The Portfolio + Notepad

Here’s a quick tip – spend a little bit of money on a portfolio, leather-bound preferably. You need this portfolio to carry two things – a couple copies of your resume, a notepad and a pen.

A resume because sometimes your printed resume gets lost in the HR shuffle – its a lot quicker if you can just pull a new one out instead of us having to print a new one out.

A notepad and pen because if I ask you a question that you can’t answer, what you should do is right that question down and my email address and tell me that you’re going to find the answer and email it to me.

And a portfolio because it rains in the Philippines and the last thing you want is to hand me a wet, wrinkled resume.

I Interview in Sneakers and Why You Shouldn’t

Most people I interview are quite shocked that I am the person interviewing them? Why? Its because I’m typically in the office in jeans, a t-shirt, and some bright blue Onitsukas and not a suit. I choose to not wear a suit (or business casual clothing) because in my opinion, the quality of clothes I wear has no impact on how hard I work. In fact, I end up working LESS when I’m in a suit and tie just because I’m so uncomfortable. So casual wear in the office is my choice and I allow everyone else to dress casually in the office.

However, you don’t have that choice. In fact the choice has already been made for you if you follow one of the golden rules of interviewing – Always dress better than the person interviewing you.

I’ve had many awkward moments where I’ve walked in a suit and tie and everyone around me is wearing in t-shirts, shorts, and flip-flops. It didn’t matter – I hadn’t yet earned the privilege to come to the office dressed like that – I was still interviewing for the job and so my attire had to be the suit. I had no other choice.

So what message does that send to the person interviewing you (who is wearing jeans, t-shirt, and sneakers) when you’re wearing a suit and tie? That you’re dead serious about this job and you took the time to prepare not only your resume and answers, but your physical appearance, before coming into the interview. It doesn’t really matter if your suit is one size too big or your tie hangs below your belt line. What matters is the fact that you are simply wearing a suit and tie.

While that alone won’t get you a job, these are the little factors that come into play when I’m determining who to hire and when you’re one of the candidates on the fence, you want all of these little factors to go your way. With all candidates being equal, I’d be more inclined to hire the person who came in professionally dressed compared to the person who looks like they just came from a game of street basketball. If that person spends an extra 60 minutes getting dressed for their interview, I figure they’ll spend the extra time to make sure they get their job done right.

The Hand Shake

I know it sounds like a simple thing – a hand shake – but your hand shake is one of the first impressions you make with anybody you meet, whether its for a job interview or any other life encounter. The way you shake hands says a lot about you without you saying a single word so having proper hand shake etiquette is something you need to have because you will literally shake thousands of hands in your lifetime.

Proper hand shake etiquette:

1) Always shake with your right hand. The right hand is the universally accepted hand to shake with. The left hand should never be used, especially with some cultures as the left hand is sometimes known as the bad, dirty, or evil hand. Shake with your right and never with your left.

2) Make eye contact. When you shake someone’s hand, make eye contact for the duration of the hand shake. I hate when people shake my hand and look away or worse yet, look down. That shows me you lack confidence to look me in the eye and say hello and if you can’t look me in the eye just to say hello, how can I trust you to do your job which requires a lot more skill than simple eye contact?

3) Smile Hand shakes typically accompany introductions and you want to smile – remember you’re making a first impression and you don’t want to leave me with the impression that you’re a sour individual.

4) Be firm, but not too strong I hate limp handshakes. It feels like I’m shaking the hands of someone who is paralyzed in their arms. Shake with conviction – be firm, but don’t use an iron grip. The same goes for the ladies – don’t be afraid to have a firm handshake.

So in summary, a good hand shake requires 4 things – use your right hand, make eye contact, smile, and be firm. Practice this with your friends, families, and colleagues and I guarantee you will impress the next person’s hand you shake.

Interview Etiquette – Conducting Yourself During an Interview

Here are some basic tips when entering the interview room and starting your interview. While some of these may not be characteristic of the jobs you’re applying for, these are all general tips which show professional courtesy during an interview:

- Shake hands and make eye contact: This is difficult for many people but during my initial impression of people, I am always impressed when someone can shake my hand and look me in the eye when they greet me.

- Don’t sit down first: This isn’t your office, its mine. Let your host sit down first and wait til he asks you to sit down. If you want, you can stand by the chair you intend to sit on, but we will always ask you to sit down and that’s when you should sit down.

- Clear the table: The only thing that should be on the table in between me and you is your resume and perhaps your portfolio (with a pen and notepad). Keep your bag, purse, phone (on silent) and everything else on the floor.

- Your hands: Keep them on your lap or clasp them in front of you on the table. Use your hands as you talk, but don’t flail them around. And make sure you keep your elbows off the table.

- Posture: Sit-up. This is possibly the worst trait I see in people when they come into the interview – they immediately begin slouching as if that is their chair and its a bad sign. Sit up and at attention, don’t get too comfortable in this interview.

- Take gum, candy and all mints out of your mouth.

And lastly, don’t forget to smile. This is an interview and I want to see your personality, not some robotic version of you. Don’t be afraid to smile and even laugh during an interview – show your personality but keep it professional. Pay attention to these small details when interviewing as the result can have a big impact on how you are judge at the end of your interview.

Interview Etiquette – Part 1

As I stated in my previous post, I’ve interviewed hundreds if not thousands of people, in the United States, the Philippines, and India and while there are cultural nuances that must be taken into account for each region, there is a set of universal etiquette that can be applied to your next face-to-face interview.

Etiquette begins with coming to the interview early. I did not say on time because you don’t want to be on time – you want to be at least 15 minutes early to any interview. Why? To give yourself sometime to relax in the lobby, use the restroom, re-check your attire, and even rehearse some of the questions you know you’re going to be asked. If you come to the interview 1 minute before it starts, you may not have even had time to catch your breath before you’re sitting in the interview room, sweating, and completely unprepared for the questions that are coming your way. In this case, it’s better to be early than to be on time.

Etiquette continues with what you wear – regardless of what position you’re interviewing for, it’s always better to be overdressed than to be underdressed. The call center environment is a little bit different in that it’s a “casual environment” – but casual doesn’t mean baggy jeans, hat, and a loose fitting t-shirt. While the clothing you wear should not be a determining factor on whether or not you get a job, it can be a make or break for your application if HR is on the fence about hiring you. If I had to choose between two candidates who did equally well in the interview and one came in professionally dressed and other in street clothes, the logical decision would be to choose the one who took the interview a little bit more seriously than the other.

The last part of interview etiquette for this part is the meeting and greeting. When the interviewee meets you, make sure to shake their hand, make eye contact and tell them its nice to meet you. I always ask people how are you and while 99% of people say I’m fine or I’m good, what really impresses me is when people ask me how I am. Most people never ever say that and every time some does ask me how I am, I remember and it already shows something about their character and personality even before I’ve had a chance to ask them the first interview question. Your first impression starts with that handshake and that hello so make it count.

This post will be continued with interview etiquette once you’ve sat down in the interview room.