The Ultimate Interview Preparation Checklist

Check Out This Interview Preparation Checklist

First, Check In With Yourself 

Before an interview, check in with yourself emotionally and about your qualifications. 

Emotional Check In

When you do an emotional checking-in, it means you sort out how you are feeling. Ask yourself these questions:

• How am I feeling?
• Am I feeling anxious, confident, excited, worried, etc.?
• How does this interview make me feel?
• What am I expecting to happen?

Check in with yourself and honestly answer these questions. Journaling is a great way to express and explore what you are going through. Journaling also helps people relieve stress and calm down in case they feel anxious or worried, as mentioned above.

Qualification Check In

In fact, check-in with yourself also requires you to check the employer’s job descriptions. This way you can examine how you meet the qualifications and qualities required. Meanwhile, some interview questions would probably come from these qualifications. The best strategies therefore could be to list your qualifications that are in line with the requirements in the job descriptions.

Second, Confidence is Key

As we all know, it is very important to show confidence in a job interview. Indeed, in this interview preparation checklist, there are different ways to make you feel confident both internally and externally. 

External Confidence for a Job Interview

Have you ever heard the phrase, “When you look good, you feel good”? Help yourself feel confident by wearing outfits that make you feel good about yourself. The inner work you do is crucial, but feeling good on the outside can also help you feel more secure in yourself. Before the interview:

• Take a soothing bath or shower to lessen stress 
• Pick out an outfit that makes you feel comfortable and confident (even in Zoom interview)
• Do your hair in a way you like
• Wear makeup if it makes you feel good to about yourself
• Practice to smile and speak confidently

Internal Confidence for a Job Interview

Building your inner confidence is crucial because it naturally demonstrates your qualification. List your strengths and achievements, read them aloud to remind yourself you are really qualified. Practice positive self-talk to increase your confidence level. A good example is to use positive self-affirmation to reinforce the idea of empowering yourself. Positive affirmations can go like this:

• I am qualified
• I am capable of doing everything I put my mind to
• My confidence will help me to achieve my goals. 
• I believe I will do a great job in this interview

Third, Practice and Prepare for Job Interview Questions

Practice makes better (let’s not use the p-word because it does not exist)! Take time to practice for the interview and prepare yourself for any questions or concerns that may come up in the interview. Here is a list of best questions for job interview.

Top Questions for Job Interview

Some sample questions for job interview may include:

• Tell me about yourself.
• What interests you about our company? Why would you want to work here?
• Name your biggest achievement in work or life.
• Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
• Why are you the best candidate for the job?
• Why should we hire you?

Practice these questions in the mirror by yourself or with a trusted friend. Ask your friend to ask you the questions and do mock interviews. 

Tough Interview Questions

Some most difficult interview questions may include:

• What’s something that you didn’t like about your last job?
• Why do you want to leave your current company?
• What is your biggest strength? What is your biggest weakness?
• How do you deal with conflict with a co-worker?
• Tell me about a time you made a mistake.
• What can you offer us that other candidates can’t?

Such brain teaser interview questions or “negative” questions are usually to test your self-awareness, interpersonal skills or emotional intelligence. For instance, what does the question “conflicts with co-workers” is really about? It is designed to test whether you have confidence handling difficult relationship issues at work. Do you tend to take responsibilities or blame others? Are you able to manage your emotions at work? Do you communicate effectively? 

Tips to Answer Tricky Interview Questions

Overall, there are different tips for answering tricky interview questions honestly, diplomatically, and professionally. 

1. Be truthful, but diplomatic. For instance, to answer the biggest weakness question, you want to tell a real weakness of yours (be truthful), but irrelevant to the job and hence not detrimental to the position you apply for (be diplomatic). Say, if you are applying for a sales position, it is pretty safe to say you have difficulty with words spelling; for a computer programmer, it is ok to be shy with not like public speaking. 

2. Show efforts to improve. When answering tricky questions, do not end with a problem, but include your achievements, at least tell your efforts to make improvements. Take the flaw of public speaking as an example. You want to tell how you have been trying to improve, including take classes, practice presentation skills, or therapy. Of course, the positive outcome of your efforts is important as well. 

3. Do not badmouth others. The last thing you want to do is to make negative comments about your co-workers, past or current employer, and supervisors even if they are difficult people. That is, the key is to demonstrate your maturity to manage negative emotions, and focus on your professional growth.  

Fourth, Ask for Advice

Don’t be shy about going to friends for advice. You may have friends who have successful jobs or know what they are doing in the professional world. Ask them if they have time to review potential interview questions, offer tips, give their professional opinion, etc. 

If a recruiter helps you to set up an interview, it may be important to ask for advice of questions such as

• Who would interview me?
• What will be the interview process like?
• How quickly does the position need to be filled?
• What is the salary range for the position?
• Is there any type of test I should prepare for?

With the help of such information, you can prepare accordingly. For instance, once you have the interviewers’ names, you can connect with them on LinkedIn and start the connections before the interview starts. By adding this tip on your interview preparation checklist, you have a better chance of networking no matter what outcome your interview turns up to have.

Fifth, De-Stress & Fight Your Negative Thoughts

It is essential to de-stress before an interview, especially if you struggle with anxiety. One way to de-stress is by practicing mindfulness. Before your interview, you can go on a mindful walk. Go on a walk and tune into your senses to feel present and content at the moment. Listen to the birds chirping, look at the trees rustling in the wind, feel the sun on your skin, smell the flowers, or drink water and hydrate. You can also eat a nutritious breakfast mindfully before you leave. Turn off any distractions (like the TV or radio) and tune into your sense, as mentioned before, while you eat and drink your food. By mindfully walking or eating, you are allowing yourself to feel the calmness of the present moment.

It is also essential to work on your negative thoughts. Negative thoughts only hold you back from embracing the confident, inner you! Speak kindly to yourself and challenge the discouraging thoughts that come in. If you think, “I can’t do this,” question why you believe this way. Try listing the reasons why you CAN do it and all the qualifications you possess. 

Negative thoughts can contain serious implications; therefore, fighting these harmful thought patterns is essential. We all have distorted thinking. For example, black-or-white thinking, overgeneralization, or jump to a conclusion. Practice to reframe negative thoughts, for example, from “I’ll never get a job” to “I am making efforts to pass the interview and hopefully get the job.”

Sixth, Prepare Thoughtful Questions to Ask

It is apparently a must-have on the interview preparation checklist to include research of the company. Look up and research the company you are interviewing for. Go on the company’s website and look up information that can be useful to know in the interview. Also, research the role you are applying for. Read up on the qualities and requirements of each job and practice your answers to highlight these qualifications.

At the end of each interview, the interviewer will usually ask if you have any questions of your own. Make sure you are equipped with questions to throw back at them. Some questions can include:

• What is your work culture like?
• What would a typical day in this role be like?
• Why do you like working here?

• What qualities do your most successful employees have?

• I was wondering what the the next steps are in the hiring process?

Seventh, Make a “Pump-Up Ritual”

Create a fun, pump-up ritual before the interview. Make a motivational and energetic playlist to blast, dance to the music, find motivational quotes to recite to yourself, watch an episode of your favorite TV show, practice self-care or a hobby, etc. 

It is very important to relax yourself right before you enter the interviewing office or Zoom meeting. There are different ways to help yourself to stay calm. If you prepare for an in-person interview, you may want to say hi and have a small talk with the front desk staff, doorman, or anyone on the hallway. By doing so, you will be able to be less nervous for the interview. If you prepare for a Zoom interview, it may be a good idea to sing a song or stretch yourself before the interview starts.

Eighth, Prepare for Any Outcome and Be Proud of Yourself

Go into an interview expecting any outcome. It would be fantastic if you got the job but prepare for the other alternatives, as well. Some interviewers, unfortunately, may “ghost” you. As mentioned in our previous article about ghosting, job ghosting can happen. You may also find out the job decided to go with another candidate or move on with the interview process without you – this is why it is essential to prepare yourself for any outcome.

Regardless of how the process turns out, be proud of yourself for all your hard work in this interview. If you didn’t get the job, show yourself self-compassion and understanding. If you get the job, be proud of yourself – YOU DID IT

Ninth, Write a Thank-You Letter After Interview

It is always essential on the interview preparation checklist to write a thank you letter after the interview. A thank-you note may give you an opportunity to reiterate points you made during your interview. Meanwhile, it is to show that you’re still interested in the position. At least it can be a network opportunity even if you don’t get the job. How to write a thank you letter after interview? It may include:

• Express thanks for the interviewer’s time.
• Briefly reinforce why you’re interested in the job and why you’d be a good match.
• Offer to answer any questions they might have.