By Kim Monaghan,
These interpersonal skills-driving questions may also ease the tension in an interview. The challenge is not to overthink them but rather go with the flow and offer honest, and in some cases light-hearted, responses. Remember, this is still and interview, so your answers should shed a positive light on your ability to contribute positively to an organization. Perhaps you've chosen Alice in Wonderland as your Disney character; be sure to give a host of reasons why "Alice" would make a good employee. She's inquisitive, thoughtful, creative and willing to take risks. One note of caution, even if the interviewing mood becomes more playful with these questions, it's not the time to be self-indulgent or too forthcoming; especially if your theme song is "Highway to Hell."
Just like fashion, new trends are always emerging for interviewing
platforms. Yet, making a career transition is tough enough without
focusing valuable energy on pursuing the latest bells and whistles.
Though some may not be your preferred style, there will always be a "new
black" that recruiters are ready to try on during an interview. The
idea is not to chase the trends but be cognizant, and capable, of
successfully navigating the ones that come your way.
Group Interviews
Somewhere along your career
journey you may participate in a group interview. This may include
multiple hiring managers, team members or even a panel. You might even
find yourself being interviewed alongside other applicants. This "firing
squad" approach isn't necessarily easy (or fun) unless you're one of
the hiring professionals who prefer to save time by rapidly narrowing
the talent pool. Odds are, any time the number of people in the
interview increase, so will your stress. The success strategy includes
not being caught off guard when you walk in the room and discover
multiple interviewers or applicants. Being aware of this trend and even
practicing your approach will help you stay calm and focused. Be sure,
however, to address each person equally with your responses and eye
contact.
Video interviewing
The fact that they don't even
make laptops without cameras anymore should clue you in that the video
interviewing trend is here to stay. When it comes to video interviewing
the challenge lies in overcoming self-distraction, or in other words,
getting out of your own way. If your Internet connection is sketchy, you
might find yourself focusing more on technical issues than
concentrating on impressing an employer. Check your connections
beforehand or book a conference room where technology interface is part
of the package. Another hurdle includes "personal" distraction. Some
candidates lose focus and eye contact and tend to fidget more as they
get distracted by phones,
family or even seeing their image reflected back during an interview.
If you're one of them, set up a time and place to conduct a few video
interview dress rehearsals before the big day.
Quirky questions
"If it were possible, what
theme song would play each time you entered a room?" "What is the
biggest mistake you've made in your career?" "If you were a Disney
character, which character would you be and why?" Welcome to the trend
of quirky questions. Hiring managers
ask questions like these, and other seemingly not so relevant queries,
for number of reasons, including having a creative way to assess an
applicant's personality. Quirky questions can also be used to determine
how well you can handle being thrown a curve ball, if you're flexible
and innovative and if you have the ability to learn from past mistakes.
These interpersonal skills-driving questions may also ease the tension in an interview. The challenge is not to overthink them but rather go with the flow and offer honest, and in some cases light-hearted, responses. Remember, this is still and interview, so your answers should shed a positive light on your ability to contribute positively to an organization. Perhaps you've chosen Alice in Wonderland as your Disney character; be sure to give a host of reasons why "Alice" would make a good employee. She's inquisitive, thoughtful, creative and willing to take risks. One note of caution, even if the interviewing mood becomes more playful with these questions, it's not the time to be self-indulgent or too forthcoming; especially if your theme song is "Highway to Hell."