Take your notes to your kitchen, your bedroom, outside in the park or on the phone with a friend, and review your answers. Practice how you say them, what kind of energy you bring and your excitement for the role. I know I’m stating the obvious, but your performance substantially improves if you go into an interview brimming with confidence that you are ready for any question thrown your way.?

As a last word of encouragement….always express your excitement about the position and company. Too many people miss the crucial part of getting a job. SAY YOU WANT TO WORK THERE! It’s OK to admit you love the company, have researched it extensively, understand their culture and would love to be a part of a successful company.

Many people can interview their pants off and forget this crucial statement and ruin their chances. Too many times hiring managers have come to me and said, “Well Joe was great and we liked him and all, but he never actually said he wanted to work for us.” Don’t be that person. Prepare, practice and you’ll be on your way to the first day of work at your dream company.

Now go get 'em!

(and if you have any other great interviewing tips, drop them in the comments, would love to share them with everyone!)

What's Happening in the Clubroom?

As we are gearing up for baseball season let's take a look back at our interview with Dugout Mugs? founders Randall Thompson (RT) and Kris Dehnert !

DRINK FROM A BASEBALL BAT??

Turning broken bats into mugs?

Yes, you heard that right!

Curious as to how such an idea became $30M in earnings? Me too!

Which is why I was thrilled to host in the Win Again Clubroom:

Randall Thompson (Founder & President) &

Kris Dehnert (Co-Founder & CEO) of Dugout Mugs?

We spoke about:

- How a professional baseball player's broken dream turned into a great business idea

- Challenges that a rapidly growing company faces

- Why a targeted branding strategy is critical

- If you've got an idea, run with it, and seek others who have expertise that you don't

- Dugout Mugs' vision for expansion (hint: more broken bats!)

Make sure you give this a watch, you will learn a bunch about being an entrepreneur, and how athletes often make successful business owners!

Thanks again to Randall and Kris!

Watch it here!

Coming Up Next!

So...do you want to grow your business or give your career a boost as we move through April? (of course you do!)

Do you have a game plan set to do just that? (well, yeah, but...)

It is those who know you, trust you, support you and want to invest in you who will ultimately lead you and your business / career to its greatest success!

This is why we've found that hosting events in Win Again's Clubroom truly allows people to interact, move around easily inside the virtual event space, and develop relationships that become collaborations - such a great way to expand our networks.

Next week's Business and Sports networking event in the Clubroom on Wednesday, April 5th, at 7 pm ET is open to all. Please feel free to share the link in the comments below with athletes, sports industry professionals, business owners and others in your circle who could benefit from meeting other impressive people!

Make sure to register here !

Win Again Partner Spotlight

BrainLit North America, the company that has invented the process of bringing natural daylight indoors!

Just a few more words about it:

Most people spend the majority of their days indoors, in light environments that fail to support biological needs.

BrainLit North America 's BioCentric Lightning systems mimics daylight indoors by combining all the visual, emotional and biological dimensions of light.

And although they’ve really just launched in the US over the past year or so, they have already been installed within a few NFL, MLB and other sports teams, neo-natal and elderly care centers, commercial and residential properties, airports, hotels, resorts and spas, retail stores and more.

My good friend Kyle Harris (CEO of BrainLit) would greatly appreciate an intro to those in your circle who could benefit from adding both the Alven (individual lights) and Elvens (locally installed enterprise lighting system) into their projects.

This is the best place to watch a few short videos about BrainLit that really helps explain it all! YouTube channel .

The Win Again Clubroom

This Clubroom platform is revolutionizing virtual networking because of the “live event” experience it emulates and the ease with which you can meet others and take your businesses and careers to a whole new level!

See why we've had 1000+ impressive athletes, entrepreneurs, business owners and executives attend our Clubroom events!

Attending events in the Win Again Clubroom truly allows you to interact, move around easily inside the virtual event space, and develop relationships that become collaborations - it's been such a great way to expand our networks!

Read more about it here:?https://www.winagainacademy.com/the-clubroom

See you in the Clubroom!

WIN AGAIN! - The Job Search Playbook

My book,?WIN AGAIN! The Job Search Playbook , is filled with over 150 pages of my proven WIN AGAIN method, where you’ll discover how to define your ideal job and work toward it. You’ll turn strangers into allies and grow your network as you position yourself for interviews, negotiate offers, and anticipate your prospective employer’s needs.

WIN AGAIN?helps you transition from the playing field to the boardroom. Yes, there’s competition in the corporate world, but you’re used to competing. You’ve already got an edge!!

You can join the WIN AGAIN social media pages, its?LinkedIn Group ,?Facebook ?page and follow on?Twitter ?to be able to access exclusive content just for you.

ABOUT ME

Combining my passion for sports and a desire to help others succeed, I founded Win Again, where current and former athletes can discover their identity beyond sports, develop the structure needed to succeed again, and receive the tips, strategies and actionable advice that allows them to WIN AGAIN and be elite in their next great career. Over the past 20 years as a business advisor and career coach, I have guided athletes and executives, holding them accountable during their transition.

The Win Again Clubroom events, "Make Your Mark" podcasts, and MYM Live webinars highlight athletes who are making a positive impact post-playing career, and my book “Win Again! ” is a job search playbook for athletes, equipping them with strategies needed to land their ideal job or boost their entrepreneurial ventures.

As a graduate of Colgate University and a longtime Manhattan resident with my wife, kids, and Duke, I enjoy playing ice hockey, softball and golf, along with the guitar and piano.

Reach out to me anytime and let me know how I can be of service!

If you've read this far, many thanks for sharing your time with us at Win Again and have a great rest of your day!

Thanks to our Win Again partners!