Your prep should start before the job interview invite
If you want to be fully ready to stand out at your next job interview, don’t wait until you receive the interview invite to start preparing. At best, some candidates wait until they apply for a job to start thinking about how to prepare for the interview.
However, too many people wait until the date and time is already set. This leaves way too little time to prepare. Often the interview is only a few days away. This isn’t enough time if you want to stand out from your competition. It’s much more difficult, not to mention more stressful to get ready at the last minute.
You should be actively preparing well before you even start applying to a specific job.
This sounds like overkill, but I assure you it works. Plus, there’s good news – it doesn’t have to be hard!
I recommend you follow these three steps and build them into your daily or weekly routine. If you do, you can be fully ready (or EQUIPPED!):
- Use your commute
- Define the ‘3 critical competencies’
- Keep a notebook (digital or physical)
Step #1 – Use your commute
This may sound strange, but stick with me.
The commute to work is one of the most underrated times we can spend preparing for almost anything. Think about it: whether it’s driving your car, riding on a train, or taking the bus, you’re sitting there and get to choose how to spend your time.
Rather than listen to music or catch up on social media, why not spend that time intentionally?
You could use this time to prepare for a presentation, important meeting, or, I don’t know.. say, a job interview??
Here are a few ways I suggest you use this time – ideally well before you even have an interview lined up.
- Listen to podcasts. This can help in a couple ways. First, you can listen to podcasts about career planning, interview tips, etc. If you have a specific job in mind while listening, even better. Second, if you want to stand out in your interview, referencing content you’ve learned shows that you focus on self-development and growth. I highly recommend using this as part of your strategy to ask questions at the end of your interview. For more details on this, check out my post, “How to easily transform your job interview questions.“
- Listen to audio books. Similar to podcasts, this can help you gain insights in your industry that you can use during the interview.
- Practice out loud. As you get closer to your interview itself, I highly recommend practicing some of your interview answers out loud. You don’t want the interview to be the first time you’re making a case for yourself out loud. I’ve done this for years and it can really boost your confidence once it’s go-time! I especially recommend rehearsing your response to a question like “Tell me about yourself” or “Why should I hire you?”
Bonus Points
You don’t have to limit this to your commute. You can leverage other time built-in to your day.
The point is this: be intentional with your time. Others won’t, so this can help you stand out while building your confidence along the way. I’ve used all of the following – pick your favorites:
- Running outside or on the treadmill at the gym
- In the shower
- Driving around town running errands
- Waiting in the doctor’s office
Step #2 – Define the ‘3 Critical Competencies’
What are the ‘3 critical competencies’?
No matter what industry or job you’re aiming for, you need to be completely clear on the top 3 most critical job skills or experiences the hiring manager will be looking for.
This sounds basic, but it’s an often overlooked step in the process of interview preparation. I frequently interview candidates for a role who highlight secondary or non-important skills and experiences when answering an interview question, rather than highlighting the critical skills needed for the role. If you want to dive a little deeper here, check out my post “How to prepare for behavioral interview questions.”
Research and confirm
First, look through the job description, ask others, scour LinkedIn, etc. Or use your own experience if you’ve already worked in a similar role.
Next, manually or digitally write out the top 3 – 5 critical competencies (skills or experiences) you believe the hiring manger is looking for. I suggest a minimum of three, but no more than five. Otherwise, you start to water-down its effect.
What do I do with this information now?
Now that you have your simple list of at least 3 critical competencies, here is how I suggest you leverage that list during your preparation and the interview. This should help you:
- Write your resume/cover statement or application. Make sure you include key words, phrases, and experiences that line up with the list of critical skills you came up with.
- Answer the ‘Tell me about yourself“ question. I’ve written in more detail on this topic in my post, “4 Simple Strategies to Confidently Answer ‘Tell me about yourself.‘” The bottom line is this: make sure to include some or all of the 3 critical competencies as part of your introduction and personal story.
- Answer the ‘Why should I hire you’ question. Similar to #2 above, make sure you include the most important things when you answer this question. The best way to set yourself up for that is by preparing ahead of time to know the top 3 critical skills. For more on this topic check out my post “Why should I hire you?”
- Know if this is the right job for you. It’s important that you not only know what skills they’re looking for, but that you actually have those skills and want to use them in a job. Doing this exercise may help bring clarity to whether you do – or don’t – want a job. Either way it’s helpful!
Step #3 – Keep a notebook
No really. You should.
Why should you spend time on this? It’s the best way to make sure you keep all your thoughts, ideas, questions, answers, and general preparation organized.
Trust me – it really increases your chances of you following through on the steps above and then, importantly, actually remembering all the work you’ve done later!
How to structure this notebook
I suggest using a digital option like Evernote or Microsoft’s OneNote. There’s always the traditional options of using a physical paper notebook, notepad, journal, etc. You can use whatever works for you, but choose something that is easy to use and accessible – don’t let this be out of sight, out of mind.
Now that you you have a place for all your prep work, here are a few ideas of what to include in there to set yourself up for success:
- The top 3 critical competencies as described above.
- 5 additional skills you think you may get asked about. As you think of examples or have a unique experience at work/school, write it down in the appropriate section.
- 10 specific questions you think you’ve be asked. Then, as you have experiences or events occur in your current job, write them down in the relevant section so you can recall the details later.
- Your response to “Tell me about yourself.”
- Your response to “Why should I hire you?“
- 3 robust questions to ask at the end of the interview. If you’re not sure how best do structure these, you can use my framework I describe in “How to easily transform your job interview questions.”
Conclusion
Many job seekers understand that once they have an interview lined up they need to start preparing for an interview if they want the job.
If you want to stand out, you need to be intentional. You need to start preparing before you get the interview invite. It’s incredibly difficult to think critically and clearly the night before an interview – or even the few days leading up to it. It’s far easier to prepare little by little, documenting ideas, stories, and questions piece by piece over time.
Do yourself a favor and follow the steps above well before you think you need to.
Discussion Question
I’d love to hear from you! Join the conversation with the Equipped Community – we’re in this together! In the comments section below, share your thoughts on the following question:
When is the earliest you’ve ever started preparing for an interview? (or the latest??)
