I’ve just finished reading a series of Tweets from @GayleHoward, award winning resume writer and personal branding strategist. As I told her, I don’t know whether to laugh or cry.
“It should go without saying BUT the interview is not the place to text friends, eat lunch or sip the coffee you bought.”
“It should go without saying BUT don’t take a call in the middle of an interview! Turn your phone off before entering the room!”
Sadly, she Tweeted these lines because someone did in fact do these things. Now, call me crazy, but I don’t remember social etiquette ever going out of style, but I guess somewhere along the line everyone got comfortable. After all, the world is a small place and we are all just six degrees of separation from our nearest neighbor on another continent via the Facebook experiment of the same name.
I will be going on an interview myself in a few days, and as a marketer, here’s how I will approach the process.
Know your audience. I will be interviewing with a national company that provides mediation and arbitration services. You had better believe I will be in a suit that is clean, pressed and lint-free. Just because it’s California, doesn’t mean I get to be casual.
Know your audience. I already know a lot about the company from reviewing their Web site. As the days get closer, I will take more comprehensive notes, so that I can be an active participant in the interview conversation, and be prepared when the inevitable “do you have any questions” question comes up. Since this is a company that staffs retired judges, the devil will be in the details. Polished and prepared, as opposed to the texting coffee drinker mentioned above.
Oh, and know your audience. Aquent, a national talent agency for marketers, presented me with this great opportunity. I see it as my duty to represent myself well to this prospective employer because 1) I am representing Aquent, and 2) I am representing my own brand. Every time you step into a situation, whether it’s a networking event, industry mixer, or the all important job interview, you owe it to yourself to appear in the best light possible. Remember, you only get one chance to make a first, and lasting, impression.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a grande nonfat vanilla latte to sip, and I need to text my friends so I can plan my weekend. You don’t mind, do you?
© Copyright 2009 Theresa Moretti. All rights reserved.
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
Good suggestions. However, the people that need to hear this will not “hear” it because they are too busy sending a tweet.
Is that irony?
I will take a Darwinian approach here, the more texting types there are the fewer qualified candidates you will have to compete with.
Very true, Greg!
Great article, great insights.. brilliantly written…Re your last post – I think I’ll come to California and take a Twitter course. Read a similar story on the WSJ blog. I have not gotten much positive from this, except the fascination…a lot of requests to follow me, no one every comments or RT, there is so much inane stuff…if you read even half the articles you’re on the computer all day and all night.
Thank you, Elli. I would be happy to speak to you about Twitter.
Hi
just found this on my travels and I’m Gayle Howard. I can most definitely confirm that people do stroll into interviews sipping coffee. In fact I know a Managing Director of a large talent recruitment agency who said that at first he was shocked, but it happens so often now that, he smiles and saids “Did you get one for me?”. He said most people have the courtesy to at least look embarrassed. Hard to imagine isn’t it? In fact I wrote a blog post on the subject here as a result of these tweets and the feedback I received. http://tinyurl.com/ydlxq7u
I think the coffee thing should be blown out of proportions. If every company provided interviewees with water, then they wouldn’t need to bring their own beverage.
Another perspective is that the best prospects are usually those you meet by accident – at a party, in a bar, through a friend. You meet with these people over a cup of coffee and in this casual setting you realize you can read them a lot better … you see that get along with them and they are the best fit for your company.
Thank you for your comment, Veronika. I think the business world is struggling right now with formality, as in, how much is too much. I’m currently working at a very traditional Fortune 500, but the dress is very casual. I’ve notice, however, that the interview process is not.
I go back and forth on this myself. I have brought my own water to interviews because many companies now use the “green” approach where everyone brings their own cups because they don’t want paper waste, so it’s actually worked out especially in situations where you are interviewing with several people over many hours.
I agree with you that’s it’s best to see people as they are; as they will be when they come work for you. At the end of the day we’re all just people, right?
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