| After months of searching through what seemed like | | | | tactic will also thwart the interviewer who asks for a |
| all the jobs in all the classified ads in the world, you | | | | spare resume only to see if you were prepared |
| finally got someone to look at your resume and | | | | enough to bring one. Yeah, I can't stand that guy either. |
| schedule an interview. Great work! Now all that's left to | | | | Shut him up by having a spare resume on hand. |
| do is, well, figure out what the heck you're going to do. | | | | Don't underestimate the number of people you need to |
| These days, jobs aren't easy to come by, and often | | | | be nice to. This isn't just a good rule for getting jobs; it's |
| the right interview can mean the difference between a | | | | a good rule for living. But being nice to everyone at the |
| job and a promise to keep your resume on file and | | | | interview, from the parking attendant to the receptionist |
| contact you if anything comes up (warning: nothing | | | | to the homeless guy asking for spare change outside |
| ever does). Jobs have been won and lost during the | | | | the building can be more helpful to your goals than you |
| interview... and it never hurts to be too prepared, does | | | | might assume, since you never know who's friendly |
| it? | | | | with the interviewer. Also, remember who has the |
| Yes, going cold into an interview can be a bad idea | | | | power to slow you down. A parking attendant could |
| indeed. With that in mind, here are a few interview tips | | | | easily direct you to the farthest spot from the elevator. |
| that'll have the jobs looking for you. | | | | A receptionist could easily be too busy to remember |
| Dressing to impress might not get you the job. Instead, | | | | to tell the interviewer that you arrived on time. So start |
| dress to fit in. In your grandpa's day, men aced | | | | practicing being nice to everyone. Future jobs may |
| interview by wearing their best three-piece suit, spats, | | | | depend on it. |
| a fedora, a buttonhole carnation and half a pack of | | | | Be like Sherlock. In every Sherlock Holmes story by |
| unfiltered Chesterfields. But today, that might not work. | | | | Arthur Conan Doyle, Holmes managed to exhibit his |
| Some offices still maintain a sense of formality, but the | | | | extraordinary talent for noticing the smallest details. |
| dot-com boom of the nineties had a profound effect | | | | During your interview, try to be like the master |
| on how people dress around the office. Some jobs | | | | detective by looking for those tiny details that will open |
| require ties. Some only need polo shirts. And some | | | | the door to a new connection. Oh, I see you have a |
| barely require clean t-shirts. Agencies hiring new | | | | signed Kobe Bryant jersey on your wall. I went to |
| employees don't just want someone who dresses to | | | | Lower Merion High School with Kobe. Or maybe I see |
| ace the interview; they want someone who meshes | | | | you're a Republican. My uncle, House Minority Leader |
| with the group. A good rule of thumb: Check out the | | | | John Boehner, would be proud. Of course, yours may |
| site ahead of time to see what everyone wears... then | | | | be more subtle. But any connection you can make will |
| go a step above that. If the men wear golf shirts, wear | | | | set things at ease. |
| a button-down. If the women wear flats, wear pumps. | | | | All the agencies out there hiring new staffers want to |
| Assume everyone you meet wants to see your | | | | do as little work as possible. Hiring new employees isn't |
| resume, but nobody has a copy. Interviewers work | | | | easy. And while quality companies won't take the low |
| with dozens of resumes, so there's a good chance | | | | road to hiring, most HR reps want to make their jobs |
| yours will get lost in the stack. Don't take it personally -- | | | | as efficient as possible. Any way you can help out can |
| just have a spare copy ready. Other times, you may | | | | be a path to big dividends. Learn everything you can |
| be on the business end of a double-barrelled interview, | | | | about the company. Find a brief and compelling way to |
| where you meet not only the HR rep, but your | | | | explain why you're the best person for the job. Make |
| potential boss as well. And one copy of your resume | | | | your contact information easy to find. Make yourself |
| won't be enough. It always looks good to pull a space | | | | the only logical choice by letting the interviewer know |
| copy or two out of your satchel. What's more, this | | | | exactly why you'd be the perfect fit for their culture. |