Best way to prepare for a job interview?

[Me-Ike]

Well, I wore dress pants, a button down shirt, and a sweatervest...so I still looked better than them.

Then let's be realistic about this. It wasn't your connections. It was your Awesome Aura of Confidence which got you the job.

Congrats, anyway, no matter how you got it!

 

[RoJoHen]

Well, I wore dress pants, a button down shirt, and a sweatervest...so I still looked better than them.

Then let's be realistic about this. It wasn't your connections. It was your Awesome Aura of Confidence which got you the job.

Congrats, anyway, no matter how you got it!

Awesome Aura of Confidence.

I like it.

 

[Me-Ike]

Awesome Aura of Confidence.

I like it.

Something, likely my female intuition, told me you would.

 

[RoJoHen]

Now I just need to get called for an interview at the other job I applied for, and I'm golden.

 

[Maestro]

Secondly, dress appropriately. I've never interviewed for a job where it would have been too much to wear a suit and tie, but I've also interviewed for some where a button down or polo and khakis would have been OK. My Mother-in-Law has a piece of advice on this topic, and it's dead on the mark, "Dress for the job you want, not the job you have."

I interviewed for a job yesterday, and my interviewers were wearing jeans and T-shirts. A suit and tie would have definitely been way too much!

You and I have had this discussion before. Appropriate dress has a great deal of variety to it in the 21st Century, but I'm almost an anachronistic conservative on the topic. Keep in mind that it was only four years ago that the public school I currently work for dropped the "men are encouraged, although not required, to wear ties" from the faculty dress code.

For that matter, I still dress up when I fly... granted it might be the modern "business casual" of khakis and a polo, but you'll not catch me wearing jeans or shorts on a flight.

 

[RoJoHen]

Secondly, dress appropriately. I've never interviewed for a job where it would have been too much to wear a suit and tie, but I've also interviewed for some where a button down or polo and khakis would have been OK. My Mother-in-Law has a piece of advice on this topic, and it's dead on the mark, "Dress for the job you want, not the job you have."

I interviewed for a job yesterday, and my interviewers were wearing jeans and T-shirts. A suit and tie would have definitely been way too much!

You and I have had this discussion before. Appropriate dress has a great deal of variety to it in the 21st Century, but I'm almost an anachronistic conservative on the topic. Keep in mind that it was only four years ago that the public school I currently work for dropped the "men are encouraged, although not required, to wear ties" from the faculty dress code.

For that matter, I still dress up when I fly... granted it might be the modern "business casual" of khakis and a polo, but you'll not catch me wearing jeans or shorts on a flight.

See, to me, wearing a suit and tie is something I reserve for weddings and other parties where I want to look extra awesome.

But wearing a suit and tie to a bartending interview? I would look completely ridiculous. Hell, I debated wearing jeans and a sweatshirt...and I probably would have still gotten the job.

I'm not saying that formal dress doesn't look nice. I just find it uncomfortable and unnecessary in most situations. I don't enjoy wearing ties; hell, I can't even stand to tuck my shirt in, which is why I've taken to wearing sweaters to work instead of dress shirts. If you like it, though, go for it.

 

[Maestro]

Well, knowing what to wear for the interview is part of the preparation process. Like my MIL says, "Dress for the job you want, not the job you have."

I've never interviewed to tend bar before. All of my interviews have been in education or related areas. A nice shirt and tie at the very least was expected.

 

[RoJoHen]

Fair enough. I have certainly dressed up for interviews before, but around here people tend to be very laid back. Even at my current professional job at a school, I wore a button up shirt with a sweater, and that was overdoing it. I interviewed for a job at an insurance company a few years ago and wore a tie. There wasn't a single employee there that was dressed as nice as me. They were all wearing golf polos.

 

[Me-Ike]

Like my MIL says, "Dress for the job you want, not the job you have."

I find that this is still not always so easy to ascertain. Like my interview I had at a publishing house. "Don't overdress if you have a job interview in a more creative branch," the internet told me, "but don't underdress if it is a prestigious company."
Both statements kind of fitted and in the end I went with a trouser suit, to be on the safe side; and overdressed I was.

Luckily, that didn't matter (as underdressed might have) and I think I'm going to give the suit and my wardrobe a lot of intimacy.

Edit: By the way, did the OP's job interview happen by now? If not, when is it? I'm curious to know how it goes/went.

 

[voyagergrl3193]

Hi all. My first post so yay for me! Anyway, I've had bad job interview experiences before. This particular one was at a law firm and the interviewer was really sneaky when he interviewed me for the position. In the newspaper, it said it was a receptionist position but it really wasn't. Turns out he was a scowndral and liked having hot women at his firm. The weirdest thing was that even though it was a law firm, he had his women wearing color coded scrubs three days a week! What the hell?? Long story short, did not take the job.

I'm job hunting myself now and it's been really hard getting my confidence up. I've applied to every place I can find but they either tell me "go online to apply" or "thanks for coming in but we're not hiring at the moment".

Hope the OP's interview went well the other day. Will send good vibes their way!

 

[RoJoHen]

I've applied to every place I can find but they either tell me "go online to apply" or "thanks for coming in but we're not hiring at the moment".

This is why I only apply to places where a specific job ad has been posted. At least if I know they're hiring, I feel like I'm not wasting my time.

 

[Amasov]

Weeeelp, I had the interview. I thought it went really well. Met with some very nice people and answered all of their questions as best as I could. They seemed to like me and I think I impressed them a little bit in certain places. Sadly, no timetable was given when they would get back to me, so now it's a waiting game. Usually when I have an interview, when it's over, I go over it all in my head and think if there was anything I should or should not have said, should have done, but didn't do. The only thing I didn't do that I wish I did was when I was presenting some work of mine, there was one picture I didn't include.

Oh well.

I maintained good posture the whole time. I didn't cross my legs. I had a pad and pen with me to write things down and even had some questions written down in case I wanted to ask them -- which I did. I went in VERY prepared. There was a little bit of nervousness at first, but once the interview got rolling, I was cool.

Fingers are crossed.

 

[Maestro]

Oh, fuck, he took my advice. I hope you get the job!

 

[RoJoHen]

Oh, fuck, he took my advice. I hope you get the job!