Why Should We Hire You?

UMMMM…

I hate interviews. From the first question to the last question. Do you think every interviewer knows that majority of candidates have to cover their anxious sweat patches with a blazer or do they just think it’s cold? Why is it that everyone insists on having job interviews when it is a mutually hated experience? 

Surely, I can’t be the only one sweating profusely during an interview ,aware of every bead of sweat that pours down my forehead, and also fully aware of the person sitting facing me is asking, ‘Why should we hire you?’  offering me a tissue as I try to spit out my answer. Awkward. Well I love this adrenaline- rush- sort- of- thing experience, if that’s what you want to call it. Although feeling like this, this work based learning module helped me gain better skills and knowledge on how to handle everything to do with interviews in a simulated interview process with my peers. This blog will reflect upon my experience using Boud’s Reflective Model through every step of the process. 

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Experience

For my job interview, I chose to interview for a social media content creator for a hair and beauty brand in Belfast. This job had various roles and responsibilities expected from the candidate and in a simulated interview I had to make sure I met these expectations and not just meet them but exceed them too. I was confident in interviewing for this type of job as I already manage and create content on Work Placement so I thought the interview questions would come a bit more naturally to me, seeing as I do something similar. However, I seemed to forget how nerve wrecking interviews can be.  

Although I have experience in the job I was applying for, this interview process was still a struggle as nerves can take over and my mind can go blank in these situations. Knowing that my nerves could get the better of me in my preparation for the simulation interviews, I looked back upon the relevant lecture material that helped in this field. I started to structure my answers in the STAR format provided on the lecture slides and this helped me form professional, smart answers to any question that might’ve came up. 

See, the problem in preparing an answer is I don’t actually ‘listen to the question,’ in my head I’m 3 questions ahead trying to plan 3 different answers at one time, so I learn’t through this preparation technique that I need to slow down and take each question as it comes and actually THINK about what I’m saying so it makes sense for everyone. Coming across as confident in job interviews is important as, ‘Interview statistics reveal that employers are looking for confident candidates 40% of recruiters state the candidate’s voice quality and a lack of smile might be reasons for rejection.’(2) 

In preparing for the interview, I also looked down all of the roles and requirements of the job and started to match them up with my own experience and interests. For example, one of the responsibilities listed was analysing social media analytics to develop content strategies, and I was able to identify that I already knew how to do this as I’m aware of what day and time of social media is the best to post in order to reach certain audiences on each platform. Through preparing and writing all this down, I was able to highlight a lot of things relevant to the job that I definitely wouldn’t have said if I didn’t prepare or use this template, so I felt much more confident. 

Reflective Process and Outcomes 

Before I knew it, it was time to put all the preparation to use and there I was sitting in front of my peers answering the interview questions with sweaty palms. I was nervous just like everyone else but I knew I was well prepared so it was just a matter of showing that. As the interview went on, I grew in confidence and my answers got better. With any of the questions I wasn’t sure how to answer, I tried to always relate it back to myself and my own skills which was a struggle for me before, so I managed to overcome that through this process and demonstrate how my skills could be useful in this job when asked, ‘why should we hire you?’ This is also something my peers commented on when I looked back on their feedback, they wrote that I ‘was able to demonstrate and explain how much experience she had then related it well to the job role.’ 

With my peer’s feedback I was able to identify my strengths and weaknesses as an interviewee. On the feedback sheets provided, I could see that one of the negative aspects to the interview was that I was fidgeting and so the interviewers tended to focus on that sometimes rather than what I was saying. Moving forward, in preparing for a real interview, I will research techniques on how to stop nerves from showing in the interview so that I can come across even more confident in my answers. 

Some examples of the feedback my peers gave me after the interview

 Taking away from this opportunity to practice my interview skills, I have learnt a lot about not only how to interview but also about myself. As I finish my final year at Queens, and enter into the world of full time work, there is still a lot to learn. However, this process has given me the relevant skills and knowledge I need to start my own successful career path as everyones got to start somewhere! I know I’ve got to calm the nerves and be confident in these situations and that is what I will set out to improve, as ‘knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.’ (3)   

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References

(1)Avendaño, D. (2022) Boud Reflection Model, Toolshero. Available at: https://www.toolshero.com/personal-development/boud-reflection-model/ (Accessed: February 18, 2023).

(2)Jacimovic, D. (2022) 27 astonishing interview statistics for 2022, What To Become. Available at: https://whattobecome.com/blog/interview-statistics/ (Accessed: February 18, 2023).

(3) Sansom, M. (2019) 53 beautiful personal growth quotes to live by – misty sansom: Life purpose coach, Misty Sansom | Life Purpose Coach. Misty Sansom | Life Purpose Coach. Available at: https://www.mistysansom.com/blog/personal-growth-quotes-to-live-by#: (Accessed: February 18, 2023).