The best tip I can give on how to get the job you want is to never forget the interview is also your chance to ask questions. And asking the right questions can often be the key to getting hired.

You’re in the room, you think you’ve given a good performance, and now your interviewers ask:

‘Do you have any questions?’

Most times we mumble and mutter something like, ‘Nope, nothing,’ and shuffle off expecting the worst; or ask with eyes-a-gleam, ‘How much is my salary?’ and ‘How many days off do I get?’ All fine if you’re not too bothered about starting Monday.

The one question you should definitely ask is:

‘Are there any reasons why I can’t get this job?’

Sometimes this will stump your interrogators, which can be fun. Often, after looking at each other, they will give you one or two reasons as to why they don’t think you’re the right candidate.

Now, before you go for your interview, do some homework – put yourself in the interviewer’s place and think what reasons you’d give if you were asked this question.

The first answer you’ll come up with is usually a lack of experience. Secondly, there were other people better than you.

Listen to what they say, and once they’ve given their reasons, go calmly through them, and honestly dispel each point one-by-one.

If it’s a lack of experience, tell them experience is best learnt through practical work. If they quibble, remind them a failure to develop new and younger potential is a short-sighted way to run a successful company.

If they say, there were other people better than you, then ask if any of these likely candidates posed this question? Usually they won’t have, which suggests you’re smarter than the average bear.

Continue on until each point is answered.

When finished, your next question is simple:

‘When do I start?’


Originally posted on Planet Paul