Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/599553
JOBS for TEAMS | 6 www.jobsfor teams.com Manliness The Art of by Jeremy Anderberg courtesy of artofmanliness.com How to Control a Job Interview T here are two ways to approach a job interview. With the first, you take a pretty passive stance. You control what you can on your side of things — dressing well, acting confident, trying to give good answers — but a lot of how the interview goes is left up to chance: Is the interviewer effective at asking good questions that allow you to talk about why you're a great fit for the job? Is he or she feeling tired or fresh? Is the interview long or short? You get whatever kind of interview you happen to walk into. With the second approach, you take charge of the interview. Rather than hoping you'll land an eager, experienced interviewer, you make stuff happen for yourself. You talk about the things you need to talk about to make yourself look like the best candidate for the job, even if the interviewer doesn't directly lead you there. Regardless of the quality of the interview you get, you're able to offer a complete, persuasive picture of yourself. How do you control a job interview like this? That's what we'll teach you today. Maximize Your Matchups In Thinking on Your Feet, Marian K. Woodall argues that there are two ways to control an interview: 1. Know what information you must communicate to paint a complete picture (plus additional information which will enhance that picture, if time and circumstances allow). 2. Use each question to include a portion of that information, regardless of how much information the question seeks. Basically, you want to know what a potential employer is looking for in an ideal candidate, match those requirements up with your own experience and traits, and then share those matchups as much as possible during the interview. Figuring out these matchups is something you should do in the days leading up to the interview. To do so, Woodall recommends creating two columns on a sheet of paper. On one side, list the skills, experiences, aptitudes, preferences, etc. the potential employer is looking for in a candidate. You can figure this out by reviewing and parsing the job description, researching the company, and simply using your powers of deduction. Consider not just the "hard" skills the position calls for, but the attitudes and interests the employer likely wants too. A job at a museum may not require that someone love art, but a passion for it will add value to the position; likewise, being a regular camper may not be mandatory to be hired at an outdoors store, but it can go a long way towards making a candidate more attractive. Finally, keep in