Are You Sabotaging your Interview with This One Mistake?

Most people prepare for their job interview by preparing a professional outfit, paying attention to their appearance and grooming, and practicing their answers to interview questions. However, many of these same well-prepared interviewees are forgetting to prepare for a critical part of the interview – the part where they ask you if you have any questions for them. Ignoring this critical step in the interview process may just cost you the job.

When you fail to ask any questions you send the interviewer one of these messages – none of them positive.

Impression: You are unprepared

Not asking questions may leave the impression that you did not take time in advance to prepare for the interview. Failing to ask questions makes you look as though you conducted no research on the company or industry.

Solution:

Research the company and learn about its product, its customers, its industry, and its competitors. Once you have your research you can ask questions that demonstrate your knowledge of what is happening in their world, you can show you understand the issues they are facing, and you can discuss your ideas of how you can contribute.

Impression: You are uninterested

When a candidate fails to engage the interviewer and ask questions at the end of the interview, they send the message that they are not interested in the position. One of the reasons hiring manager’s cite for not offering the job is that they are unsure of whether or not the person will accept.

Solution:

Leave no question as to whether or not you are interested in working for the company by asking the interviewer about the company’s culture. You can also show interest by letting them know that you agree with their customer service philosophy or mission statement.

Impression: You are unqualified

If you don’t take advantage of asking questions you may never discover that the interviewer has concerns about your qualifications.

Solution:

Always ask the interviewer a question at the end of the interview such as “Do you see any skills that I may be lacking to excel in this position?” This encourages the interviewer to express any objections they may have and allows you to immediately address and overcome their concerns.