Having a job interview is always exciting and confusing. Nowadays, when everyone lives in a world of the latest technologies, remote interviews become more frequent and nearly substitute face-to-face meetings with your employer.
Do not neglect the significance of a remote interview, though. If you do not need to attend the office in person, it doesn’t mean you should not be prepared well for it. A remote interview is as crucial for both an employer and a candidate as a real-life meeting.
If you listen to a podcast with tips on how to prepare for your interview, make notes, or better choose to use automatic transcribing software that has a timeline and allows you to get back to any place whenever you may need it. Reading English audio text will facilitate the process for you and make things much more efficient than just listening to it.
How to prepare for your interview and impress the employer over the camera? Below, we have provided a must-know checklist that should help you be aware of all the details and be on guard for your success and career.
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Prepare answers to the most frequent questions
Yes, you are going to be asked questions. If you are prepared for them well, you will succeed much easier. Consider all possible questions they may ask you. Browse different reviews, visit forums, listen to podcasts with a million minutes transcribed and see what employers tend to ask recently.
If you do not want to be taken by surprise, prepare answers to the toughest questions. There should be no questions you hope they won’t ask. According to Murphy’s law, you are asked exactly those things you are not prepared for. Therefore, forewarned is forearmed.
Some questions are prepared specifically to see how you react in a stressful situation. So when you know the answers to all of them, you have nothing to worry about and can reply very confidently. It will give you many extra scores.
Some of the toughest questions employers ask are about your weaknesses or the most challenging situations at work for you. You might also be put in a very controversial situation. For example, they may ask what you would do if you knew one of your coworkers was committing fraud. Let’s imagine this coworker is your best friend or helps you with employment in this company, etc.
Consider different situations like that. HR managers are well prepared for each interview and know what to ask to frustrate you and see how you resolve the stressful situation. Be even more prepared.
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Look your best
Yes, you do not have to go to the company’s HR office in person. It doesn’t mean you should look messy, though. Put all of your pajamas and shorts away and put on something nice and more or less business-looking.
There is no need to wear a suit but make sure to wear something quiet, ironed, and neat. The overall impression of you can be easily spoiled if you look as if you just got out of your bed. A person with self-discipline is someone all companies look for.
Take care of your hairdo as well. Bring it into order if it looks messy. People who do not look tidy, neat, or well-cared never make good and valuable employees. Prove that you are different.
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Keep your place clean
You are going to have an interview from home, aren’t you? If you planned to do it on the go or somewhere in a cafe, forget about that idea at once. You must be alone in your room, the sound and connection must be perfect, and you have to be all ears.
Your room should be cleaned up. If there is a mess on your working table, remove everything and, once again, show that you are a disciplined person. If there is your bed seen on cam, it should be in order. It would be better to pick a living room for your interview, so no one would see your private things or clothes around you.
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Test your camera and audio beforehand
Nothing can put you in an awkward situation during your remote interview as much as technical issues during it. Even if you have watched a movie or listened to a podcast with audio transcription just an hour ago and your headphones worked perfectly well, test once again before your interview.
Most likely, you will be in touch with your recruiter on Skype or Zoom. Make sure your camera works properly as well as the sound. If you don’t want to start an interview by fixing your technical issues in front of a camera, of course. Such issues will frustrate you, and the outcome of the interview is obvious.
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Smile and stay engaged
Of course, you should not smile, showing your thirty-two teeth off all the time. However, your facial expression should be friendly. Do not show any fear or frustration on your face. Behave naturally as you do when communicating in real life.
Don’t get distracted and show your interest in what is going on. It would not be good if your eyes keep roaming somewhere while your recruiter is talking to you. Establish eye-contact. If they ask you and you are silent because you did not follow the thought, you will fail.
Make sure to stay engaged always. Follow the thoughts and questions of your interlocutor. Show that you need this position. Avoid making an impression that you are just bored, and that’s why you decided to pass this interview.
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Record and analyze your interview
This tip is rather for the case of your failure. If you were not accepted, you should analyze your interview, learn from your mistakes, and avoid repeating them in the future. Of course, in some countries, recording someone without their consent is illegal, so you should ask your recruiter if he or she is ok with that.
After that, use a video transcript service. What for? To transfer your video to text. Your audio to text transcription will help you see the questions asked, your reaction to them, and your replies. If you transcribe in detail, you can even notice what sounds you made in the process of communication or which unnecessary words you used.
Analyzing your mistakes is a must if you want to improve the situation until your next job interview. This is a very good lesson that will allow you to see why exactly you were not accepted to the desired position. This could happen due to a lack of working experience or because of how you passed your interview.
Last but not least, stop being nervous. Everyone passes through job interviews, either remotely or in person. This is a part of our life routine. After a couple of them, you will feel much more comfortable.
