BODY LANGUAGE DO'S AND DON'TS IN THE INTERVIEW

 

DON'T LET YOUR BODY SEND THE WRONG MESSAGE. LEARN THE BEST BODY LANGUAGE TO GET YOU THE JOB.

Your heart feels ready to leap out of your chest. Beads of sweat build on your forehead. Your mind is racing. It's not a full-blown interrogation -- although it may feel like it -- it's just a job interview. While it's no secret that job interviews can be nerve-racking, a lot of job candidates spend a significant amount of time worrying about what they will say during their interview, only to blow it all with their body language. The old adage, "It's not what you say, it's how you say it," still holds meaning, even if you're not talking. You need to effectively communicate your professionalism both verbally and nonverbally. Because watching your nonverbal cues, delivering concise answers and expressing your enthusiasm at once can be difficult when you're nervous, here's a guide to walk you through it:

Have them at "hello"
Before you walk into the interview, it's assumed that you will have done the following: prepared yourself by reading up on the company and recent company news; practiced what you'll say to some of the more common interview questions; and followed the "what to wear on your interview" advice. So you're ready, right? Some hiring managers claim they can spot a possible candidate for a job within 30 seconds or less, and while a lot of that has to do with the way you look, it's also in your body language. Don't walk in pulling up your pantyhose or readjusting your tie; pull yourself together before you stand up to greet the hiring manager or enter their office. Avoid a "dead fish" handshake and confidently -- but not too firmly -- grasp your interviewer's hand and make eye contact while saying hello.

Shake your hand, watch yourself
If you are rocking back in your chair, shaking your foot, drumming your fingers or scratching your... anything, you're going to look like the type of future employee who wouldn't be able to stay focused, if even for a few minutes. It's a not a game of charades, it's a job interview. Here's what to do (and not do):

Don't:

Rub the back of your head or neck. Even if you really do just have a cramp in your neck, these gestures make you look disinterested.

Rub or touch your nose. This suggests that you're not being completely honest, and it's gross.

Sit with your armed folded across your chest. You'll appear unfriendly and disengaged.

Cross your legs and idly shake one over the other. It's distracting and shows how uncomfortable you are.

Lean your body towards the door. You'll appear ready to make a mad dash for the door.

Slouch back in your seat. This will make you appear disinterested and unprepared.

Stare back blankly. This is a look people naturally adapt when they are trying to distance themselves.

Do:

Sit up straight, and lean slightly forward in your chair. In addition to projecting interest and engagement in the interaction, aligning your body's position to that of the interviewer's shows admiration and agreement.

Show your enthusiasm by keeping an interested expression. Nod and make positive gestures in moderation to avoid looking like a bobblehead.

Establish a comfortable amount of personal space between you and the interviewer. Invading personal space (anything more than 20 inches) could make the interviewer feel uncomfortable and take the focus away from your conversation.

Limit your application of colognes and perfumes. Invading aromas can arouse allergies. Being the candidate that gave the interviewer a headache isn't going to do anything in your favor.

If you have more than one person interviewing you at once, make sure you briefly address both people with your gaze (without looking like a tennis spectator) and return your attention to the person who has asked you a question.

Interruptions can happen. If they do, refrain from staring at your interviewer while they address their immediate business and motion your willingness to leave if they need privacy.

Stand up and smile even if you are on a phone interview. Standing increases your level of alertness and allows you to become more engaged in the conversation.

Say Goodbye Gracefully
After a few well-thought-out questions and answers with your interviewer, it's almost over, but don't lose your cool just yet. Make sure your goodbye handshake is just as confident now as it was going in. Keep that going while you walk through the office building, into the elevator and onto the street. Once safely in your car, a cab or some other measurable safe distance from the scene of your interview, it's safe to let go. You may have aced it, but the last thing you want is some elaborate end-zone dance type of routine killing all your hard work at the last moment.

To Pass a Personality Test, Use Your Professional Persona

 It's often possible to tailor your answers to meet an employer's expectations.

Many abstract forces influence who succeeds and who fails in the hiring process. But there's one component that gets pretty personal.

For decades, companies have tried to measure job candidates' personalities, searching for people who will perform best and last longest. Hiring managers often administer personality tests to identify candidates whose tendencies make them a good match for a specific role and the company overall.

Once taken via pen and paper, many of these assessments have moved online, and modern technology has even enabled the creation of video tests that use algorithms to allegedly distill workers' personalities by detecting minute facial expressions and analyzing word choice.

It's important to approach personality tests thoughtfully, since your answers affect your chances of getting hired. One strategy for success is sticking as close as possible to your professional persona.

[See: 16 Low-Stress Jobs.]

What Personality Tests Try to Measure

Personality is a difficult concept to define. Hiring managers use the term to refer to the "behavioral tendencies" of individual job candidates, says Ann Marie Ryan, professor of organizational psychology at Michigan State University.

The tendencies that interest employers include assertiveness, dependability, humility, honesty, extroversion, creativity, openness, agreeableness, narcissism and authoritarianism, says industrial-organizational psychologist Leaetta Hough, founder of the Dunnette Group, a consulting firm. Those traits don't exist in a vacuum, she adds; they depend on "the context in which someone is going to be operating," which in this case is the workplace.

That dependency on environment is one reason why these tendencies are more like "learnable behaviors" than fixed traits, argues Martin Yate, certified personnel consultant and author of several career advice books and audio books. After all, he says, many people follow professional norms at the office but not in their personal lives.

Whether innate or acquirable, hiring managers care about these tendencies because they want to know in advance which applicants are likeliest to show up on time, work well in teams, comply with rules, make smart decisions, fit with the office culture, think creatively and stick around for many years.

It's up for debate how much personality actually predicts about workers, Ryan says. Job performance depends more on skills and technical ability, while retention often hinges on monetary incentives.

But talent and compensation aren't the only factors that motivate worker behavior, Hough says: "Most people are more complex than that."

Test Formats

To measure that complexity, employers turn to personality tests. They come in many forms, some more valid than others. Some companies rely on assessments that aren't designed for hiring, Hough says, while others use products that have been carefully vetted for that purpose.

In his book "The Ultimate Job Search Guide," Yate identifies several major types of assessments that job seekers face. Objective tests ask takers to rate their own traits using yes/no, true/false or agree/disagree answers to questions. Projective tests ask takers to respond to ambiguous prompts by completing sentences and describing pictures. Aptitude tests attempt to rate workers' potential to learn, while integrity tests purport to assess their honesty and morality.

Commonly used tests include:

• Hogan Personality Inventory
• California Psychological Inventory
• PDI Employment Inventory
• Adaptive Employee Personality Test

The response format differs depending on the test. When faced with the following statements, for example, takers may be asked to agree or disagree, mark true or false, or indicate which of two choices better describes them:

• I like organizing information.
• I like doing things on the spur of the moment.
• I don't hesitate to make decisions.
• I usually keep my feelings to myself.

Practice versions of some personality assessments are available online.

During the hiring process, employers may not refer to these tasks as personality tests, instead calling them assessments or inventories that measure culture fit, aptitude or critical thinking. Hiring managers rarely inform applicants about their scores.

Test-Taking Strategies

Job seekers can improve their chances of getting hiring by enhancing their resumes, honing their interview techniques and solidifying their technical skills. But can they also boost their scores on hiring personality tests?

Experts say yes.

The key is "learning to separate our private from our professional selves," Yate explains. That means test takers should not necessarily go with their gut responses to assessment questions, but instead ask themselves, "How has my experience as a professional taught me to think and respond to this situation?"

Some test formats make it fairly obvious how to provide a "socially desirable response," Ryan says.

For example, if a test asks a job seeker to "agree" or "disagree" to the statement "I tend to pay attention to details," Ryan explains, "both of us know what answer an employer wants."

Savvy test makers design assessments that are trickier to game. Some use "forced choice" questions that present takers with two statements of seemingly equal desirability and ask them to choose which better describes them. For example, someone might have to choose between "I like organizing information" and "I like doing things on the spur of the moment." Others repeat questions using different words and syntax to measure whether takers answer consistently, therefore demonstrating integrity. For example, the same test might solicit responses to the following statements:

• It is hard for me to make the right decision.
• I feel confident when making decisions.
• I don't hesitate to make decisions.

Job seekers can still improve their outcomes on these clever tests by answering in ways that exhibit "good performance on the job, good relations with your peers and a respectful and malleable attitude toward the needs of management," Yate says.

Test takers should keep in mind that employers may seek different tendencies depending on the duties of the open job. For an auditing position, a company may look for someone analytical who follows rules. For a marketing job, a business may want an outgoing worker with strong communication skills and emotional intelligence.

Not everyone endorses the strategy of tailoring answers to fit what employers might want. Workers may fare better in the long run if they answer in ways authentic to their personal lives, Ryan believes.

"My advice is, you might as well be honest," she says. "Do you want a job that makes you do the opposite of what you like to do? It's not to your advantage to try to be someone who you're not. You're not going to sustain it and you're not going to be happy."

But ultimately, each worker must decide how to approach a personality assessment.

"These tests can help you win or lose a job," Yate says. "If you want the job, there's no point in telling them what they don't want to hear."

THE FAST GROWING JOBS THAT WILL NEVER GO AWAY

12 Fast-Growing Jobs That Will Never Go Away

As technology grows and we become more comfortable with things like automation and AI, some people are concerned about job security. While technology will undoubtedly change the way certain jobs are performed and how much human intervention is needed, there are jobs that will always require a human touch.

So, what jobs will never go away? Fortunately, there are many jobs that can only be performed by humans. Furthermore, even jobs that can be made more effective by automation or AI will still need humans to work side-by-side with technology.

Before you start worrying about robots monopolizing the job market, let’s take a look at what jobs will never go away so we can get a better picture of future career outlooks.

Source: Unsplash Alt text: Dentist examining a patient’s teeth

What Jobs Are At Risk of Replacement?

While there are jobs that surely won’t disappear anytime soon, there are others that are at greater risk of being replaced . These jobs won’t necessarily disappear, but due to automation, they might see a dramatic change in how they are performed and how many people are needed to fill these types of jobs.

Jobs that involve a lot of routines and are repetitive are most at risk, and these include jobs like telemarketers, bank tellers, or postal service workers. If a job can be done cheaper and more efficiently using automation, machines, AI, or a combination of different technologies, then it stands to reason that business owners would be more likely to cut out human workers and replace them with a more cost-effective option.

12 Jobs That Will Never Go Away

It’s not all doom and gloom. There are plenty of jobs that won’t be replaced, at least not fully, by technology. In fact, a lot of these jobs are actually projecting a lot of growth over the next few years.

So, if you’re wondering if your current job is safe or you’re looking for your next stable career, here are a few options to choose from.

1. Social Workers

Social workers, counselors, therapists, and psychologists are not at risk of having their jobs replaced for the simple reason that these jobs rely on human touch and human emotion.

When dealing with mental health, it would be irresponsible to leave it all to AI or an automated program to handle such a delicate situation. Since workers in this field rely on forming human relationships and developing a complex understanding of different behaviors, there’s little chance that social workers, therapists, or workers in similar fields will see their jobs overtaken by machines.

2. Educators

While AI is being used more and more in education, it is unlikely that educators themselves will see their jobs replaced by technology. Teachers work closely with their students to offer individualized education. Technology is often used in classrooms to help teachers and engage more students, but an in-person teacher offers more value and enrichment that AI simply can’t provide.

Aside from giving students a more hands-on learning experience, educators provide empathy and develop personal relationships with their students, and this can’t be replicated with automation or any technology.

3. Medical Workers

Just like in schools, AI is being used in medicine to make doctors’ lives easier and to improve the efficiency of administration and even medical procedures. Still, employees like doctors, nurses, and physical therapists can’t be replaced by automated processes.

Doctors in the future are likely to work a lot more closely with technology in order to provide their patients with the most innovative and error-free procedures. However, this will only free up more time for medical workers to focus on other aspects of their jobs, like diagnosing and working with patients.

Careers such as physical therapy rely on professionals assessing the needs of individual patients and offering treatments that are unique to each person, so this is another reason why automation won’t be able to take over this field.

Source: Unsplash Alt text: doctor in surgery room checking status of patient

4. Marketing, Design, and Advertising Professionals

Machines are good at completing repetitive tasks in a shorter amount of time than humans. However, what they’re not good at is creative and critical thinking.

Marketers, designers, and advertisers all rely on their ability to create and think up new ways to communicate their messages.

Sure, these professionals can rely on automation to gather and help them analyze data, but when it comes to creating actionable plans based on that data, it will still fall on communications specialists to come up with the ideas that fuel a campaign.

5. Data Scientists

A data scientist’s job might change in the future, but it’s unlikely to go away altogether. Since data scientists are now less concerned with gathering data points thanks to automation, they can now focus their efforts more on analyzing and understanding the information collected.

Computers are excellent at gathering tons of information in a short amount of time relative to humans, but they’re unable to fully interpret the data in a meaningful way.

6. Dentists

Most people don’t find going to the dentist an enjoyable experience, however, can you imagine robots prying in your mouth instead of humans? Of course, dentists use technological tools to help them in their day-to-day work, but patients know that on the other end of those tools is a certified dentist with a human touch with the ability to make your visit just a little less daunting.

More than that, even if machines were able to take over certain procedures, as doctors, they aren’t able to diagnose problems and decide the best course of treatment.

7. Conservation Scientists

Conservation scientists oversee environmental and forest conservation activities, such as protecting habitats and planning for harvesting and the use of forest resources. In the future, as the environment changes, this job will see a higher demand in manpower.

Automation and AI can help with certain day-to-day tasks in the job — however, conservation scientists need to be available in order to accurately preserve our environments and forests and make quick changes or adjustments based on the environment.

8. Cybersecurity Experts

As technology becomes more enmeshed in nearly every profession, so does the need for cybersecurity. Many companies rely on online systems and IT programs to perform their regular tasks, so it’s more important than ever to ensure those channels are secure from cyber-attacks.

Cybersecurity experts are becoming more in demand due to workplaces relying more and more on digital operations. Since these cybersecurity experts are the ones who create the AI or programs necessary to protect a company’s servers, it’s not likely that these jobs will be replaced with machines.

9. Artists

If there was ever a field that requires more of human touch, it’s the arts. Painters, actors, directors, musicians, writers, and all other types of artists create personal works that can’t be replicated by machines. We rely on filmmakers, actors, and directors to create imaginative worlds and stories and bring them to life.

Other types of creators like visual artists or musicians rely on raw emotion to create their work. Technology can try to replicate certain types of art, but without human emotion or creativity behind works of art, can it really be as meaningful?

10. Dieticians and Nutritionists

Dieticians and nutritionists work closely with individual clients to understand their health concerns and create nutritional plans that are based on their needs. Since dieticians and nutritionists help create plans based on illnesses like obesity, diabetes, or even based on age, it’s important that there is a personal and human element to these jobs.

While diets can be automated, it’s difficult to tailor them to each person’s individual needs.

Furthermore, humans are better able to promote healthier lifestyles than robots or machines since they have the personal and human experience to back it up.

11. Chefs

You may have seen videos of robots making simple foods like pancakes or omelets. While these videos and the robots themselves are impressive, it can’t be compared to food prepared with love, passion, and expertise. Chefs combine their passion and creativity for food with their expertise so that they can create new and exciting menu items.

Robots may be able to help in the future with jobs in the fast-food industry that tends to value efficiency over quality, but they can’t duplicate the way chefs combine different flavors to create unique dishes.

12. Fitness Trainers

A lot of people rely on tools like fitness watches or generated fitness programs to maintain a healthy lifestyle. However, as fun and engaging as these tools are, it’s impossible for these or other technologies to replace the value of an in-person fitness trainer.

Athletic trainers offer their clients motivation, enthusiasm, and personalized training to help them reach their goals. If you’re training on an athletic or professional level, then trainers are irreplaceable as they coach you through competitions and many aspects of your life, something that technology is unable to do.

The Bottom Line

Now that you have a better idea of what jobs will never go away, you can make a more informed decision on what direction you’d like your career to go in. Working with technology is nothing to be afraid of, and it’s likely that most jobs will involve a certain level of automation.

Ghosted After an Interview? Here’s What to Do

Why don’t companies respond after an interview and what can you do about it?

Stop us if you’ve heard this one before: You just nailed your job interview, and the hiring manager promises to get back to you soon. But then two weeks go by, you haven’t heard anything, and the hiring manager is not returning your calls or emails.

Have you been ghosted after an interview? What’s your next step? Consult a psychic? Pull out the Ouija board? Let’s look at the phenomenon of candidate ghosting, why it happens, and how to respond.

Ghosting Is Not Just for Dating

If you’ve been left holding the (empty trick-or-treat) bag after an interview, you’re not alone. Companies frequently leave job seekers in the dark. More than 75% of all job candidates have been ghosted after an interview by at least one company during their job search. That’s slightly better than the stats about being ghosted after a Tinder date.

When Should an Employer Get Back to You After an Interview?

How long should you expect to wait until you know whether you’ve gotten a second interview, a job offer, or a rejection? At what point do you start looking for signs you’ve been ghosted after an interview?

Most non-apparition employers follow up with phone interview candidates anywhere from three to 10 business days. After interviewing in person, a response can take as long as two weeks, especially if you’re likely to receive an offer. At this point, the hiring manager needs time to talk with HR and other team members, get budget approval, and a host of other details.

If they don’t get back to you within that time frame, you might have been ghosted.

Why Do Employers Ghost After an Interview?

Even companies with good intentions can have many reasons for not contacting you in a timely manner after an interview. Here are the most common reasons why you were ghosted after an interview that have nothing to do with you:

• The company is still interviewing other candidates.
• They promoted someone already at the company into the job.
• The person who interviewed you, or a key decision-maker who has to approve the hire, is out of office, busy, ill, or (oh no!) left the company.
• The company has an unexpected urgent matter that has pushed hiring to the bottom of the to-do list.
• A significant change at the company put hiring on hold. This can be a sudden budget cut, business downturn, or a merger with another company.
• They are waiting to hear from another candidate they offered the job to.
• Your info got lost.
• They don’t have a procedure in place to send rejection emails.

Can You Prevent Being Ghosted After an Interview?

Ultimately, the company is in control when it comes to deciding whether to contact job candidates. But there are some steps you can take to encourage them to respond to you, and for you to know when to give up the ghost.

How to Prevent Being Ghosted: During the Interview

Most interviews end with the hiring manager asking if you have any questions. If they do, this is the perfect opportunity to ask about the hiring timeline. If they don’t invite an inquiry, take the initiative and ask for their intentions in one of these polite but direct ways:

• When do you expect to make a decision on this position?
• When should I expect to hear back from you?
• What is the next step in your interview process?
• When are you looking for the person in this position to start work?

How to Prevent Being Ghosted: After the Interview

You can’t conjure up an employer’s call after your interview, but there are some things you can do to increase the chances they’ll remember you.

Send a Thank You Note

You know you should always send a thank you after an interview. (Seriously, you do know, don’t you?) This is to thank the person or people for taking the time to interview you. It also makes you look professional.

Another great reason to send a thank you note is to remind the company that you exist and are waiting to hear from them. This is especially important if they’re interviewing a long list of candidates. If you were the first one in the door, you might be the last one they remember. Be prompt with your thank you, sending it within 24 hours of your interview.

Send a Follow-Up Email

If you asked about their hiring timeline in your interview and it’s getting close or the deadline has passed, you can send another email. Say you were expecting to hear from them by now and are anticipating a response. Ask if they need any additional information from you to make their decision. You can mention that you’d like to know if you should pursue other job opportunities. This shows enthusiasm and initiative and will jog their memory if your info has slipped through the cracks.

Whatever you do, resist the urge to haunt them with repeated correspondence, or an angry response to their silence while you wonder why do companies ghost you after an interview.

Here is a sample follow-up email when you think you might have been ghosted after an interview:

Dear Mr. Jones,

I want to thank you once again for taking time to meet with me on (date.) I enjoyed our conversation and could see myself in the (title) position. I had expected to hear from you by now, so I’m reaching out to see if there has been a change in your hiring plans or you need additional information from me. I would appreciate a response so I know whether to pursue other opportunities.

Best regards,

Kate Smith

Have You Been Ghosted? Here’s What to Do

When it’s been several weeks and you’ve gotten no response to your emails, you’ve probably been ghosted after your interview. Don’t let it affect your ego. In this case, it’s not you, it’s them. Do you want to work for a company that leaves people hanging or isn’t organized enough to follow up with candidates? Move on and continue your job search until you find a company that’s a better fit.

And while you’re waiting for a response, you should always continue to send resumes and accept interview invitations. You never know when a better opportunity will present itself.

Keep Up a Spirited Job Search With Monster

Don’t let being ghosted after an interview stop your search. To improve your chances of a recruiter or hiring manager finding you for the perfect job, be sure to fill out a Monster profile. Monster won’t ghost you! We’ll continue to send you relevant job postings and career advice until you find your fit.

relevant coursework resume

Does Relevant Coursework on a Resume Matter?

Experts are divided on whether this tactic helps your resume stand out.

Can relevant coursework on a resume help grab the attention of hiring managers when you lack real-world job experience? It depends.

First, let's define relevant coursework. These are the classes and subjects you took at school that relate to the job(s) to which you are applying. Examples of relevant coursework for particular jobs include:

• For law firm jobs
  • American Government: Constitutional Foundations
  • the Presidency and the Shape of the Supreme Court
  • Comparative Judicial Systems
• For graphic design jobs
  • Introduction to Engineering and Design
  • Integrated Digital Media
  • Animation and CGI Motion
• For public relations jobs
  • Reputation Management in a Digital World
  • Online Marketing Strategies
  • Strategic Brand Management

You want your resume to be the most compelling advertisement for your skills—of that there is no doubt. However, when you're gathering your credentials to apply to jobs, people are often divided on the subject. Experts generally believe three things when it comes to relevant coursework for a resume:

• some say it has no place whatsoever
• some are in favor
• others believe it depends on the job position you're pursuing

There's a designated spot on your resume for your education history; some prospective employers might be interested to know the details of your studies—and others might not. Ask yourself the following questions to help determine when and how to use your course experience to your best advantage.

What Kind of Job Are You Applying To?

If you're applying for a summer job bussing tables at a restaurant, your coursework is obviously irrelevant because the skills you'll need to perform well on the job have little to do with what you studied in school.

On the other hand, if you're applying to intern at a magazine, the hiring manager may want to know that you took creative writing courses, were nominated for a short fiction prize, and spent time working on the school paper. Those experiences and the knowledge you gained from them directly pertain to working at a magazine.

Think about the skills that you'll need in order to perform well on the job, and ask yourself if you've taken any classes or courses that contributed to those particular skills.

What's Your Work Experience Like?

We live in a strange world where many employers request entry-level candidates to have a few years of work experience under their belts. It's a frustrating, convoluted predicament for graduates and anyone else who's new or just coming back to the workforce.

When you don't have a lot of work experience, you need something to fall back on. Relevant coursework on a resume is one of the more effective substitutes. Including it shows you have knowledge and skills even if you don't have any real-world job experience. Just remember not to go overboard. You don't need to list every class, lecture, lab, and practicum you've ever taken. The keyword is relevant.

Putting Relevant Coursework on a Resume

Opinions also vary regarding where to put your relevant coursework on a resume. Again, it generally depends on the job.

For example, if you're applying to an academic position, put your coursework in a place of pride toward the top of your resume. If it's a technical position, place your coursework credits below your special skills. Otherwise, you could list it in the education section like this:

Bachelor of Arts, English, University of LMNO
Relevant Coursework: Literature, Creative Writing, and Literary Explication

Get Your Resume to the Head of the Class

Use your best judgment, and always consider the position before including relevant coursework on a resume—remember to avoid mentioning unrelated courses or listing all of your academic accomplishments. We know, it's a lot to remember. But don't worry, Monster has your back. Need some help fine-tuning your resume? Get a free evaluation from Monster. We can show you which areas could use some extra attention so that your resume gets an A+ in the eyes of hiring managers. 

HOW TO EXPLAIN BEING FIRED TO POTENTIAL EMPLOYERS

 

HERE ARE SOME TIPS TO HELP YOU EXPLAIN A TERMINATION TO A POTENTIAL EMPLOYER.

Job interviews are stressful under the best of circumstances. So if you’ve been fired, your nerves will likely go into overdrive, especially when they ask the inevitable question: “Why were you fired?”

Just as you prepare answers for other common interview questions, it's important to prepare an answer for this one. Rehearsing some go-to phrases will help you craft a professional answer during your interview.

Here are some tips to help you explain a termination to a potential employer.

Honesty is the best policy
Review the incident or issue that caused you to lose your job with an unbiased eye. Were you let go because of a conflict with a co-worker? Honestly evaluate your role in the clash. Did you fail to meet production quotas? Ask yourself whether it was due to a lack of effort or lack of affinity for the work you were doing. Before you can answer your potential employer honestly, you need to be clear-eyed with yourself.

When addressing your termination with your interviewer, don't try to position it as a layoff or any other less serious situation. Even if you've relocated to a new city for a fresh start, your employer will find out the truth. Be truthful in a way that reflects on you as favorably as possible.

Don’t bash your old boss
You want to portray yourself as a valuable addition to their team. One way to raise an instant red flag is to speak negatively about the last person who offered you a job.

Perhaps even more important, don't gossip about your last boss, your co-workers or the company you worked for. Besides showing a lack of maturity and discretion, gossiping is a strong sign that you'll be a divisive employee.

Don’t pass the blame
Along with bashing, blaming is a bad way to go. Your potential new employer wants to see that you take responsibility both for your past actions and for your performance on the job. No matter how unfairly you felt you were treated at your old job, you must recognize and accept your role in your termination.

This doesn't mean you need to give major details about what you did wrong in your previous position, though. Just make sure at some point you say, "I take responsibility for not performing up to my boss's expectations," and move on.

Stick to the point
A big mistake candidates make when answering this question is trying to explain every nuance of the situation. Don't spend five minutes setting up the circumstances around your termination. Cut to the chase and keep it simple.

If you were terminated because you had an attendance problem, for example, don't go on and on about your sick grandma, your chiropractor appointments or any other life situation that caused you to miss work. Instead, say something like, “I let personal circumstances interfere with my attendance at work. My situation is stable now and attendance won't be a problem.”

Don’t sound bitter
You'll make yourself unattractive to a potential employer if you come across bitter and defeated. Even if you think your previous employer was wrong to let you go, showing bitterness only makes you look bad.

Don't use language that emphasizes a past failure. Speak in ways that minimizes the impact of your termination.

Explain what you’ve learned
Including a “lessons learned” sentence in your answer shows potential employers you're aware and adaptable. It turns a negative into an asset. It also demonstrates candor and maturity by letting your interviewer see that you are objective about your shortcomings and learn from past experiences.

Promote your positives
It's difficult to turn talk of your termination into a way to showcase your skills and experience. Learning to segue gracefully into a discussion of your value to the company is an effective way to keep your interview on track.

Try transitioning with a phrase like this: “I was sorry to leave Company X; I learned a lot about the app development lifecycle there, which is why I thought my skills were well suited to this position."

Practice makes perfect
Getting fired is an emotional experience, and it's hard to talk objectively and calmly even weeks or months after the event. Practicing your answer helps you keep emotions at bay so you don't derail your interview.

Start by writing your response down; put it away, then come back to it a day later and read it again. If you are satisfied with your written answer, try it out on an objective friend or family member. Weigh their criticisms and tweak it if necessary.

Once you're completely satisfied with your answer, commit it to memory. Practice it in front of a mirror several times. Once you're comfortable with your answer and you've internalized it, you'll be able to speak naturally about your termination with your interviewer.