Effective Body Language in a Job Interview. By Robert Ordona Savvy job seekers know how important choosing the right words is when communicating with prospective employers. But what about nonverbal communication? "You could be saying how great you are, but your body could be giving your true feelings away," says Alison Craig, image consultant and author of Hello Job! How to Psych Up, Suit Up, & Show Up. Mark Bowden, author of Winning Body Language, agrees with Craig -- and with the highly regarded Mehrabian communication study, which found that if what's coming out of your mouth doesn't match what your body is saying, your audience is more likely to believe your body.
Here's some expert advice on how to effectively let your body do the talking in a job interview: Making a Great EntranceCraig and Bowden agree that the interview starts even before you get to the interview room. " Craig suggests trying to predict the direction your interviewer will come from, so you can sit facing that direction. Common Interview Questions: Top 10 Interview Questions. Prep for the Top 10 Interview Questions Too many job seekers stumble through interviews as if the questions are coming out of left field. But many interview questions are to be expected. Study this list and plan your interview answers ahead of time so you'll be ready to deliver them with confidence. 1.
What Are Your Weaknesses? This is the most dreaded question of all. 2. Summarize your experiences: "With five years' experience working in the financial industry and my proven record of saving the company money, I could make a big difference in your company. 3. The interviewer is listening for an answer that indicates you've given this some thought and are not sending out resumes just because there is an opening. 4. Sometimes it's best to talk about short-term and intermediate goals rather than locking yourself into the distant future. 5. 6. The interviewer wants to know what motivates you. 7. What makes you unique? 8. 9. It is to your advantage if the employer tells you the range first.
Job Interview Information. Interview Attire: 10 Interview Fashion Blunders. Any article about what to wear to an interview might well begin with a qualifying statement covering the extremes in various states (New York and California, for example) and industries (technology, manufacturing), which are possible exceptions to the normal rules of fashion. But it might surprise you to learn that those extremes have, over the last couple of years, begun to move closer to the middle ground. Nowadays, if you were to ask 100 people their opinion about what to wear to an interview, the majority would answer, "Dress on the conservative side. " Anna Soo Wildermuth, an image consultant and past president of the Association of Image Consultants International, says, "Clothes should be a part of who you are and should not be noticed. " She cites 10 dressing faux pas to avoid when interview time comes around: Wild Nail Polish: This tip is for women or men.
Conservative colors in various shades of blue and gray are best. Articles in This Feature: Keep Your Guard Up at the Interview. All the signals indicate the job is yours: You've endured hours of interviews, and now you're standing in front of the receptionist's desk with a potential colleague, engaging in harmless banter. The topic turns to your current job, and you tell her you can't wait to bail on your psycho manager and out-of-touch CEO. You've just shot your chances. Once word gets back to your potential employer about this "harmless" exchange, you're pegged as a malcontent. "We're all human, and when things start feeling good, we let our guard down," says Dave Sanford, executive vice president of client services at recruitment firm Winter, Wyman & Co. "You can't let your guard down.
" Interviews are fraught with opportunities to ruin your chances of landing an offer. Unless you're vigilant, you may sabotage yourself. Don't Get Too Comfortable Job seekers should not buy into the myth that they should just be themselves during an interview, according to career coach and Monster Interview Expert Marky Stein. How Bizarre: Avoiding Bad Interview Behavior. By Caroline M.L. Potter, Yahoo! HotJobs Would you ever ask an interviewer for a cigarette? Or send your sister to meet a potential employer in your place? Or arrive with a bird on your shoulder?
Probably not, but job seekers have done each of these things -- and worse -- according to a survey released by staffing firm OfficeTeam. The folks who committed these professional faux pas probably didn't intend on doing so, but because they didn't follow the four rules below, they made themselves susceptible to bizarre behaviors. Be Prepared Before any interview, you've got a considerable amount of homework ahead of you. One executive revealed to OfficeTeam that a potential employee was so unprepared that he "got his companies confused and repeatedly mentioned the strengths of a competing firm, thinking that's who he was interviewing with. " Always give yourself a few extra moments to prep for your interview, either on the train or subway, or while you're waiting in the lobby. Dress Appropriately.