Getting an interview is such a rare occasion for many, that people just do not know what to do. After all, if the market is so dry that you are hoping that the one interview you got after sending 500 applications is your chance for getting a job, you cannot afford to make it into a practice one.
So, how do you make sure that the one interview you really must ace goes as smoothly as possible? Believe it or not, practice. First of all, there is always a mirror. If you are like most people, you also have friends and family. Use them – but be serious. Do not make it into a game of chance. You are either prepared or not. If you are planning on “winging it”, you are bound to fail.
Internet is full of resources that provide potential interview questions and answers. Use them as guidelines, but think outside the box. After all, everybody and their brother are using the same exact resources. If you want to be remembered and selected from the group of 500 qualified candidates, you need to be unique. Uniqueness does not mean answering questions while standing on your head. All it takes is some thinking. You know the questions – a typical HR person, pretty much, follows the “manual” when deciding what to ask. It is the answers that are up to you.
Do not go for stock responses, do not state the obvious or the boring. After all, how many other candidates will respond to the question: “Why do you feel you are qualified for the job?” by saying that they are “dedicated, motivated, excellent team players, with fantastic communication skills”… You got it – every single one. This is why you cannot do the same. Your responses should be unique and personal.
Why are you a good candidate for the customer service position? Not because you answer the phones well, but because in your previous job you consistently held the level of customer satisfaction at 99%. Why are you a good candidate for the project management job? Not because you are motivated, but because in your professional experience the projects you ran were always delivered on time and under budget. Well, most of them 
It is not what you are, it is what you can do – and have done. Somebody who is willing to pay money for service – and this is what hiring employees is – needs to see what is inside the shiny wrapping, the quality of potential deliverables, the future value of the new hire. All you have to do is prove that you are what they need.
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Very interesting, thanks for the information. I need to just keep building.