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How Do You Nail an Interview?

Course video 29 of 41

Communication skills and presence to stand out in an interview

This course aims to help high school students, recent graduates, and those considering career transitions explore health care career options and learn strategies for entry into the health care workforce and health related fields. There are lots of amazing job opportunities in medicine and healthcare! Join us, as we share the strategies and secrets for getting those jobs. This course will introduce you to healthcare professions, help you map a path towards a health career, and impart skills relevant for any career, including: articulating your personal story, resume and cover letter writing, job search, interviewing, professional networking, and professional communications. In this course, you will hear the personal stories, experiences, and journeys of dozens of people who work in health related careers. You will also have the opportunity to connect with a supportive community of students, mentors, and health care professionals to explore your interests, find resources, and discover exciting new opportunities. The course features more than 50 different guests and lecturers, including Northwestern University faculty from Feinberg School of Medicine; the Kellogg School of Management; the Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications; the School of Professional Studies; Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences; and the School of Communication. The course is also a resource and tool through which educators, parents, career counselors and others can support students’ career readiness and professional advancement.

Impartido por:

Dr. Melissa A. Simon
George H. Gardner Professor of Clinical Gynecology and Vice Chair of Clinical Research

Transcripción

[MUSIC]

Nearly everyone gets nervous when heading into an interview.

It's completely normal, and why wouldn't someone be nervous?

You may have heard that there are dozens of applicants for every job,

and if you're inexperienced or have a non traditional background,

you know that the odds are stacked against you.

In this lecture,

we will talk about five strategies that will help you stand out in an interview.

You will find that some of these tips may sound familiar.

It's what you already do when preparing for a date, playing a team sport or

cooking dinner.

We all have a secret sauce.

These are the talents, experiences and personality traits that make you unique,

valuable and well suited for a healthcare career.

More than that, your secret sauce is also the combination of ingredients that will

put you in the best mind set to succeed.

It includes getting a good night sleep, exercising and eating breakfast.

And if your prompt and responding to communications, you can try to score

an interview for when your potential employer is in there best mental state.

Research shows that the best time is 10:30 am on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday.

Because you don't want your interviewer in a bad mood after the morning traffic,

distracted about the upcoming weekend, too hungry to concentrate, or in a food coma.

But if they are hiring immediately,

research suggests that it's best to just grab the earliest slot.

On the day of your interview,

you have just seven seconds to make a good first impression, because that's how

little time the human brain takes to make decisions about your personality.

To determine your likeability, your trustworthiness.

That's the length of time it took for me to say this sentence.

Making a positive first impression is essential.

And your body language speaks volumes.

Body language has over four times the impact on the first impressions

than anything you say.

So when you walk into an interview smile to show that you are friendly.

Shake hands to establish rapport.

Make eye contact to indicate openness and energy.

Stand tall to show confidence.

You've probably already heard about dressing for success.

It is not appropriate to wear to jeans, t-shirts, or

exposed shoulders, cleavage, or midriff.

But dressing for an interview doesn't necessarily mean dressing boring.

A subtle fashion statement, such as a pin on your suit or an interesting bracelet,

can build rapport through the start of a fun conversation.

Think of my glasses as an example.

Fortunately, there are places to purchase clothing for

interviews at every price point.

Even thrift stores are a good place to find nice suits.

[MUSIC]

Ultimately it's emotions that make people take action.

Just like how a lame pick-up line won't likely bring any good results,

an effective opening line will go a long way in creating a personal connection.

The first interview question will usually be along the lines of

tell me about yourself.

Prepare a response that will show that you are a person.

Share your inspirations and passion.

[MUSIC]

Some of the standard interview questions are designed to make you sweat.

If you don't want them to see you sweat, you must prepare for the hard questions.

One question that many people have trouble responding to is what is your weakness?

One mistake people make is to simply turn a weakness into a strength.

But to really impress your interviewer,

you need to demonstrate how you overcame your weakness.

[MUSIC]

You cannot anticipate every interview question.

But what you can do is to prepare three stories that showcase your

strengths that you can plug in at any time.

Each story should have a beginning.

What was the problem?

A middle, what you did about it, and an end, the result or the impact.

Think carefully about what strengths you want to showcase.

It may help to take a minute and stand in your employer's shoes,

think about the things they want for their customers, or

in the case of healthcare, what they want for their patients.

More likely than not, the interviewer is looking for

people with skills to provide those things.

So if you think what they're looking for in an,

in an employee are things like reliability, attention to detail and

customer service, make sure your three stories have to do with your reliability,

your attention to detail and your excellent customer service.

You can also think of this like preparing for a sports game.

If you do even just a little bit of research on your opponent, you're better

able to anticipate their next move, and effectively counter with your own.

Near the end of the interview,

you will usually be given an opportunity to ask questions.

Most people just ask questions and don't take advantage of this time to

drive home the message that you are interesting, that you are valuable.

You can do this by highlighting something new or

interesting about yourself when you ask a question.

[MUSIC]

One final question you may want to ask is,

have I given you any reason to doubt that I am a good fit for this position?

This question may require some courage to ask.

But it will give you the opportunity to clarify

any doubts that the interviewer may have about you.

As soon as you get home, send a thank-you email.

To review,

we went over five strategies that will help you stand out in an interview.

First, prepare your secret sauce,

a combination of ingredients that will put you in the best mindset to succeed.

Second, bring your A game, in which you have just seconds

to make a good first impression with your body language.

Third, build a bridge.

Make a personal connection with your interviewer by telling them about

yourself, the person, what led you to where you are today, and

what your passions are.

Fourth, don't let them see you sweat.

Prepare for the hard questions by coming up with specifics about how you overcame

your weakness, and by preparing three stories that demonstrate your strengths.

Lastly, end the interview with a grand finale that drives home the message that

you are valuable.

[MUSIC]

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