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Interviewing Skills - The Road to Recovery

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With the onset of the recession, many thousands of workers across the globe have lost their jobs. For many long-term employees this comes as a nasty shock. The ritual of not getting up for work soon wears off. When the horror subsides, people quickly recognize that they must update their CVs with their latest skills and achievements and contemplate the prospect of that dreaded next job interview. Depending on the nature of the work, the unemployed individual may well not have been working in a customer-focused environment and his/her communication skills may well have atrophied.

Redundancy is an unpleasant experience. It fills people with the fear of an uncertain future. When will I get that next opportunity to return to work? Is this the right time to change career from IT and become a gardener like your Dad always wanted? It hurts not to be working - it hurts not to feel needed. It hurts not to be surrounded with one's friends and colleagues. If you are single and home alone, it's quite an alienating experience. If you're married, you have the personal uncertainty to worry about as well as the concern for your family's future. Can you continue to afford piano lessons for your daughter? Are her drama lessons absolutely necessary?

The good news is that help is at hand and if you fall into the category of person who has had a job which is not customer facing, you will probably need that little bit of assistance to fire up your confidence and get you speaking and selling yourself like a professional.

The first thing is to update that CV. Keep it tight, accurate and full of your workplace achievements. For example, since taking over as Head of Sales in 2006, your product sales have outstripped all other company departments as well as bucking the trend for your industry. If it's true, don't be shy about making that very clear. The interview is the opportunity to put the flesh on the bones of this occurrence. Explain how half of your sales force left at Christmas 2006 and you recruited, trained and retained your new staff and received a prestigious sales awards. Tell them about your project management skills - how you had to manage your time between London and Tokyo, product launches across continents, languages and cultures takes some effort. Speak enthusiastically about your positive input - if you are not enthusiastic, do not expect your interviewer to pick up on your major achievements.

Enthusiasm is infectious - it sends positive vibrations of personal creativity and success. People like to work with successful people. People like to work with creativity. It is a personally rewarding experience. But all of this stems from confidence. Sadly, if you have been out of work for some time, it's highly likely that your confidence has taken something of a dent. However, there are people and organizations that can help you. Don't be afraid of asking for help when it's needed. Think of this learning opportunity as an investment in the future, not another cost when you can least afford it.

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