The Power Of Interview Skills

Life is an interview. I tell this to the kids constantly, because it’s true. Whether you are applying for a job, meeting the parents of the love of your life, or trying to negotiate a deal for a new car, you are in an interview. You are the product, and you need to make the right impression and convince someone else to believe in you. Yes, you need interview skills.

When I present this to students, I am always met with skepticism, because they haven’t considered their lives and their interactions through this lens. Take a minute right now and consider it…I’ll wait.

Yeah…I knew you’d see what I mean. 

So it stands to reason that interviewing is a life-skill that is absolutely required for success in life as well as in business. As business educators, we are uniquely positioned to offer this incredible skill to our students through our classes, and particularly through our CTSO involvement. 

We can teach it. And it can be fun, too. 

Creating A Meeting Around Interview Skills

It helps if you have followed my recommendations in the past about how to construct and run effective organizational settings, because I sprinkle interview skills into most of our meetings. The kids just don’t realize it at the time. 

At the start of the school year, when we greeted kids individually coming into the meeting, that was actually us starting a lesson in interview skills. Shaking hands at the door is another example of interview skills we taught. When we forced students to look us directly in the eye while they were presenting information from the front of the room, interview skills. Reminding them to speak up when they were giving an answer during the meeting, more interview skills. 

Now all we have to do is show the students that this framework has led them to become a better interviewee, which will have benefits for them throughout their lives. 

Let’s look at how we transition these small soft skills into real meeting materials about interview skills:

You Have To Get In The Door

One of the most important things about interviewing often slips the minds of young adults: You have to get in the door. If you don’t present yourself, at the very first interaction, in the best possible light, you won’t even get to the interview stage.  

They need a resume. 

A good resume is much more valuable to the interviewee than it is to the interviewer at this stage, because it helps the young adult keep all of their dates and facts and accomplishments straight so they can refer to them in the interview phase. My resume, for example, is a long history of my education and accomplishments, but is far less important to me now as an interview tool, because I have the confidence and power to easily speak to my skills and abilities. That isn’t the case for young adults just starting out. They lack both the confidence and the deep well of experiences to speak extemporaneously about themselves. 

They need the resume as a prop. 

For most entry-level positions your students will be trying to get, they will need a simple, basic resume that gives superficial information about them to potential employers. They probably should start with a template form of a resume, and make sure it includes their current education level, current and previous jobs they have worked, and all of the accolades and activities they can think of. It doesn’t need to be over-blown or long—they don’t have that kind of professional history at this point—it just needs to get the employer interested.

So they will call.

And schedule that interview.

It’s All About The First Five Seconds…

When I talk to students about those first five seconds, I relate it to meeting their love interests’ parents. The old axiom is completely true: You only get one chance to make a first impression.

• Entrance – Many students skulk through the halls of the average high school, hugging the walls and looking down. Teach—and practice—walking with confidence and a good posture. It means a lot to potential employers that the candidate walks with confidence.
• Handshake – Along the same lines, train and practice with students how to shake hands effectively. This is yet another skill adults just assume students have, but they really don’t. We do handshaking icebreakers frequently to reinforce this important skill.
• Eye contact – While this might present some cultural problems, it is extremely important that students focus their attention—and their eyes—on the person they are meeting or speaking to. Being distracted by your electronics, or things going on in the periphery, is a great way to lose out on a great opportunity with your interviewer. 

Then You’ve Got About Two Minutes…

After you get past that first impression, you have a maximum of two minutes to solidify the positive impression you have made on the interviewer. Let’s talk about what’s next.

• Greeting and facial features – Students tend to not use proper names if they can avoid it, probably for fear of mispronouncing someone. Have students practice greeting each other using Mr. and Ms., just to get in the habit. Also, practice with them what a relaxed, half-smile looks like, so they can create a warm and welcoming environment with the interviewer immediately. 
• Sitting down semi-comfortably – Young adults also, as a general statement, have wretched posture. Practice this in advance, teaching them to sit half-way back on a chair and not to touch the back rest. Further, have them practice on different types of seats—you never know what the interview environment will be!
• The first question you’ll face – I was in an interview this week, and they asked me the same first question that I had when I was 15 years old interviewing for my first job: “Tell me about yourself”. Prepare students by practicing an “elevator pitch” of their highlight reel. 

The Next Ten Minutes Seal The Deal…

If you’ve made it this far, and you still maintain their complete focus, you’re almost completely in the clear. Don’t blow it now! Bring up the following:

• Training you have taken – This is where all of those projects and certifications come into play! Review the resume so you can mention something concrete in this slot.
• Skills you have – Here is where that “time management” and”organization” skills will have tremendous weight! Be sure to include some of those important buzzwords in this portion of the interview. 
• Potential you have – What are you currently pursuing? What are your short- and mid-range goals professionally right now? This is where you show that you have ambition and plans for yourself.
• Opportunities you seek – this is that “Blue Sky” (Disney) thinking area. Talk about your long-range goals, and what this particular job or position can do to help forward those goals. 

The Slam Dunk Ending…

This is where teens fall apart—they just don’t know how to close the deal! Here is what you train them for:

• What happens next? – They need to ask, outright, what the next steps are? How long until a decision is made? What else can they present to make them the best candidate? They need to pursue their own agenda.
• Ask for the job – And their agenda is getting a J-O-B!!! They need to close the interview experience by saying that they would very much like this opportunity. Let the interviewer know that they are a serious candidate to be considered.

Your Secret Weapon

All of these tips fail to mention the single greatest thing your students have that most others their age don’t: Their CTSO involvement!

Well-placed on the resume, mentioned in the cover letter and quick upon their lips in the interview, your students need to publicize everything they have gained from their experiences in your organizations. There have been multiple instances in my career when students were hired specifically because of their CTSO involvement (literally, a kid last week!). 

You’ve given them all of the opportunities and experiences you possibly could.

Now you just need to practice those interview skills to cement it all together.

It’s a winning combination!

THANK YOU FOR READING THIS FAR!!!

Wow, thank you for reading about interview skills!

Hey, since you’re here! You may as well check out how to keep your students safe, here, and learn how to teach an attitude of gratitude, here! Check out our other topics here! Either way, I appreciate you!

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