While your Resume may be brilliant and your qualifications may meet all requirements for the offered position, an interview is a perfect way for your new employer to get to know you beyond resume: he or she will evaluate your appearance, attitude, the way you express yourself, your body language. Therefore making a positive and lasting first impression is vital to landing a job.

By following just a few simple rules and not giving up you may significantly increase your chances of mastering the “art of interview” and give you a big advantage over the competition. And do not forget: Practice makes perfect. So practice the interview at home, anticipate the questions employer may ask and have the answers ready.

Keep in mind that the interview’s primary objective is the exchange of the ideas between you and the employer. It enables the employer to find out information about yourself not included in your resume and to evaluate your personality, appearance and attitudes. It also gives you the chance to collect the more detailed information about the company that is not available through other sources and its environment. However, to successfully demonstrate why you would be an asset to the company, you are expected to familiarize yourself with the basic information about the organization prior to the interview.

Here are some questions you may be asked:

• Why did you apply for this job?
• Why do you want to leave your current job?
• Tell me about yourself.
• What are your career and life goals?
• What did you like most/least about your last job?
• Why do you feel you will be successful in this work?
• What supervisory or leadership roles have you had?
• What experience have you had working on a team?
• What have been your most satisfying/disappointing experiences?
• What are your strengths/weaknesses?
• What kinds of problems do you handle the best?
• How do you reduce stress and try to achieve balance in your life?
• How did you handle a request to do something contrary to your moral code or business ethics?
• What was the result the last time you tried to sell your idea to others?
• What do you think are advantages/disadvantages of joining our organization?
• What is the most important thing you are looking for in an employer?
• What characteristics do you think a person would need to have to work effectively in our company with its policies of staying ahead of the competition?
• How do you spend your spare time?
• If I asked your friends to describe you, what do you think they would say?
• What frustrates you the most?
• What things could you do to increase your overall effectiveness?
• What was the toughest decision you had to make in the last year? Why was it difficult?
• Why should I hire you?

The day of the interview.

1. Be punctual. Arrive 15-20 minutes before your interview starts. While you wait, observe.
2. Dress for success.
3. Be friendly with everyone.
4. Greet the interviewer by last name and make sure beforehand to have the correct pronunciation. Smile. Shake hands firmly.
5. Wait until you are offered a chair before sitting. Sit up straight, maintain eye contact.
6. Always conduct yourself as if you are determined to get the job you are discussing. Never close the door on opportunity.
7. Show enthusiasm.
8. Do not answer with a simple "yes" or "no." Explain whenever possible. Describe those things about yourself that relate to the situation.
9. Do not lie. Answer question truthfully and frankly.
10. Do not make unnecessary derogatory remarks about your present or former employers. Obviously, there were issues or else you would not have left a prior company or be looking to leave a present employer. However, when explaining your reasons for leaving, limit your comments to those necessary to adequately communicate your rationale.
11. Don't over-answer questions. And if the interviewer steers the conversation into politics or controversial issues, try to do more listening than speaking since this could be a sensitive situation.
12. Do not forget to thank the interviewer at the end.

Legal note.

According to Ontario Human Rights Commission, during an interview or on job application forms, it is not acceptable to include questions that relate directly or indirectly to the prohibited grounds of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, creed, sex, sexual orientation, age, record of offences, marital status, same-sex partnership status, family status or handicap.

The types of questions that are acceptable are those that ask if it is legal for a candidate to work in Canada, or if the candidate has the necessary skills needed to perform the job (such as fluency in English for a receptionist’s position).