In order to have a successful job search you need to be outgoing, resilient, and be able to put yourself out there. You can’t afford to be passive. If you are passive, you may lose out on opportunities, or come off as incompetent in an interview. So the other choices are to be aggressive or assertive. There is a fine line between being aggressive and being assertive, so you need to be aware of the differences between the two and the differences in results from being assertive or aggressive.
Aggressive: People that are aggressive will push their ideas and thoughts onto others. They will not take no for an answer. They will use almost any means necessary to get what they want. They are pushy and can become obnoxious, annoying, and rude. If you are aggressive in a job search or an interview, potential employers will become upset with you and your attitude. They will not want to hire you because you are not the type of person they want to work with or be around. Avoid being aggressive; it can cause you problems.
Assertive: Many people have a hard time deciphering the difference between being aggressive and assertive. While aggressive people are pushy with their ideas, assertive people express their ideas without pushing their ideas on others. Be confident, but be willing to back down if you become pushy or obnoxious. This will show potential employers that you believe strongly in your ideas and yourself, but that you are also willing to listen to others. Being assertive is a trait you want to make sure you develop and show at interviews and in your job search.
Now that you know what being aggressive and what being assertive look like, you can avoid being aggressive and you can work towards being assertive in order to have a successful job search and an even more successful interview.
Job interviews are a tricky thing to master, if you don’t know what you are doing. You want to show off your skills and accomplishments as well as showing your personality, however, that can work against you if you don’t go about it the right way. You need to make sure that you don’t come off as entitled. Even if you feel that way. If you put off the attitude that you expect the job to be handed to you, you are not going to get the job and you will make a fool out of yourself. So how do you do it? How do you show off your accomplishments and skills without coming off that you feel entitled to the job? That is what I hope to help you with.
Be polite: The best thing you can do is use proper manners. Don’t interrupt and be polite and respectful. This will go a long way in your interview.
Make it about the employer: Don’t praise yourself. Instead praise the company and your potential employer and emphasize (don’t praise) your skills that could help you work well in the company.
Look like you care: It is simple enough, but people often forget this. You need to look like you care about the company, the job, and most importantly, the interviewer and their time. Dress professionally, sit up straight, and give eye contact. This will all show that you care more about them than yourself. Which is always a desirable trait employers will look for.
If you follow these simple guidelines you will avoid coming off as entitled. Have the right attitude and you will succeed in your interview.
While the job interview can be scary, it doesn’t have to be hard to make a good impression. In fact, if you follow these 8 simple tips you will be able to make it through the interview without freaking out, impress the employer, and be able to move forward with your job search process.
Eye Contact: This is one of the most important things you can do in an interview. Making eye contact with your interviewer shows that you are confident in your expertise and interested in what your interviewer is saying. However, be careful that you are not staring your interviewer down. Be confident, not creepy.
Smile: This will also show confidence as well as put your interviewer at ease. A smile makes people feel like you are an enjoyable person and they will mirror the smile back. When you see your interviewer smiling, it will help you feel at ease and the cycle will continue throughout the interview.
Speak Clearly and With Purpose: If you need to, take a small moment and think about what you want to say (not too long or it will become awkward) in order to avoid using fillers such as “mm” “um” or “hmm.” This will make your answers precise, purposeful, and clear.
Be On Time: There is nothing that will put your interviewer off more than tardiness. Their time is valuable and if you are wasting it, even for a moment, you are giving the impression that you don’t care about them or their time. Be early if you can, but do not be late.
Be Honest: Lying is not appropriate or acceptable in the real world, so why would it be okay in a job interview? It isn’t. Be honest and it will make your life and your interview easier, as well as will prevent a termination down the road, if your lie is discovered.
Dress Professionally: It is an easy thing to overlook, but if you go into the interview looking dingy or unkempt, then you will put off an image that you don’t care about yourself or the interviewers. Dress like you care about yourself, the job, and the interviewer, and you will be on the right path to getting the job.
Don’t Interrupt: It seems simple enough, but it is important to remember. While you want to make sure that you express who you are and why you would be good for the job, you do not ever want to interrupt the interviewer. No matter how good you think your comment is, it is not good enough to interrupt your interviewer.
Be Friendly: Don’t be sarcastic or rude. Even if you are having a bad day or you just want to be done with the interview, make it seem like there is nowhere else you would rather be.
Follow these tips and you will be in good standing for your interview and you will be on your way to getting the job.
Job interviews can be terrifying.It is one of the few times when you know without a doubt that you are being judged. Without judging you, how can potential employers know if you are a good fit or not? They can’t. They will go over everything in your resume and your work history with a fine tooth comb. They will call your references and they will make sure that you are worth their time and effort. Because of this, you need to be careful. You need to make sure that you don’t have anything in your past that could come back to haunt you and cause you to lose future job opportunities. This means that no matter what stage of life you are in or where you are in your career you need to be thinking ahead. Think about what effect the things you are doing today might have on your future. Here are some things that are obvious to avoid: bad talking your boss or superiors, being late, being unprofessional, etc. Those are things almost everyone knows to avoid, but there are some things people might not know, such as: talking about coworkers or superiors on Facebook or other social networking sites, posting vulgar or obscene things on your profile(s), or lying on your resume. All these things can be found out by future employers and harm your ability to keep your job and get a new job in the future. If you simply think ahead before you do anything, then you should be able to avoid doing something that could harm you later in the road and you won’t have to live up to it in an interview. Remember, you are being judged. Don’t give your potential employers anything they can judge badly.
