Candidates seeking a good paying job in reputable companies must be prepared enough to land that job. Since there is a huge pool of job applicants who have similar goal as you do, you must aim to stand out from the rest and be the first to be noticed by the employer.

Good candidates are those who project confidence in the way they answer the questions. Companies seek for potential candidates who possess the knowledge, skill, and attitude needed for the position. They want competent workforce and you have show them that you are competent enough to get selected. The following questions should help you prepare for your interview:

• How do you impress an interviewer during the hiring process?
• How can you make yourself a strong candidate for the job?
• What preparations do you need to do in order to be short-listed for the position?

Create that sense of need and interest for the company to choose you over the other applicants following these simple but effective steps. It is not all the time that you win them over through good looks and a pleasing personality, although these are also contributing factors. Most of the time, it is with competencies that they are after of. So consider the following preparations on how to be a strong candidate and impress the employer during the interview.

Competency-based interviewing is what most companies use these days to scrutinize qualified applicants. In order to come out a stronger candidate than the others, learn the techniques in answering a competency-based interview since it is not just a simple kind of interview.

First off, know what employers look for in a competency-based interview. They will look for positive indicators that you are indeed competent enough. On the other hand, if you demonstrate mostly negative indicators, you will have slim chances of being qualified. Some of these negative indicators will include taking things personally, viewing challenge as a problem, not getting any help when needed, and wanting to work on your own.

Apart from skills and attitude, the employer will also consider your interest and motivation to work for the company. Before you arrive for the interview, make sure you have studied and researched on the company profile, the industry it belongs, and the nature of your desired position. The interviewer will ask questions about what you know about the company. Be confident enough to briefly share to them what you have researched. That will surely impress your potential employer.

Target the Needs of the Company

Run through the qualifications that an employer needs for a certain position. If you match the skills that they require, make it your weapon during the interview. But do not sell your experiences first. In order to get their interest and attention, recognize first their needs then demonstrate to them that you possess the skills that match or suit their needs. They will appreciate your interest in contributing your competencies to fill in their needs. Just remember not to oversell yourself. This can be a turn off to the interviewer. Be yourself during the interview and simply sound naturally conversant when talking to your interviewer.

Highlighting Your Competencies

For a competency interview, the most important thing to do is to emphasize on your capabilities. List-down your communication competency, decision-making, problem solving, teamwork, adaptability, your energy or drive to do the work, and other key competencies you possess that will impress your interviewer. These pieces of information must also match with what you wrote on your resume. Otherwise, you will be questioned for inconsistency of your answers in contrast to that on your resume.

Bear in mind that a competency-based interview is a situational or behavioral type of interview as well. More often than not, your interviewer will be asking you questions that will require you to provide situations and share examples or experiences. It can be quite a turn off if there is a long delay in answering because you have to mentally sort through those experiences, and sometimes cannot even think of one because of nervousness. For you to be prepared enough for such questions; make a list of your accomplishments, the work challenges you successfully resolved, your leadership experiences, and the like. Your spontaneity and natural manner of answering those questions will create an impression on your interviewer.