Here are a few tips and tricks that have brought me success:
Treat it like a conversation. At its most basic level, an interview is a conversation. It's both a way for an employer to test your fit for the role as well as you to test the worthiness of the position. Once you understand that both parties have something to gain, the power dynamics shift more in your favor. This is also a good way to calm the nerves. It's just a conversation.
Soft skills matter. Pay attention to how you present yourself. You may have all the technical skills for the position but are you a pleasant person? Are you a confident person? Speak clearly, be concise but thorough with your answers, speak and gesture with confidence, be kind. Soft skills may not necessarily be assessed on a conscious level but we're all human and the interviewing party will pick up on them. This can be the tiebreaker between two candidates of equal caliber.
Prepare notes to reference on the side. I've never been docked for this and I actually think it gives the impression that I'm more prepared. I let the interviewer know that I'll be taking notes on the position and in the same notebook, I'll have bullet points to remind me of talking points associated with common interview questions. It's important not to flesh out all the talking points but only note down the high-level answer so when you speak, it sounds less rehearsed. Also works for virtual interviews - have a note app open in a separate window. This is an open-note test.
Ask questions. There's usually some time reserved in the last few minutes of the interview for you to ask the interviewer questions. Remember that you also hold power in an interviewer - this is where you should ask what the employer can do for you. Some easy questions:
Where do you see the company in 5 years?
What are the most pressing challenges the company currently faces? And what skillsets are you looking for in a candidate to help with these challenges?
What is the company's stance on growth and mentorship?
What are the growth opportunities for this position?
What does the onboarding process look like?
Some more direct questions for talking to the hiring manager:
Do you take a more hands-on or hands-off approach to your direct reports?
What is your approach to management? To mentorship?
What is the greatest challenge the team currently faces?
What's your definition of success for the position? For the company or product?
Note that these interview tips were derived from my own experiences for positions that require strategic planning and collaboration skills, and might not apply for those who are interviewing for positions with technical assessments.
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