Interview preparation

Initiate’s 8-stage guide to winning your interview.

1. MENTAL PREPARATION

Visualisation

Top athletes visualise their perfect race and mentally rehearse how they will win it. You should be doing the same before your interview – the way you perform in it will have a huge impact on your career.

• Visualise how you want the meeting to run
• Anticipate questions based upon your CV
• Role play the meeting with friends, colleagues, family
• Have a 30 second statement on who you are and what your objectives are for the meeting
• Take an extra copy of your CV

Mindset preparation

You are interviewing for a sales role. Treat the interview like a sales meeting, not an interview. Interviewers are taking up your time as much as you are taking theirs; value your time!

Interviews tend to involve one person asking the other person about their qualifications and experience. Usually the candidate feels humble and too thankful of the other person’s time. This may work for some job roles, however sales professionals are not humble or submissive.

 

THIS INTERVIEW IS YOUR ONE AND ONLY OPPORTUNITY TO DEMONSTRATE YOUR MENTAL AND PHYSICAL SALES SKILLS IN A LIVE SETTING TO YOUR POTENTIAL EMPLOYER.

Experienced candidates will have conducted a sales meeting in the past; this is no different. The person on the other side of the desk is the client and your product is you:

• Find out WHAT they are looking for
• WHY they need it
• IMPLICATION of them not finding the right person
• INTRODUCE yourself as the solution

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