7 TIPS ON HOW TO ACE THAT PHONE INTERVIEW

I have a phone interview...what now?

First of all - great job! This is amazing news!

How can you make sure that everything goes as you want it to go? The short answer is: You can't. The long one? You can make sure that you limit all the things that can potentially go wrong and prepare everything you want to say, what you want to ask about and what kind of impression do you want to make. Then, you basically keep your fingers crossed and try your best to sound like a capable and amazing person that you are.

Now, the things that you can control during your phone interview are:

1. WHEN YOU TAKE THE CALL

This one is really important, so please try to remember about it. You don't want to talk to a recruiter right after you wake up (because sounding sleepy and a bit spaced out is just not good) and you don't want to do that when you are tired (because you will sound either bored or angry and you will definitely not focus on the call that well). When scheduling your phone interview to be mindful of the time of the day. Aim for when you are free, relaxed and generally in good shape. 

2. WHERE YOU TAKE THE CALL

Again, this one is important and really basic. You need to make sure that when you will take the call you will be in a quiet place, uninterrupted and not bothered by anyone. If you can do this at home – great. If you can't... You can risk taking this call at a meeting room at work, but I would strongly advise against it. It's just not good this way (and you definitely don't want to use your company's phone or be caught by your boss talking to a recruiter). Try and go to the park, maybe a quiet cafe if you know one. You can also try and take this call in your car if possible. In any case – relax and think for a while before you choose the right place.

3. IF YOU WILL HAVE TABLET/LAPTOP/YOUR CV/ JOB SPEC/ NOTES WITH YOU

Since the recruiter won't see you, you can have as many open documents or websites as you like. This is a great thing, but do not go crazy with it. It's a good thing to have your CV prepared (with notes about specific things that you may want to talk about), the job spec (because you will be able to link your experience with requirements that the company wants you to meet) and some notes (if you did your homework and researched the company, you should have some key points on a separate document or piece of paper).

4. WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO ATTEND THE FACE TO FACE INTERVIEW

You should prepare some dates and times for when you are free to attend the face to face interview. Why? Because if everything goes well (and I am keeping my fingers crossed for you) it really makes a good impression if the candidate knows his/her schedule. It's way better than hearing the candidate panic and frantically go through their calendar.

5. YOUR HOMEWORK - WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THE COMPANY/POSITION YOU APPLIED FOR/MOST COMMON JOB INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

This one is simple – the better you prepare, the bigger chances you have to get the job. You should roughly know what do you want to say, how you will respond to questions about your skills and background, what the company does and what is the role they contacted you about. This research will help you relax and feel comfortable during the call. You are prepared - you got this!

6. QUESTIONS THAT YOU WANT TO ASK

The recruiter will always ask if you have any questions, so be sure to prepare a list of 2 – 3 things that you would like to know. Whether this is about a team that you will work with, type of contract or when the final list of candidates will be drafted. What are you curious about?

7. YOUR VOICE

Relax, stay calm, don't giggle, don't pause for more than 10 seconds or repeat random words. This may be a little bit stressful (as every interview can be), but to be honest – this is just a more formal phone conversation. You will be asked questions, give some answers and get to ask questions of your own – simple and easy.

Things that you can't control: there are many and you can't really do much about them, so – go prepare for your phone interview and stop worrying!

You can do this!

And remember to tell me how your interview went!

Have fun!