The primary meaning of interview is exchange information between two or more people about their profiles.
Exchange of information is also required when an employer hires a new candidate in his organization.
Thus, Interviews are conducted for selection of candidates. The employers conducts a face to face conversation and ask questions to the interviewee with the intention to examine the ability and sustainability of the interviewee. This being the only pure reason, we cannot see any harm in attending the same, regardless of current job status.
Instead, it helps in nurturing networks. It’s always better to look forward and attend interviews as and when you get chance. You lose the following experience when you turn down an interview.
Turn Down an Interview Reasons:
Following are the areas you expertise at, when you plan to attend an interview:
1. You learn to present yourself:
Once you get an interview call, you start deciding upon certain factors like the dress you will wear, the accessories you will accompany, the shoes you will choose etc etc.
Once all is set, you look formal with your trimmed haircut and warm smile. The way you will carry yourself along with your certificates and achievements.
You want to be the best version of yourself. Remember that your appearance completes with a smile on your face.
2. You feel confident about yourself:
For a perfect interview, a firm hand shake is important. And a firm handshake will come only when you feel confident of yourself.
The key to boil your confidence is just be yourself and allow your personality to shine.
3. You feel relaxed:
If you are currently in the job, and you get a call for the interview, there is no pressure for you to qualify for it. Then you are relaxed enough to talk to the interviewer. You can be released of the stress of getting the job.
In this way, you will gradually be used to talk to employers like this. And suddenly, if your current job screws you after some time, you are somewhere prepared to talk to the interviewers casually.
This practice will make your mind relaxed and confident in front of the interviewer and the chances of getting a job soon, increases.
4. You remove fears from talking to strangers:
Fear of talking to strangers in society is equivalent to skydiving. Consistently attending interviews will overcome your anxieties, fear and phobias from talking to strangers.
If you take the efforts despite your fear, it might change your life. In the process, you can become a conversation starter.
5. You also prepare yourself to be ignored:
When you take the risk of attending an interview, you know beforehand that rejection is certainly a possibility.
You prepare yourself to be ignored. You shred your ego in the process.
6. Get a chance to meet personalities:
You get a chance to enter renowned organizations and see their work culture. You get to meet top level management and talk to them. You realize that they possess unique vintage and beauty.
Talking to top level management itself is an art. After the interview, even if you are not selected, you feel content that you had a talk with the CEOs of such organization who were actually interested to know your profile at one point of time.
7. Practice body language:
Body language is equally important as vocal language. It can make or break an interview session.
From eye contact to posture, and the way you fix your hairs, everything is being noticed. You understand the do’s and don’ts and you make a habit to improve avoid the same in your next interview.
This helps you to improve your presentation and you learn to use the right body language.
8. You learn to introduce yourself:
The first question asked by an interviewer is “tell me something about yourself”. It is not easy to present yourself, and it takes a lot of practice to do it right and concealing your show off attitude.
You being your own master stammer at telling about yourself, just because of lack of exposure and practice.
After going through 2-3 interview sessions, you have framed a paragraph about yourself.
You try to show that you are flexible in nature and can adopt to the company atmosphere and surroundings. So you see the changes within yourself as your interview sessions increase.
9. Your answering style improves:
The more interviews you attend, the more comfortable you become. Because you know what questions they will ask and what type of answers they want. What type of answers satisfies them.
You learn to make best excuses for things you are not well equipped with. It helps you to prepare for the next time you are in need for a new job.
10. You gain experience:
Since you have a job and still you are called for an interview, means you are getting an opportunity to learn. You feel proud to say ”No thank you sir”, if you don’t agree to the job conditions.
You can go to the place and not be concerned about getting the job. You get the chance to share your thoughts with senior most management.
11. You get a chance to increase your professional circle:
Anytime you get an opportunity to meet a new person in a professional background, you should not turn down.
All new personalities you met have their own connections and once you create an impression and become connected to him, you have significantly increased your circle. You should not limit your network. Plan to expand anytime you get a chance to.
12. Your prospects for future is set:
If your meeting goes well with the new contact, you have set yourself up for the future communication.
Either of the way, you both may need each other for new job positions or some work related issues.
13. Unpredictable Future:
You just never know when the door of opportunity automatically opens. While you might be depressed or stressed out, of the throw out from your current job, by that time a new job somewhere is being finalized for you from one of the previous interviews.
So, do your best to appear, because you never know what could come out of it- a new professional contact, a business or a friend.
14. Makes you updated with the current trend:
There may be some changes in the basic requirement of the profile as time passes which you might not know because you are currently in a job and you are not concerned with those area at present.
You are unknown of the job possibilities and skills required in the near future because you didn’t plan for a career change. When suddenly you need a job, it becomes difficult to manage updates within a short span of time.
So, even if you are in job, it is suggested to browse through basic job openings and attend some interviews if possible, so that you are commensurate with the ongoing activities.
15. Sharpen your interview skills:
Practical knowledge is always better. Searching through Google for current interview tips will give you experience but not as equivalent to the experience gained from attending them.
Don’t care about the low salary package, or company culture, or brand, or job profile. Just think twice before turning an interview down.
16. Manage awkward situations:
Interviews are not always easy. They are awkward, and filled with pressure and demand your best qualities.
No number of articles or advices will help you as much as the real thing. So, take advantage and attend as much as possible.
17. You get to discover what others are upto:
Once you have practiced your responses, learn to question the employer about his position, his goals, his strategies and company prospects. You get an excellent opportunity to learn what is going on in the industry.
18. You gain bargaining power:
When it comes to Salary negotiations, once when you had job you were forced to accept whatever offered. But now you are in a position to bargain for salary.
The HRs ask you about your present status and whether you are trying elsewhere or not. If you say yes, the HR manager will try to grab you fast before someone else does.
Having multiple job openings and attending interviews will enhance your profile.
19. You get to know about the company:
Only the interviewees are introduced with the company whereabouts and upcoming projects.
By visiting a company’s campus and seeing the work culture and having small talk with employees, you ‘ll get an inside view of the company and you may decide whether you want to work here or not.
20. You may get the next best position:
Uncountable different things might happen which may change your perspective about the company or the job for which you are appearing.
Or it may so happen that there might be another situation vacant for the company where you may be suited for and taken for it. These things you cannot predict when you don’t go for the interview.
21. Encourage business engagements:
If you are tired of attending interviews and planning to start something of your own, still go for it. Don’t neglect or take the interview lightly.
Words get around as fast as fire. Don’t convey your indifference or flake. You never know, you might get a client somewhere inside the company itself.
22. Be honest of your facts:
You learn to speak truly and clearly about the basic information. You don’t have any idea, how conversations start and turn up, what possibilities may develop.
Be honest, polite and open to ideas. Interviews are a great way to have open conversations.
23. You get a direct feedback from the interviewer:
This is the best situation to get real feedbacks about your presentation style, answering style and qualifications. You get an unmodified and effective answer from the interviewer.
You shall realize your true self. Interview is a special glass which helps you to see yourself the way others do.
24. Personal Interaction:
You learn to communicate eye to eye with a professional person. You learn to behave properly and mannerly in front of celebrity like managers. And you can record what you physically observe while you communicate. This provides additional information apart from assessing your own abilities.
You can develop a good rapport with the manager. And also after few minutes of interaction, due to eye contact you feel relaxed and candid.
25. Opportunities to clarify:
Once you are comfortable with the manager, you can clarify your doubts within the job profile or outside your criteria limits.
This increases the accuracy of the data collected by you about the company and its brief summary.
26. Reaching new audience:
Every time you go for an interview, you get a new audience to introduce yourself to. Your previous fears wipe out and you are now sure to avoid the previous mistakes made.
You decide to present yourself in a better form than before you’ll be amazed by the improving attitude you develop because of this. With practice you can assess the results yourself within few minutes of the interview itself.
27. You get to know about the various types of interview:
There may be some interviews which are structured and in depth whereas some interviews which are only for research purpose.
Some interviews may be conducted on video conferencing and some may be conducted by a panel of interviewers. Telephonic interviews are also one of the methods for screening candidates for the role.
In telephonic interviews, you should be firm and prompt with your answers. Your voice should be sweet and steady for the interviewers to make out that you are confident enough.
28. Learn to talk in group:
In some interviews, the HR gives a topic and asks some candidates to discuss it in a group. In this process, you come to know about you interactive skills and ideas you instantly develop. You learn whether people accept or dis-agree your ideas.
These discussions are very helpful in developing you personality. You gradually become a conversation starter in the process.
Even if you are not successful, you face certain facts that your peers are ahead of you in certain areas and you are far behind. You learn to talk properly among your similar age group in front of seniors.
29. You learn to focus:
You know that whatever you are replying as an answer shall be true and best to your knowledge.
You have to keep keen focus on the questions asked and the answers you are ready to give because you know that the interviewer may ask for further clarifications and proofs for your answers.
You have to think and reply at that time. You may get disturbed by the previous question you answered in an incorrect way and then all your answers follow the same trend. After wards you regret replying incorrectly to the questions you had prepared well.
Thus you understand that losing focus is the greatest threat in interview session and you start practicing on that.
30. Look forward to attend situational interviews:
You know beforehand that certain companies conduct situational interviews. Situational interviews are those where the candidate is given certain situations and asked to explain what he would have been done at this point of time.
Most candidates avoid these types of interviews because they get afraid of the process. You should not do so. You should practice and attend these interviews and learn to talk and think simultaneously.
To reply with perfect answers, one needs practice. And from practice one can solve any situation he is given.
31. You understand the rating scale:
The scores provided by the interviewers by evaluating your responses helps you to decide in what areas you need to explore much and in what areas you are perfect. In the same situation, one person may get excellent grades and another person may get “good”.
You can evaluate your results better because the grounds for judging were same for all. You get to realize the specialty in the answers of the one who has got better grades than you.
32. You are registered on the interviewer’s website and records:
It is the duty of the HR manager to keep a track record of all candidates who are attending the interview.
So, you get a chance to be entered in the company records and if not selected, it might happen that in case of an emergency requirement, you may be called. Be ready to share your attributes with the company.
33. Image is everything:
Once you get the ball rolling, and start to introduce yourself better, you can guide people on how to attend or conduct interviews.
Experience speaks a lot. Who knows you may land up in a position of an HR while attending interviews .
34. Your style matters:
Meeting face to face with an interviewer tells him a lot about you, than by filling an application form and sending. Application form contains standard information applicable to all. But your presentation style is your own and unique.
You cannot be counted in the flock. After meeting with the interviewer, he will form a different opinion about you.
You will have to explain the interviewer why you are the right person for the job.
35. It helps to untangle complex topics:
Personal Interviews give you a chance to clear all your doubts and facts regarding the company, its business, its founders and its market share in the industry.
You come to know about the culture and habits of the employees of the company. You can ask any type of question relating to any area of the business and you can be assured that your questions will be answered.
An interviewer evaluates you on the points that what you are best at and what you can do special what other candidates can’t and they search for a valid reason why they should hire you. You learn all those aspects while attending the interviews.
36. You learn to be punctual:
If you are right inside the company at the declared time, half the battle is won, so you learn to be in time for your schedule.
People generally don’t go late for exams and interviews. Interviewers see that how much focused you are on your job search and how much passionate you are for getting the role in the company, by your arrival time.
37. Learn to stay calm in stressed situations:
This is the one of the major things tested in an interview with keen observation. The managers see that whether the interviewee will manage the situations timely and calmly under pressure and stress.
If you remain calm and confident throughout the interview, you leave a good impression on the interviewer.
This calmness comes with practice and practical experience which you will get only by attending sessions.
38. Learn to show what you know:
You try to relate the knowledge you have framed about the company while you were researching, when answering questions.
When discussing your career accomplishments, you should tag whatever is important for the company.
You get to chalk out your achievements according to the necessities of the company you are being interviewed for. You display your expertise which matches with the company’s requirements.
39. You learn to manage questions which are a setback to your career:
For example, if you belong to a schedule caste or schedule tribe, or if you are not a citizen of the country, and the interviewer asks you about your race or citizenship, you should not get angry and tensed.
You get to practice these answers beforehand. You may reply simply that, “you are authorized to work in this country” or you may change the topic also.
Changing the topic is also an art which needs to be practiced. And practically practicing is the best option available.
40. You learn to avoid negativity in your statements:
You gradually learn that phrases like “I don’t know, No comments, Or Admit Liability” leaves a negative impression to the interviewer, and you don’t get through with these phrases.
What you say is important but what is most important is the feel you create while saying it.
