Interviews- A gentle Introduction

In this competitive world, no recruitment process is complete without the employer evaluating the applicant through the process of Interview. It can be termed as the final stage of the recruitment process. As no interviews are predictable, there is no magic formula which you can follow. However, proper planning and careful preparation could fetch positive result out of the interview for the applicant. Usually if you have got as far as the
interview, you have already beaten a lot of opposition and that confidence also gets the best out of you during the Interview.

Sensing the importance of interviews for any kind of employment and noticing the general fear of interviews among the job aspirants, Reachout is coming up with a series of write-ups on the process of interview. The
information given here is designed to help all job seekers, including school and college leavers, employees seeking promotion, or others about to change their jobs. Our aim is to help you to analyse yourself and to put the best,
most relevant interpretation forward for each job. It guides you how to prepare, what sort of information you should be collecting, and gives many basic pointers on conduct in the interview itself. The present one would
give you a general introduction and information about the processes involving interviews.

We assume here that you have already prepared a good resume based on our previous article on the preparation of resume. If you haven't already done so, go back to that article and tackle those things first. In order to get
as far as the interview, you should reply to the advertisement in the way requested. The pattern of the interview may well be determined by the information you have provided in your resume. Hence, you should be very
careful while preparing you resume and the information provided in it.

The interview gives both you and the interviewer an opportunity to assess each other. It is a two-way process - you must decide whether this job is what you wanted and the interviewer has to decide whether you can perform
the required tasks and have the motivation to do so.

All interviews are good practice, and time well spent. The interviewer will want you to do well since there is the requirement for the organization, but it is up to you to ensure that your best qualities do not go unnoticed. You must be active rather than passive. You too can alter the course of the interview, provided that you do this with tact and don't wander completely off the subject. The interviewer doesn't want to spend the time in idle chat.
You should be positive and show yourself in the best light. You assertion skills coupled with practice before hand can increase your confidence and help you feel more self-assured. During the interview this would help you to
relax enough to listen to what you are being asked, rather than sitting frozen in the chair. Being completely submissive, without giving your own input, will be seen as a sign of weakness and lack of personality.

When it comes to personality, the golden rule is not to put on an act. The interview is important and you do have to sell yourself, but if you act instead of staying natural, you may get detected. It also uses up your
concentration. Be positive about yourself and thorough knowledge of your plus points is important. You should apply for a job to which you are suited and be ready to have positive answers when questioned about your weaknesses.

There are ofcourse times when, despite the best preparation, you fail to be offered the job. There may be several reasons for this - there may have been better candidates or it might have been just bad luck. At such times,
you should try analyse how you did the interview and also if possible, try to get feedback on your interview style. Most importantly, you must keep trying. If you don't give in to the negative feelings, - your work, effort
and preparation should pay off in the end. So keep trying...

K.N. SRINIVAS MURTHY