WBL Workshop #5

     In our 5th WBL workshop we practiced our interview taking skills by doing mock interviews. During the application process of many jobs there is an interview stage, a very crucial part for candidates in the entire process. It is at this stage employers can best see how qualified a candidate is by asking questions face to face and seeing how well the candidate is able to respond. Just like how resumes are used to establish brand, candidates must use the opportunity of interviews to brand themselves to the employer as the best possible choice for a position. Resumes establish a candidate's brand in terms of skills and experience. Interviews confirm what a candidate established in their resume as well as establish a candidate's brand in terms of personality, allowing employers to see if  what lies behind the name and list of skills is a mature adult or a rude delinquent. Interviews can be stressful, especially when applying to big companies like Google and/or when competition is cutthroat, since there is a lot at stake and making a mistake, no matter how big or small, can seem to make a difference between being employed or being rejected. Because it's easy to make mistakes during an interview it is best to practice interview-taking skills by doing mock interviews, the premise of this workshop.
     There must be preparation done even before the interview starts so you can walk in and give the best impressions. The first thing we did to prepare was creating a resume on Virtual Job Shadow. Many of us already had resumes but it was from the last academic year, so much of the information was outdated or new information needed to be added. Something I learned about preparing resumes was not to assume your interviewer has one at hand. It is best to print out 2 or more copies of your resume before an interview so both your interviewer and you can have a copy. While many interviewers will print a copy anyway it is best to over prepare even though it may have not been necessary in the end than to under prepare and give a bad impression from the beginning. The next thing done to prepare was to dress nice in business casual. Again, this is done to give a good first impression and even though the company's dress code may be relaxed in the end it is better to overdress and be told to under dress than it is to under dress and be told to leave.
     There were many things I did well during the actual interview, such as communicating my ideas and making myself very appealing. I would avoid overcomplicating what I was trying to say not only to avoid confusing my interviewer but to also show I can take complicated ideas and present them in a concise, understandable manner, especially appealing to jobs that require getting the most done without consuming the most resources. What I would say about myself was positive in order to show I am the best candidate for the position. Even when a question was about describing my weaknesses I would make it positive, by discussing weaknesses 20% of the time and they make me better/how I'm improving 80% of the time, since I must show I'm the best candidate. Some advice I was given was about my attire and my facial/body expression. Business casual attire is good but when it's distracting it can take away from what you want to communicate. Wearing colors that don't match or clothing that pops too much could distract the interviewer, taking their focus away from your words and to your clothes. To avoid this it's best to wear clothing that match and is subtle, all while being business casual. Body and facial expressions are telling of one's personality so during an interview it is important to make sure not to give off a bad impression by having bad posture of facial expression. Hunching over takes away energy from what you're trying say both by presenting yourself as a lazy individual and by putting your muscles at rest, making you feel less energetic. Having a frown on your face throughout the entire interview makes you seem unenthusiastic about the job which deters employers since employees not happy with their job will probably perform worse than those that are. To improve these things a candidate should keep their back straight, flexing their back muscles, to show a sense of energy and their face should show they are excited about the potential position. A smile doesn't need to be worn the entire interview but a frown should be avoided. All in all, my interview went well and I have an idea how to improve based on feedback from interviewers and peers.