I’ve had consecutive interviews with corporate clients where I’ve gotten a job offer in under 24 hours. And while I’m pretty good at selling myself the thing that sets me apart is these clients decided to hire me before I got to the interview (which is why they can make a ‘hiring decision,’ so fast). Interviews for me tend to be just a formality, where clients can triple check I’m not crazy in-person. If you’re interested in doing the same then checkout these 5 tips to use before and during an interview to get ultra-fast job offers.
1. Customize your Resume for the specific job description
- You’ve probably said something like “the more standard my Resume is the more jobs I can apply to and the more job offers I’ll get.” Hogwash… (I’ve never had a reason to use that word before).
- Your Resume must be customized for the I.C.R. (Industry, Company & Role) as well as S.E.E. (Skills, Experience & Education). Doing so will craft a Resume that communicates you’re the obvious choice for this job offer even before the interview.
- Checkout these resources; download my Resume Review Checklist, read my articles on Resume Formatting or Bullet Point Writing.
2. Send your Resume through a 3rd Party as social proof
- Social proof is a psycho-social phenomenon where someone assumes the thoughts, feelings and/or actions of a trusted associate in an attempt to make good decisions faster. In short, time strapped HR Managers are far more likely to hire a candidate that’s been pre-approved by a trusted source over someone they’re meeting for the first time.
- In fact, it takes four times as many applications to get to the interview stage and twice as many interviews for a job offer if you’re approaching a company directly (SHRM.org). Instead I leverage staffing agencies (who already have established, trusting relationships with companies) to introduce my Resume on my behalf. I just sit back and staffing agencies email & call me with clients interested in my services.
- Instructions on how to leverage staffing agencies here.
3. Have samples of your work
- The key to getting hired before the interview is to convince the interviewer you’re the best choice for the job offer before you show up. A great way to do this is to make sure the interviewer sees samples of your work before or during the interview. Build a portfolio of your work, send it to the HR Manager before the interview or print out samples and bring them with you.
Download my Resume Review Checklist to make sure your Resume is ‘job offer ready!’ Grab it here.
4. Answer the question underneath the question
- During the interview ALL of your answers should indirectly answer what I call ‘Core Concerns.’ Core Concerns are the primary information a interviewer wants to find out about you. Things like; can you do the job? Will you fit in culturally? Are your goals aligned with the company’s goals? Do you have a genuine passion for the role? Will you be there long term?
- No matter what the interviewer asks you, your goal as the interviewee must be to concisely (and indirectly) communicate YES to the above questions every time you open your mouth.
For example:
- Tell me a little about yourself. An interviewer asking this question is probably trying to see if your personality/career goals align with the work environment and role requirements.
- What do you know about the company? Which really means are you genuinely interested in working with us or do you just want a paycheck?
- Tell me about a challenge you faced at work and how you dealt with it? Translation… Is this person a team player? Will I be able to work with her/him long-term? Can this person handle the conflicts that come with this role?
5. Leverage your own questions
- The primary purpose of having your own questions is to reinforce the YES to all the Core Concerns mentioned above. The secondary purpose is to collect information to decide if you actually want to work at that particular organization. All your questions should be organized into the following categories:
- Role specific: Questions based on the information provided in the job description.
- Role general: General questions based on the role title it’s (I ask the same general Training/Technical Writing questions no matter who’s interviewing me.)
- Team questions: Questions designed to understand how the team you’d be on operates.
- Culture questions: Inquires that’ll help you understand what kind of environment you’re walking into.
- Special requests: Questions that reflect special interests (being in the office Monday – Friday 8-5 isn’t my thing so I ask questions about flexible scheduling).
Interested in working with me? My company provides Modernized Resume Writing, Career Planning & Training Programs. >>>> Contact me here.
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