From the category archives:

Tips

How to Ask Good Questions? It’s Not About You, It’s About Them

February 28, 2010

Ideal interviews are ones where you and the interviewer(s) are carrying a normal conversation. Both parties take turns asking and answering questions within the flow of the conversation, and you don’t feel like you’re part of an interrogation. While you may not have the opportunity to ask questions in the middle of the interview, you will always be given at least a few minutes at the end.


Most people now know that asking good questions is a key part of the interview. Asking the right type of questions can definitely leave the interviewer with a great impression about you. But what are good questions to ask? Here are 3 rules to keep in mind…

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How to Introduce Yourself in an Interview

November 7, 2009

Interviews are won or lost in the first 5 minutes. Experienced interviewers can tell in your initial interactions with them if there’s potential here, or if you’re just not going to fit in. Over the last 2 weeks, I’ve worked with over 75 undergraduates conducting 1-on-1 mock interviews with them, and I can definitely tell you, after just the first few questions, which were the handful that stood out from the crowd.


So what does this mean? You need to start your interview strong! Prepare for the typical introductory questions (e.g. can you start by telling me a little bit more about yourself? Why are you interested in working for us? Why this role?), and be ready to really impress the interviewer with your answer.


Today I want to focus specifically on the introduction – what should you say and how much should you say if the interviewer asks you to tell them more about yourself?

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Forget Networking, Start Mingling

October 11, 2009

Everyone has heard the importance of networking and building a personal network, and in today’s struggling economy that’s even more true than normal. While job creation is beginning to slowly pick-up, experts say that as low as 10% of all available jobs are ever posted publicly (i.e. in the newspaper or on the Internet). That means that potentially up to 90% of jobs form what we call the Hidden Job Market. With that in mind, letting people know what you’re interested in, what you’re good at, and what you’re most passionate about are critically important.


Reaching out to your existing network is the first step, but that typically won’t be enough. You will need to re-connect with people you haven’t talked to in sometime, and you will definitely want to meet new interesting people. Well, there’s no better time to get going than right now!

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How to Impress at Company Presentations

August 31, 2009

As campus recruiting season kicks off, companies are quickly lining up to come onto campus to tell you that they are hiring, they are looking for the best & brightest, and why you should come work for them.


Attending all these company presentations can be a tiring and time consuming process, but many students feel that if they don’t go, it will lessen their chances in getting hired. Is that really the case?


Well, not necessarily. While making a good first impression can get you noticed and help you score some early points, the opposite can also happen. Being rude, too competitive, or asking the wrong type of questions can also get you noticed, but for the wrong reasons. In this post, I want to let you in on some of the secrets and the mindset from the company / recruiter’s perspective

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3 Tips as University Application Season Begins

July 27, 2009

With many students already back to school here in Singapore, and back-to-school season hovering right around the corner in North America, university career fairs have begun, marking the beginning of the university application season.   In the past 2 weeks, I’ve already attended 2 such fairs here in Singapore, focused on studying abroad, at the top schools in Australia, [...]

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