We all know that nobody wants to be around a sour puss – much less hire one. A cheerful person with great presentation skills and a positive outlook is most likely to be considered favorably during an interview. However, it can be hard to maintain that positivity when a potential employer asks tough [...]]]>

We all know that nobody wants to be around a sour puss – much less hire one. A cheerful person with great presentation skills and a positive outlook is most likely to be considered favorably during an interview. However, it can be hard to maintain that positivity when a potential employer asks tough questions about difficult situations.  For instance:

“Tell me about a time when you had a conflict with a boss or co-worker.
How did you handle the situation?”
“What kinds of things make it difficult for your to do your job?”
“Why are you leaving your current job?”

In asking this type of question, interviewers are trying to find out
how you deal with difficult situations and whether you are able to
solve problems constructively. Also, they want to learn about your
personality, and how you react to negative situations.

Here are some presentation skills and tips for projecting a positive attitude even when answering the most difficult questions:

Use Positive Body Language

It’s hard to project positivity when you’re slumped in your chair,
not smiling, or listless. Sit up straight, smile pleasantly, and look
alert and enthusiastic. These small actions are some of the most basic
presentation skills that go a long way in helping you put your best
foot forward.

Choose Stories that Have a Good Ending

It’s okay to take a moment to formulate your best answer. Think
through where your example will end before you begin the story, so you
don’t talk yourself into a negative outcome. (For more information
about pauses and silences during an interview, click here .)

Balance the Bad with Some Good

In every example you give, be sure to include some redeeming
quality. For instance, in explaining how a lack of information impeded
your progress during an important project in your last job, you can
mention that as a result you learned about a little-known website that
was very helpful and that you were able to share it with your
co-workers.

Be a Problem-Solver

Don’t just talk about the problem. Demonstrate your problem-solving
skills by explaining how you turned the negative situation into a
positive one.

Never, Never, Never Bad-mouth Anyone!

No matter how you feel personally about the story you’re telling, or no
matter how much the other person was a fault, it is a big mistake to
say anything negative about another person. This can make you sound
like you may be likely to badmouth people in your new job. Even worse,
your potential employer may wonder if you might speak this way about
him or her if you leave this job. The best policy is to just present
the facts objectively, and then use your presentation skills to apply
your positive spin.

Another favorite question interviewers like to as is, “When you’re in a bad mood, how does it show?” 
Your first inclination may be to answer that you’re more quiet than
normal, or you keep to yourself. However, this tells the interviewer
that you may be prone to letting your personal life interfere with your
work. The answer to this question should be, “It doesn’t!” (And then, when you get hired, be sure you follow through with this answer!)

Interviewers do not expect you to be perfect, or to never encounter
difficulties. However, they do want to know that you react to and deal
with adversity in a constructive way. So use these simple presentation
skills to put a positive spin on negative situations, and you’ll excel
at answering these difficult interview questions.

In our fast-paced society, with a constant stream of information, talk, and even just “white noise” flowing around us at all times, we are trained to feel [...]]]> We’ve all been there: that awkward pause during a conversation when the silence seems to stretch to an eternity. Oh, no! Was it something you said? How do you fix it?

In our fast-paced society, with a constant stream of information, talk,
and even just “white noise” flowing around us at all times, we are
trained to feel the need to fill the empty spaces. And when these
pauses happen, especially during a job interview, most people’s first
thought is that something has gone dreadfully wrong with their
communication skills.

But this is not always the case. Pauses and silences are not
necessarily a breach in the communication skills of either the
interviewer or the interviewee. Instead, they are a necessary part of
processing information effectively, and can even be an indication that
the interview is going well!

Here are some examples of “healthy pauses” and how they can be used successfully during an interview.

• If the interviewer asks you a difficult question, it is
  perfectly fine to ask for a few moments to think about your answer.
  Most likely, the interviewer will be impressed that you are taking the
  time to carefully formulate your best response.
• If the
  interviewer is taking notes, give him or her time to write between each
  question. The fact that the interviewer is writing down your answers
  and their impressions means that they want to remember them – and
  that’s a good thing.
• Sometimes the interviewer may need a
  moment to think about your answer to a question. He or she may be
  considering an idea that hadn’t occurred to them until something you
  said triggers it, and may come up with a follow-up question or two that
  will help reveal something unique and useful about you in relation to
  the job at hand that would not come out if you nervously “fill the
  spaces”.

Some additional tips for using pauses and silence:

• Practice being comfortable during pauses. Learning to use
  silence effectively is as important to cultivating effective
  communication skills as what you say.
• Use this time to look
  around the room and find ways to “make a connection” with your
  potential employer (click here for more information on this technique).
• Don’t
  be alarmed if the interviewer does not respond to your questions. Most
  interviewers are trained to remain neutral, and do not want to give an
  indication of how the interview is going at this time.
• If
  the interviewer pauses after an answer and is not taking notes, it
  could be a signal that your answer was not quite what he or she was
  looking for. It’s ok to ask if you misunderstood the question, or
  whether he or she would like you to elaborate.

As awkward as pauses and silences may feel to us naturally, they are
actually a vital part of effective communication skills. Try to retrain
your reaction to them, and use pauses to your advantage in your next
interview.

Your first inclination may be to ask how you did, and whether you will be hired. However, it probably isn’t advisable to ask these questions directly during the interview. Instead, consider this [...]]]> In almost every interview, usually toward the end, there comes the time when the interviewer asks you: “Do you have any questions for me?”

Your first inclination may be to ask how you did, and whether you will be hired. However, it probably isn’t advisable to ask these questions directly during the interview. Instead, consider this phase of the interview as a chance to display your presentation skill by asking intelligent questions that show your interest in the position.

Here are some questioning techniques that will help you indirectly glean some information on your performance during the interview, as well as give you a chance to show off your presentation skill while learning information to help you determine if the company is a good fit.

Do Your Homework First

Prior to your interview, be sure to do your research. Being prepared is
of vital importance in displaying your presentation skill to your
potential employer when the time comes.

Look for as much information as you can find about the company from
their website and any articles you may find by performing a Google
search on the company name. Look for information such as company
direction and expansion, and begin to think about how this information
might affect you and the position you are interviewing for.

Write Your Questions Down

Interviewers usually have a written list of questions for you, so
why not do this same? Consider this opportunity as your chance to
interview the company.  The key to developing and displaying your
presentation skill to your potential employer is in letting them know
how much thought you’ve put into preparing for this interview.

Ask the Questions

When the interviewer gives you the floor, actually pull out your
prepared list of questions. This tells the interviewer how serious you
are about obtaining the position, and helps bolster your presentation
skill by showing the interviewer your ability to think ahead and
prepare for situations.
As the interviewer answers the questions, take notes to show that
you’re listening and are interested in remembering the answers. Ask
follow-up questions as appropriate.

“How Did I Do?”

While it’s generally unacceptable to ask how you did in an
interview, I do encourage asking what the next steps are and the
timeline for them.  The answer may help you figure out their reaction
to you.  If the interviewer takes the time to explain how many people
are left to interview and the remaining steps in the hiring process,
they are probably interested.  However, if he or she simply tells you
that you will hear from them, the outcome may not be as promising.

As for the “how did I do” question: if you are not awarded the job,
it is acceptable to directly but respectfully ask for feedback on how
the interview went. Consider sending a note similar to this:

Thanks again for the opportunity to interview for XX position in
your company. Since I was not arded the position, I would greatly
appreciate your feedback and any suggestions for improvement you might
have for me. This information will be of great value to me as I
continue my job search.

Who knows? Maybe this extra step will help keep you in contact with
(and in the mind of) the interviewer for future positions within the
company.