Sunday, December 21, 2008

Commonly Asked Interview Questions and Suggested Answers


Describe yourself as a person.
People tell me that I am a very confident and mature person. I think one reason people tell me that I am confident because in any situation of my life I handle it with a positive attitude. For e.g. when I was working with a marketing company I was assigned a target of selling 20 machines.

My senior colleagues told me that this was one of the unachievable targets. But I took it as a challenge and I worked hard on it continuously for all 30 days and at the end of it, I had achieved sales of 27 machines – which broke all the records. I think this was all because of my confident and positive attitude.




What are your strengths and your weaknesses?
First of all, take time to write down 3 of your strengths and 3 weaknesses. These are examples from personal life; you can quote your relevant real professional life examples.


Since my childhood, I have a habit, if I have wanted to go to a movie, solve Math’s problems; I used to make sure that I do it. I would not care how much effort was involved, how much convincing was required. , so my first strength is that I am a determined person.

Secondly, I have a habit, when I take up some work; I make sure that I do it very well. It was my dad’s 25th birthday. All my family members had completed the decoration, but I started when everybody finished, because I was not satisfied with the way it was. I worked alone for 4 hours and at the end of it, everyone appreciated it. Moreover, my father, for whom it was a surprise, was delighted. My second strength is that I love perfection and I achieve it most of the times.

Now as I have told you about my strengths I would like to share with you something. One of my strength of being a determined person is also my weakness. When I take up some commitment, I invest so much energy, hardwork and efforts in it that I sometimes neglect my personal life, social life, health and family life. I still remember I have not visited my very close friend since last 2 years. My strength of being a determined person is also my weakness.

My mother tells me that I spend a lot of money. I think she is right and but from other perspective, I think what I am doing is also right. Whenever I buy something – clothes, watches, shoes, I buy best quality products, and good products or services are always expensive. My second weakness is that I spend a lot of money.



Where do you see yourself five years from now?
I have observed that your company has grown very fast in the last five years. I want to contribute my services and be a part of this growth. I think in five years I would like to see myself as a Head of a Department.

There are other 3 candidates with same age, experience and work-profile. Why should we consider you for this post?
I know about myself, hence I can comment about myself. I not only have relevant experience in the required field, but also, I am passionate about my work. Most people become Software Engineers because there is a demand, but I got into it because I love & enjoy programming. Additionally, I have achieved two promotions in three years, which clearly shows my performance in my current job. I think these qualities qualify me for this job.

What if you do not get this job?
Based on my qualifications, experience and skills, I am very sure that I deserve and will get this job. But for some reason, if you decide to select somebody else, I will respect your decision and would like to know from you the reason. I will then work on the skills that need improvement and maybe come back to you again.

Your resume has 2 spelling mistakes, can you justify?
I have checked my resume twice before submitting it to you. But there are chances something must have slipped out. Since you are commenting, I would like to have a look at the resume. Can I please take it? I can only find one spelling mistake in EDUCATION, and I am not able to find the second one. Can you kindly help me out? [Take response]. Ok Thank you, for pointing out my mistakes. At this point of time, we have to do with this one. I will correct it once I leave from here and then email it to you.

What if you get an opportunity in other company?
[Fresher] I am working for this company currently and as far as I know myself, once I make a friend, I maintain the friendship for life and it is the same in my career. Once I work for a company, I take it as a long term commitment. In this highly competitive market, offers from other companies will always be there but I want to work with you company to build a Career with you.

[Experienced] I have studied about your company in detail. I am seriously looking at dedicating my services for the company’s growth and I know that your company offers excellent growth opportunities to employees who deserve it. So I am looking forward to work with your organization in long-term.

How to Handle Fear in an Interview?


In the BM English Course participants go through rounds of real-life kind of interview questions listed above and are thoroughly trained to present their thoughts such that they succeed in interviews.

Saturday, December 20, 2008

Tips for Triumph in Personal Interview


The word ’interview’ itself gives each one of us jitters. But if prepared for it in the right manner, this dreaded encounter called ‘interview’ can be accomplished effectively. All you need to do is follow these simple tips given below.

1. Always remember to be positive and keep your calm during an interview even if things are not going as well as you had wished. Giving an interview is just like giving an examination in school where you are extremely uncertain what the outcome will be- whether you will pass or fail? Besides, who knows you might even outdo yourself in the interview and have an upper hand during candidate selection.

2. Mark an impact on the interviewer with at least one unique quality about you that will be in favor of the company if they hired you and also distinguishes you from the remaining candidates. Once they are done interviewing several candidates, they will definitely compare each one of the candidates with the other and choose the one who suit’s the competent position best.

3. While you are being interviewed, if all of a sudden you realize that the position offered doesn’t really interest you don’t just give up and leave. Complete your interview as if you were interested in the job. There is a possibility that even if you don’t do well, the interviewer may recommend your name to another department of their organization instead of the one you had initially come for.

4. Make it a point to not speak negatively about your prior or present employer. Don’t disclose any confidential information about your former or present organization that you shouldn’t. I’ve seen a number of people loosing out on jobs because of incessant criticizing of former or present employer. 5. Keep your eyes, ears and mind open while being interviewed. To answer well you need to pay attention to what the interviewer is saying. Listening is extremely important. Listen carefully to the questions you ask, to the answers for the question you ask as well as comments made by the interviewer.



In the BM English Course participants go through rounds of real-life kind of interview questions listed above and are thoroughly trained to present their thoughts such that they succeed in interviews.

Way to Effective Communication Skills

Communication is exchange of information between people. It includes a sender and receiver. If your communicating style is not effective, by no means can your message make a likely impact on the directed person. It's not only about directing the message effectively but also interpreting the message received in the right context.

Effective communication literally means communicating in a style that can be comprehended by the other person efficiently. In order to achieve effective communication one needs to make sure that the message is clear and ambiguous.

Messages, when communicated effectively will convey your thoughts and ideas to the receiver in the right manner. When communication is not up to mark, your thoughts and ideas will be interpreted improperly by the receiver, causing communication break down and creating roadblocks that stand up versus your goal- both professionally and personally.

In a recent survey of recruiters from companies with greater than 50,000 employees, communication skills was alluded as the most pivotal factor in selecting managers. The survey, conducted by the University of Pittsburgh's Katz Business School, indicates that communication skills, including written and oral presentations, as well as an ability to work with others, are the main factor contributing to employment triumph.

Even after the ever increasing importance laid on effective communication skills, a large number of individuals persist to struggle with their inability to communicate effectively- whether verbal or written. This inability makes it nearly unviable for them to compete effectively for jobs as well as their workplace.

Thus, the proficiency to communicate effectively is crucial if you want to build a successful career. In order to achieve this, you must understand what your message is, what audience are directing the message to, and how will it be comprehended. Also, you must consider the circumstances surrounding your communications, such as situational and cultural context.

In the BM English course, we train you and make sure that you follow the 8 golden rules of delivering an effective presentation.

Friday, December 19, 2008

Links

Presentation Skills
Presentation skills training and coaching from Skillstudio in London and throughput the UK and Europe.



Full Blast Productions
The Internet's #1 ESL eBook Store. Free samples.

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