Talk is Cheap 2014

Talk is Cheap, Gail Neal 2014
Talk is Cheap

This presentation is divided into 3 main parts:
Things to do before the interview
Interview Objectives, and
Things to do after the interview

THINGS TO DO BEFORE THE INTERVIEW
Check out interview related websites:

616,000,000 results for interview preparation?!!!!

You’ve heard about learning about the company.
Why?
• It’s information you can use to make a greater
impression on the interviewer.
• Learning about the company lets you know what’s
important to the interviewer so you can tell him what
he wants to hear.
• It can set you head and shoulders above your
competition.

CAUTION
In today’s market, there is no excuse for not knowing something about
the company.
EVERYONE has internet access. If not at home, then at school, or a
library.
Also, Nielsen, the media ratings company, estimated that 65% of all
Americans had smartphones in 2013 – an massive research team in
your purse or pocket.
When asked: What do you know about our company? – a blank stare is
unacceptable.

Places to find employer information:
• Employers' Web Sites
• Michigan Electronic Library: MeL.org
• LinkedIn
• Twitter
• Google
• Industry specific websites
• News Sources
See what general-interest and business publications and Web sites are
writing about the employer and its industry. Search national publications for
news on major corporations; use hometown newspapers to learn about
small businesses and how big businesses interact with their local
communities.
Links to biz journalism sites:
– http://newslink.org
– http://refdesk.com/paper.html
– http://www.bizjournals.com

Directions
Make a dry run to the interview site, on a weekday preferably at the
same time of day as your interview.
This will let you know how long it takes to get there.
On the day of your interview, be sure to leave early enough to
• find a parking space
• freshen up, and
• review your information
before entering the building.

Clothing is the first piece of evidence in support of your case to be the
best candidate.
The interviewer will see your clothing before he gets close enough to
see your bright eyes and winning smile.
CLOTHING

All clothes should be neatly pressed
Clean, polished, conservative shoes
Clean and well-groomed hairstyle
Clean, trimmed fingernails
Avoid cologne and perfume
Empty pockets – no noisy coins
No gum or candy
Men and Women

Things to bring:
• Several hard copies of your resume
• A list of all information needed to complete a job
application (i.e. past employment and educational
history)
• A list of your references that you can hand to the
interviewer if asked
• A pad of paper for taking notes
• Directions to the interview site

GOALS OF THE INTERVIEW:
There are three main objectives in the interview that you
want to accomplish:
1. Demonstrate your competence
2. Learn as much about the job as possible
3. Be certain about the next step

OBJECTIVE #1:
YOU MUST DEMONSTRATE YOUR COMPETENCE
You must DEMONSTRATE your competence.
Talking about it is not enough.
Every interviewee says
“Hire me, I’M the best one for the job.”
Which is why:

OBJECTIVE #1:
You must DEMONSTRATE your competence.
Talking about it is not enough.
Every interviewee says
“Hire me, I’M the best one for the job.”
Which is why:
“Talk is cheap!!!”

OBJECTIVE #1:
Remember:
Jobs are created and people are hired for one reason only:
THE COMPANY HAS A PROBLEM THAT NEEDS TO BE SOLVED!
They will hire you if you show them that YOU are the SOLUTION to
that problem.
The question is:

OBJECTIVE #1:
Remember:
Jobs are created and people are hired for one reason only:
THE COMPANY HAS A PROBLEM THAT NEEDS TO BE SOLVED!
They will hire you if you show them that YOU are the SOLUTION to
that problem.
The question is:
Can you prove it?

OBJECTIVE #1:
The most effective way to prove you are the solution to the
employer’s problems is to tell stories that demonstrate
how you’ve solved similar problems in the past.

OBJECTIVE #1:
Most employer problems fall into one of four categories:
• $ MAKE/SAVE MONEY
If you’re in sales, tell how you exceeded quota
If you’re in purchasing, tell how you negotiated lower costs from
vendors
• P SOLVE PROBLEMS
tell how you made something that was holding things up go away
• R TAKE RESPONSIBILITY
make him happy by telling how you freed up time or resources
• F FIT
Tell how who you are supports the mission. Are you…
Hierarchical or informal? Startup or established?
Big picture or details?

OBJECTIVE #1:
Try to come up with 3 stories for every strength you claim
to have.
If you call yourself a leader:
Tell about 3 instances where you took the lead and made
things happen.
If you claim to be a problem solver:
Make sure you can demonstrate 3 times you observed a
problem and took the initiative to solve it.

Make sure your stories follow the CAR format:
C – Tell them the CONDITION you found.
What was the world like before you came along?
A – What ACTION did you take?
What did you do to make the world a better place?
R – What was the RESULT?
How much better was the world after you touched it?
OBJECTIVE #1:

These stories represent real life examples of how you used
skills that make you valuable to employers.
Use them to open your interview session. Tailor them to fit
the position.
Your stories are the proof of your competence.
OBJECTIVE #1:

OBJECTIVE #1:
Don’t worry about humility.
Humility is NOT about
thinking less of yourself.
Humility is about
thinking of yourself less.
So make sure you think of the employer and how you can
help him – not yourself.
Solve his problem and you’ve got the job.

And now for the preachy part:

OBJECTIVE #1:
• Practice telling your stories
• Practice using your stories to answer common interview questions.
• Put questions on flash cards and have your family and friends quiz
you.
• Practice them in out of order.
• Stay on point at all times.
• Don’t get sloppy.
PRACTICE!
PRACTICE! PRACTICE! PRACTICE!
PRACTICE!

By the way, while you’re practicing, make sure you
know what’s on your resume.
Some crazy interviewers have actually been
known to ask questions about it!
Don’t get caught with your pants down!!!
CAUTION #2
OBJECTIVE #1:

OBJECTIVE #1:
Know your information cold.
While you may be reluctant to rehearse or give a canned
speech,
the better you know your information,
the more of your brain is left free to deal with the situation at
hand.
This is not the time to multitask.

OBJECTIVE #1:
Any good actor will tell you,
the more rehearsed your speech is,
the less rehearsed it sounds.

OBJECTIVE #1:
Knowing your information frees you up to listen.
So practice!

Talk is Cheap, Gail/ Neal 2014
OBJECTIVE #2:
LEARN AS MUCH ABOUT THE JOB
AS POSSIBLE
An interview is a two-way street. You are interviewing
them, as much as they are interviewing you.
You’re going to be making an important career decision so
you need to effectively GIVE and RECEIVE information.

1. If you haven’t seen it yet, ask if you can see the job description. The
more you know about the job, the better you can tailor your answers.
The sooner you get the job description – the better.
2. “How did this position become available?” If the company is
growing, that’s good news. If the last person couldn’t get along with
the manager, that may be a red flag.
3. “Will I be reporting to you or to some else?” If someone else; ask if
you can meet your future manager. Treat the introduction like a mini
interview. Once you’ve won him over, you now have a powerful ally.
SOME QUESTIONS TO ASK
OBJECTIVE #2:
AS POSSIBLE

Notice the header says: SOME questions to ask. It’s not an exhaustive
list.
You can use questions to show that you’ve done your homework.
Anything you’re curious about that came up during your research is a
chance to engage the interviewer.
The questions you ask keep the conversation going and show the
interviewer your interest and intelligence – you have to be listening to
ask good questions.
SOME QUESTIONS TO ASK
OBJECTIVE #2:
AS POSSIBLE

OBJECTIVE #2:
AS POSSIBLE
CAUTION #3
About Salary …
Price is directly tied to perceived value.
It’s a bad idea to talk about the price until they know they’re talking to a
Rolex and not a Timex.
However, the first person who has to know you’re a Rolex is you.
Before you discuss salary, you must believe in the value you bring to
the table.

OBJECTIVE #3:
WHEN YOU LEAVE, BE CERTAIN ABOUT THE NEXT STEP
Never leave the follow-up in the interviewer’s hands. Be proactive.
Say: "I'm interested in this position. When is a good time to call to
check on the status of your decision?”
Don’t ask CAN you call. Ask WHEN to call.
This is an old sales tactic. Salespeople NEVER let a prospect say “I’ll
get back to you.” Be proactive.
Then CALL when you said you would.
This shows your interest as well as your integrity.

OBJECTIVE #3:
Don’t leave without a business card or something else with
the interviewer’s
Correctly spelled name
Phone number
Email address
Mailing address

OBJECTIVE #3:
Find out their preferred method of communication:
•Phone?
•Email?
•Snail mail?

AFTER THE INTERVIEW
As soon as possible, write down everything that happened
during the interview –
– this is critical because you’ll forget most of it.
A job interview is an emotionally charged event.
It can easily become a blur if you don’t do an immediate
brain dump

AFTER THE INTERVIEW
Write a thank-you letter, reminding the interviewer of
• Your qualities
• Memorable things you did or talked about during the interview
(i.e. meeting staff, touring the building, discussion of common
interests)
• You can also use the thank you letter to briefly bring up skills and
experiences that were not discussed during the interview

AFTER THE INTERVIEW
Try to email your thank-you letter immediately after the
interview.
Do not wait more than 24 hours.
Send a hard copy letter or professional thank you card at
the same time.

BELIEVE IN YOU!
… knowledge breeds confidence; confidence breeds
enthusiasm; and enthusiasm is an important key to being
and doing more with your life.
Zig Ziglar

BELIEVE IN YOU!
Just by educating yourself on job search skills,
you will know more about
how to conduct a successful job search
than most of your competition.
The key is application.
Stick with it. Apply it . It will work.

Talk is Cheap 2014

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