You finally have an interview! Your moment of truth has arrived. Whether your interview is on campus or off, it is important to make the most of it. Because to be successful, you should always seek to retain control of the process, and the only way to do this is to have control over the final decision. You can always walk away from a company that you later decide you have no interest in, but you need to remain in positive control to retain the power to pick and choose. Your objective in every interview should be to take yourself one step further toward generating the job offer. You can do that by doing your very best in each and every interview. Treat every interview as if it were the only one you will ever get with that company and your only opportunity to convince them that you are the right candidate for the position. Although there may be several interviews before the eventual offer, you must score positively in each interview.

Successful interviewing begins with preparation. Read the following sections to be fully prepared before your first interview. And reread the information for additional pointers as your interviewing approach matures over time.

The key element to successful interviewing is not your experience, your grades, what classes you took, your extracurricular activities, or any of the other basic necessities. Those skills are what got you the interview. The key element to successful interviewing can be summed up in one word: attitude. If you want to rise above others with better experience, better grades, or better anything, you will need to work on developing a highly positive work attitude.

Your attitude determines whether you will "make the cut" or be discarded. Remember, there are plenty of competitors with the ability to do almost any given job-- especially at the entry level. The way most employers differentiate at the entry level is by candidates' attitudes toward the job. Your attitude is often what recruiters will remember when the dust has settled after reviewing ten, twenty, or even one hundred candidates--the one who was sincerely willing to put forth their very best effort. If you have the attitude of wanting to do your very best for the company, of being focused on the company's needs, of putting yourself forth as the person who will be committed and dedicated to fulfilling their needs, you will likely be the one chosen.

Why is attitude so important? Because most companies already have their full share of multi-talented superstars who care about no one but themselves. Ask any manager who the most valuable member of his team is, and he will point not to the overrated superstar, but to the person who has the "can do" attitude, the person who can be counted on in any situation, the person who truly strives for excellence. Give me a team player who is achieving at 99% and I will take her over a flashy superstar who is running at 50% efficiency any day of the week. And so will 99% of all hiring managers.

So don't worry if you are not "superstar" quality. If you can show me, in your words and actions, that you are ready to put forth your very best effort toward achieving excellence, you will be chosen over the superstar.

You can show your winning attitude in the way you present yourself. Incorporate the actual words "positive attitude," "excellence," and "striving to be my best" into your interview language. Then show by your stories and examples how these words positively affect your life. Show me when and where and how you have put forth extra effort above and beyond the call of duty. Show me how you beat a deadline, how you excelled in a project, or how you made a difference by going the extra mile.

If you can show me, by words and examples, your "can do" attitude, it is you I will hire, while all of the superstars will receive polite rejection letters to add to their growing collections.

The One Thing You Must Do Before Your First Interview

Practice. Before you go through an actual interview, you should first go through a mock interview. Nearly every college campus offers access to a career counselor who can take you through a mock interview (also known as "interview coaching"). Sadly, fewer than 5% of all graduating students take advantage of mock interviews. And fully 95% end up stumbling through several interviews before they have any practical sense of how they are doing--because that is when the rejection letters start arriving. And those rejection letters offer you nothing in the way of constructive criticism toward future improvement other than point out to you in the starkest terms that you failed your interview.

The mock interview is more than just a chance to work out your interview jitters. It is an opportunity to practice your interviewing technique and answers live. It is also a chance to hear constructive feedback from someone who can guide you toward improving your interviewing style and presentation.

Just one mock interview will result in a marked improvement in your interviewing skills. Why? For the same reason that a speech is not a speech while it is still on paper or just floating around in your head. It is not a speech until you give it verbally. The first time you give it in front of an audience (remember your first speech in Speech 101?), it will come out nothing like what you prepared. It is the same with interviewing. It is not enough to look at an interview question and say, "Yeah, I know the answer to that one." You need to practice your answer. Live. In front of someone else. This is not the time to talk to yourself in the mirror. Seek out a professional and practice. Ideally, have the session videotaped. That way, you will have two opinions--the mock interviewer's and your own. Remember that there is a totally different perspective in listening to yourself saying something contemporaneously versus the "out of body experience" of watching yourself later on videotape. Just as your voice always sounds different on tape, so do your answers. "Did I really say that?" Yes, you did. Aren't you glad the image is captured on tape (which can later be erased), rather than in a potential employer's mind's eye? Yes, you are.

Go through at least one mock interview. For maximum effectiveness, review your answers and then go through a second mock interview. Even if you ace the second mock interview, it will be well worth it since it will give you confidence in your first real interview.

Insider Company Information

Seeking further company information? Surf the company website. You will not only have a summary of the company's operations for the past year and plans for the year ahead, but you will also have access to all of the current lingo and buzzwords that are in play within the corporate corridors. Some companies will even have yearly "themes." Know what these are and you will score an instant hit with your interviewer. You will be viewed as a true insider for having access to (and using) information that less than 1 percent of the business market is reading--and far less than 1 percent of the entry level job market.

Unfortunately, most college grads are woefully underprepared with proper interview dress. They feel they can "get by" with what is already in their wardrobe. Usually not. Dress for the world outside college is quite different from the campus scene. Remember that stylish is not conservative. You should be doing the talking, not your clothes.

For those of you who need a quick review of the basics, follow these guidelines for successful interview dress:

Men and Women

• Conservative long-sleeved shirt/blouse (white is best, pastel is next best)
• Clean, polished conservative shoes
• Well-groomed hairstyle
• Clean, trimmed fingernails
• Minimal cologne or perfume
• Empty pockets--no bulges or tinkling coins
• No gum, candy or cigarettes
• Light briefcase or portfolio case
• No visible body piercing (nose rings, eyebrow rings, etc.)

Men

• Necktie should be silk with a conservative pattern
• Dark shoes (black lace-ups are best)
• Dark socks (black is best)
• Get a haircut; short hair always fares best in interviews
• No beards (unless you are interviewing for a job as a lumberjack!)
• Mustaches are a possible negative, but if you must, make sure it is neat and trimmed
• No rings other than wedding ring or college ring

Many interviews fail because of lack of proper communication. But communication is more than just what you say. Often it is the nonverbal communication that we are least aware of, yet speaks the loudest. Following are the top five nonverbals, ranked in order of importance, when it comes to interviewing:

• Eye Contact - Unequaled in importance! If you look away while listening, it shows lack of interest and a short attention span. If you fail to maintain eye contact while speaking, at a minimum it shows lack of confidence in what you are saying and at worst may send the subtle message that you are lying. Do not just assume you have good eye contact. Ask. Watch. Then practice. Ask others if you ever lack proper eye contact. If they respond that they did notice, ask if it was during speaking or listening. Some people maintain excellent eye contact while listening, but lose eye contact when speaking. Or vice versa. Next, watch yourself on videotape. It does not necessarily have to be your mock interview; in fact, if you were videotaped informally (that is, you were not aware you were being taped), this will provide even stronger evidence. Then sit down with a friend and practice until you are comfortable maintaining sincere, continuous eye contact.
  
  
• Facial Expressions - It continually amazes me how many college students are totally unaware of the sullen, confused, or even mildly hysterical expression plastered on their faces during the entire course of the interview! It is almost as if four years of college has left some students brain dead or worse. Some interviewers (not myself, of course) have been known to hang humorous labels on these students, such as "Ms. Bewildered" (who looked quizzical during the interview) or "Mr. Psycho-Ax-Murderer" (who looked wide-eyed and determined to do something, although you dare not ask what). Take a good, long, hard look at yourself in the mirror. Look at yourself as others would. Then modify your facial expressions--first eliminate any negative overall characteristics that might exist, then add a simple feature that nearly every interviewee forgets to include--a smile! Not some stupid Bart Simpson grin, but a true and genuine smile that tells me you are a happy person and delighted to be interviewing with our company today. You do not need to keep the smile plastered on for the full interview, but remember to keep coming back to it. Think about it--who would you rather spend thirty minutes with?
  
  
• Posture - Posture sends out a signal of your confidence and power potential. Stand tall, walk tall, and most of all, sit tall. I don't say this to offend the "short people" of the world--in fact, I am under 5'5", which is a full seven inches shorter than your proverbial 6-foot IBMer. Height is not what's important, posture is. When standing, stand up straight. When you are seated, make sure you sit at the front edge of the chair, leaning slightly forward, moving within an overall range of no more than 10 back or 20 forward, intent on the subject at hand.
  
  
• Gestures - Contrary to popular belief, gestures should be very limited during the interview. So please don't use artificial gestures to try to heighten the importance of the issue at hand (pardon the pun). It will merely come off as theatrical. When you do use gestures, make sure they are natural and meaningful.
  
  
• Space - Recognize the boundaries of your personal space and that of others. If you are typical of most Americans, it ranges between 30 and 36 inches. Be prepared, however, not to back up or move away from someone who has a personal space that is smaller than your own. Hang in there, take a deep breath, and stand your ground. For most of us, merely the awareness of our personal space is enough to consciously prompt us to stand firm when speaking with someone. If you have a smaller than average personal space, make sure you keep your distance so that you do not intimidate someone who possesses a larger personal space. P.S. If you want to have fun at a social gathering, step inside the personal space boundary of a friend. With some practice, you can back them up around the entire room without them even being aware of what is happening. But beware. It can also happen to you.

Another technique for maintaining eye contact. If you have difficulty maintaining eye contact due to discomfort at looking someone directly in the eyes, use this technique instead. Simply start at them directly in the nose. You will not have the discomfort of direct eye contact, yet the person you are speaking with will perceive that you are making eye contact (even though you are busily sizing up their nasal openings). Just make sure you don't become so preoccupied with nasal starting that you end up being distracted from the interview.

Everyone uses body language during the interview (whether they realize it or not), but very few think about in advance and modify their body language to produce the most positive effect. Body language is merely the smaller, less prominent nonverbal cues that we give others while communicating. Following are some typical interpretations of body language cues:

• Openness and Warmth: open-lipped smiling, open hands with palms visible, unbuttoning coat upon being seated.
• Confidence: leaning forward in chair, chin up, putting tips of fingers of one hand against the tips of fingers of other hand in "praying" or "steepling" position, hands joined behind back when standing.
• Nervousness: smoking, whistling, pinching skin, fidgeting, jiggling pocket contents, running tongue along front of teeth, clearing throat, hands touching the face or covering part of the face, pulling at skin or ear, running fingers through hair, wringing hands, biting on pens or other objects, twiddling thumbs, biting fingernails (action itself or evidence of), tongue clicking.
• Untrustworthy/Defensive: frowning, squinting eyes, tight-lipped grin, arms crossed in front of chest, pulling away, chin down, touching nose or face, darting eyes, looking down when speaking, clenched hands, gestures with fist, pointing with fingers, chopping one hand into the open palm of the other, rubbing back of neck, clasping hands behind head while leaning back in the chair.

As you can see, there are far more negatives than positives--possibly more than we are consciously aware of. This list is given not so that you can artificially adopt the positive body language techniques, but more to help you recognize and avoid the negatives. If you have a habit of doing any of the above negatives, remove that action from your pattern of behavior before it sends the wrong signal. Concentrate on removing it now so you will not have to think about it during the interview.

And keep in mind the opposite side of the desk. As you talk with an interviewer, be aware of (although not preoccupied with) their body language and nonverbal cues. Do not try to read in more than is actually being communicated, but try to develop a sense of the interviewer's reception of you. The most obvious example is the smile connection--when your smile brings about a smile from the interviewer. Do your best to stay connected with your interviewer--both verbally and nonverbally.

If you have a tendency to use phrases such as, "To be honest with you," "Just between you and me," "Well, I'll be completely honest about this," or other such qualifiers, eliminate them from your vocabulary. Think about it. A person who uses such a qualifier is implying by its usage that they typically are not being honest. If you are being honest all the time (which you should be), there is no need to use this kind of qualifier.

The night before the interview, spend some time with a friend or family member, telling them why you would be the best for the position. Use superlatives galore! The purpose is to put you in the right frame of mind for the interview, so that you truly believe you are the best possible candidate for the job. Why is this so vitally important? See the next item.

Before you can possibly convince me as the interviewer that you are right for the job, you have to believe it yourself. It's amazing how many candidates seem tentative and reluctant to express confidence in their own abilities. Remember, you are all alone once the interview starts. No one will sell you if you don't sell yourself. How can I believe in you if you don't believe in you? I am not here to sell you on our company until after you sell me. Once you have sold me on you, I will sell you on the position and the company, but not until then. So don't expect the interviewer to tell you why you are right for the job. That is your job.