It’s an art and a craft.
While practicing and answering common interview questions, do your best to incorporate the following interview tips from youth and career development professionals. With practice, the recommendations below will become more natural and automatic. In the meantime, try to be persistent and gentle on yourself.
Recommendations from youth:
DO’s
- Learn about the job you’re applying for
- Check your breath and refresh before the interview
- Arrive on time or as much as 10 minutes early
- Introduce yourself – let the interview initiate this process
- Shake hands – let the interview initiate this process
- Use eye contact
- Be polite and respectful: Say “please”, “thank you”, etc.
DO NOT’s
- Do NOT Bring a friend or family member
- Do NOT Eat or chew gum
- Do NOT Be late
- Do NOT wear torn or dirty clothes
- Do NOT wear clothes that are revealing or too casual
- Do NOT wear clothes that are too small or too baggy
- Do NOT mumble and try to avoid using “fillers” like “Um”, “Like…”, “You know…”, etc.
- Do NOT fiddle with things or move your hands too much
- Do NOT smoke 30 minutes beforehand
Interview Tips Continued:
Being on time to an interview indicates that you are dependable and respectful – qualities that employers want in their employees. Therefore, do everything in your power to show up on time. Prepare your outfit the day before your interview, pack a snack and drink ahead of time, etc. On the day of your interview, build in extra travel time to get to your interview, so you will not be late due to traffic, getting lost, needing to use the bathroom, etc. Also, plan to show up 5-10 minutes early. If it proves to be impossible for you to arrive on time, call and let the interviewer know ahead of time – as a courtesy and to reduce the chance that being late will keep you from getting the job.