Now we come to preparing for your interview. And I just want to say a brief word about recruitment consultants before we move on. When I was a newly qualified accountant, I signed myself up to all sorts of recruitment consultants, and ended up getting sent for interviews for jobs that were really not a good fit for me in locations which were terrible for me to get to. So you need to be aware of recruitment consultants, they are not necessarily working in your interest. They're working in their own interest. In many cases, they'll put you forward for interview, in order to keep up the numbers to be able to say to an employer, we've got 10 people that you can interview here.

So be aware, stick to your guns in terms of what you want, from the role from the role description, where you prepare to travel to or commute to, and so on. And you should use referrals and other people's experience to find a recruitment consultant that you trust. There is only one recruitment consultant that I know work with. She's a small business of two people. And she knows the kind of work that I do. And I trust that she will put me up for those roles, but I will not sign up with or do business with the other recruitment consultants out there.

Okay, in advance of your interview, you're going to have to prepare, of course, yeah. So first thing to do is digest the interview instructions. Plan your travel, plan, the timings of your travel, do some background preparation about the organization. What's its mission statement? What's its main products and services, what the markets, it serves, water, its locations and so on. Find out who is interviewing you, if that's not stated in the interview instructions, and it's perfectly reasonable to ask the person that you're liaising with at the organization who will be interviewing you.

And then look them up on LinkedIn. Find out their experience, find out if you can find any common points of interest with them. What do you think they'll be looking for? You should study the job description carefully map it against your interview skills balance sheet, and prepare possible interview questions. Why are you applying for this role? Why are you applying to this organization?

How would you approach this particular role? review the projects that you've worked on? Make a list think of the situation and the challenge and how you approached it. How did you deal with others working on the project, particularly those that might be resistant to the changes that you were proposing? And what were the results of those projects? Start making an inventory of your project experience, the outcomes, the issues and the challenges?

And of course plan for the inevitable What is your weakest area question or what if you fail that type of question. Such a question will always arise in in in Have you. So be prepared with a reasonable positive response, rather than stuck there muttering and murmuring. Next, we come on to appearance. And I'm not really the best person to advise them appearance because my dress sense is virtually zero. But it's worth checking out the organization and its culture.

And here in the UK, you can do that on glassdoor.co.uk. And that site may be available in other countries. See if the company or organization has videos on YouTube, check what they're like, speak to people that work for the organization or have experience of it. So that will give you some guidance on how you need to dress and you need to be prepared and dress appropriately. You should dress professionally, but not over the top. I think perhaps a waistcoat and bow tie is a wee bit too much.

And of course the eternal question is to wear a tie or not. And you'll only find out whether you need to or not by checking out the organizations Culture, looking them up on YouTube or even before you arrive, I would generally keep my tie in my suit pocket until I arrive at the interview location, and then decide whether I need to wear it or not. Your hair should be tidy, but not too styled. Your makeup should be subtle. Above all, you should feel smart and confident in your dress, and also comfortable, not overly manicured. on travel, you should read the interview instructions.

You're not always necessarily going to be interviewed at the offices of the organization that you're going up for. So make sure you know where you're being interviewed. The first interview that I ever went to, I was an hour late because I completely misjudged the train times. Needless to say, I didn't get that particular job. So read the interview instructions and aim to get there early, probably at least half an hour early. Plan ahead, check out the location.

Look it up on street view. So you See the landmarks? See the office that you're going to see what it's like, compare the different ways of getting there. Should you drive Can you take public transport? In general terms, I would advise taking public transport because I was panic that I'm going to be held up in traffic jam, I'm not going to be able to find somewhere to park there's going to be other problems. So I personally find it more relaxing to take the train or the bus to an interview.

But of course, you may have to drive in which case you need to scope out where you're going to park your vehicle safely and how you're going to get from there to the location. When you arrive, hopefully, you will have got there early so loiter about nearby, see people coming and going to the offices. And again, you can check out their dress, you can check out their manner, see if it seems a nice relaxed interview, interesting place to to work or whether it seems rather stuffy, rather uptight, let's say and also going into reception is a good place to get The vibe of an organization. I can almost always tell the culture of an organization from what its receptions like the rewards up on the walls photographs, are the people chatting. Does it seem friendly and relaxed? Or does it seem awfully formal and rather reserved?

The day before the interview, you've got some last minute prep to do. reread the interviews and instructions, recheck your travel details, make sure you know how you're going to get there, what the times are of all the transport that you're using, etc. Check out the job description again and map it against your interview skills balance sheet and rehearse possible interviews questions. Why are you a good fit for the job? rehearse your discussion of the projects that you've worked on, and how you can relate them to the job description. Consider a positive response to that inevitable What is your weakest area Question.

And think of an interesting opening line that you can say when you come into the interview. Something about the company perhaps or its history, the history of the building that you're in. Maybe you have a relative that's worked there in the past, that would be a good link, just a short sentence to open up the interview and begin to build rapport with the people that are speaking to you. Above all, perhaps you should visualize the benefits of getting a role in this organization. feel really good about the organization, about its culture, and about the role that you're going for. And then just as you arrive at the location, double check your job description.

Quickly flick through your inventory of the projects that you've worked on and the tasks that you've delivered, and the improvements that you've contributed to so that they're fresh in your mind. Consider how you would work with others, and how you might deal with tricky interpersonal situations. Have some questions to ask at the end and I'll come back to that. Why do you really want this role? I mean, really, what is it going to do for you inside as an individual? How is it going to help you develop your intellect, your career, yourself as a person?

Just before you go into the interview, get excited about working there. Interview nerves, we'll get them. We're all nervous before an interview. It's a sign of anticipation and excitement. So enjoy the tension. Use that to fuel your excitement for the job.

Focus on the positive. What will doing this job? get for you? How will it help you develop as a person how will it help your career? visualize going into the interview. Mentally rehearse yourself dealing with the questions, talking through your case study examples, and addressing probing questions positively and calmly.

Perhaps listen to music or read a book on your journey into the interview, just to take your mind off it and avoid getting too nervous. read something that's nothing to do with the job or the company at all. Just relax as much as you can before going into the interview.