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Prepare & practice for the job interview
You can't guess specific questions in advance, which will be asked in the interview. However you can prepare in advance for commonly asked questions. Interview questions are categorized as
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1. Skills based questions
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These questions are related to the functional knowledge, experience, and industry practices. These questions help find the difference between theoretical and practical knowledge.
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2. Behavioral questions
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These questions show aptitude, problem solving approach to a role and soft skills.
Preparing and practicing for the commonly asked job questions is a good strategy to ace the interview. It prepares you mentally and you become more confident. Content (What to say) and delivery (How to say) will helps.
Preparation brightens your chances of success. The most commonly asked job questions are related to
• About you - Education, abilities, strength and weakness
• Work Experience - Job history, current role and achievements
• Why are you looking for a change
• Tell me about a situation and show the actions and results
• Salary question
As a candidate, you need to convince the interviewer that you are the right candidate by demonstrating the right behavior supported with real stories based on your experience, abilities, attitude and skills.
Throughout the interview process, recruiter is interested to know, do you have the right skills and experience. Are you a good match? Will you be able to deliver? Will you be a good fit to the culture? To do well in the interview, one needs to show the interviewer you are not only a good fit for the job but also better than others.
How does your skill set match the job requirement? Think about your strengths, experiences which matter the most for this job. Embed these in your answers to convince the interviewer. Practice your script. Practice but do not memorize. Even if you come across a known question, do not blurt our the reply. Take time to get comfortable with the question and then answer. Do not be a robot.
You need to understand the intent of each question. Do you have the right experience? Have you handled such a situation successfully? Can you learn from your mistake? What value add you will bring to the employer? Now package what you have, customize it and deliver to the interviewer. Create confidence in him that you are the one who will do it better. Express each answer supported with your work life experiences. Also it is not about past but about future i.e.what you promise to deliver.
As you practice the answers, you will gain confidence and this will reduce the anxiety. Practice will hone your interview skills.
We have listed most commonly asked job questions and categorized in Top10, Top30, Top50 ... so that you can move up the practice ladder at your pace. Happy practicing.
Photo adaptation / Pixabay / mohamed_hassan-5229782
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Deliberate practice improves our success in an interview
Practice is the act of carrying out an activity again and again, to gain mastery over an activity. Psychologist Professor Anders Ericsson coined the term deliberate practice. Talent is important but it is the deliberate practice which makes an ordinary man into extra-ordinary person.
Deliberate practice is purposeful and systematic. You need to have a specific goal, stay focussed, avoid distractions, follow a regular practice schedule, and step up the game in terms of tougher challenges, enable correct feedback to build and gain mastery. Breaking down a task and improving small chunks through regular practice with immediate and correct feedback helps hone the expertise. Deliberate practice is learning by doing and stepping into an uncomfortable zone.
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