Visualizing
To prepare themselves mentally, successful athletes visualize themselves going through every aspect of whatever their events require. For example, high jumpers see themselves taking every step of their approach, leaving the ground, going over the bar cleanly, and landing properly in the pit.
Visualizing begins with identifying and sequencing all the steps. If you can visualize yourself going through every step of the interview, you will increase your chances of success even more. Here's one theory on why this may work: Your subconscious mind receives the input and, not knowing what is real and what isn't, processes the information as though you had already been successful. Your anticipation of success becomes easier to fulfill. You will read about the specific aspects of interviews in future chapters. Become familiar with all of them and rehearse them before your interview.
Record Your Rehearsal
At the very least, you will want to review the questions and the suggested ways to respond to them. You will learn about the areas of questioning, the questions asked most frequently, the types of questions that are asked, and the techniques you can use for responding.
In writing, describe a position that might interest you. You don't have to be perfectly qualified for it, just interested in it, but be realistic. Be as detailed as possible; list duties, reporting relationships, and anything else you can put on paper.
Now list the questions that you feel would be most likely to come up in an interview for this job. Sequence isn't important right now. You can organize the questions into categories, levels of difficulty, and styles of questioning, or list them at random.
Next, find a quiet area where you can concentrate totally. Read one question into a tape recorder; stop the tape; and think about your answer for a moment. Record your reply while using the strategies that you will be reading about later on.
Go to the next question and do the same thing. Continue this way for no more than 15 minutes, which should come out to about a dozen questions. That is about as much as you want to attempt at one time if you are to gain maximum benefit from your rehearsal without becoming distracted.
Play back your tape. Listen carefully to your responses. Did you answer the question appropriately? Did you relate your response to the job at hand? How did you sound? Were your voice tones friendly, cooperative, and enthusiastic? Do you sound like the kind of person the employer would hire? Would you want to hire yourself? Try yourself out on even the most unusual questions you can conjure up. You want to use these rehearsals to prepare yourself to deal comfortably with anything that interviewers may throw at you.
Role – Playing your Rehearsal
You should also practice answering questions with another person asking them. Have a colleague play the part of an employment interviewer.
This will give you the practice you need before you go to the appointment. Although it helps to visualize this aspect of interviews beforehand, it can be even more beneficial to act out your plans physically. The face-to-face interplay that comes with these sessions will give both you and your colleague opportunities to evaluate the way you handle other kinds of situations. For example, the "interviewer" might choose to misinterpret your responses, follow up your replies with loaded questions, or use other techniques described in Chapter 15. Rehearsals can also give you the opportunity to see how well you handle the opening and closing portions of the interview.
Be sure to audiotape these practice sessions, and videotape them if you can. When you review them with your colleague, ask for a candid evaluation. Listen from the employer's perspective; focus not on what you did "wrong," but on where you could do better next time. If you experienced a particular difficulty with any aspect of this role-play session, take a break, identify the problem, and then try again.
Your body language and voice tones will probably diminish in these rehearsals, so exaggerate them a little. It's a useful technique, because if you overdo them in practice, they'll come out just about right in the actual interviews. Keep in mind that learning is a process that goes best when you take it in small steps and in short sessions. Create a checklist or make copies of that one. Use a clean sheet for each rehearsal.
When You Should Interview
If possible, avoid interviewing on Mondays and Fridays. It is difficult to hold the attention of people who are just getting back into the work routine or trying to wrap things up for the weekend. Tuesdays are like a fresh start, since all of Monday's catch-up work should be out of the way by then. Thursdays are also good because enough of the week has passed that the interviewer may be looking for a change of pace. Wednesdays seem to be neutral.
After lunch, people's digestive systems take oxygen away from the brain, so afternoons also can be ruled out. That leaves Tuesday and Thursday mornings as the best times for interviews, with Tuesday gaining a slight edge because it leaves you with more of the week for phone follow-ups if needed.
Ten o'clock seems to be about the best time. It gives the interviewer time to check mail and get any paperwork and phone calls out of the way.
It also gives you at least an hour before both parties begin to get hungry and possibly lose concentration. Also, many executives have coffee at about ten, and you might catch them in a more relaxed, sociable mood.
