Something  I am frequently asked to do in my role is help people prepare for an upcoming interview. Instead of the typical paragraph-based post, I thought this one would best be communicated by several short and concise points:

  • Interviews are not a natural thing. They only occur in the proffestional world, and feel awkward for everyone involved. This is one of the few times where you need to talk about
    you, use the word I, and take credit where it is deserved. Own the awkwardness!
  • If this is an interview with a new company, do your research on the company! An engineering role is an engineering role, but what seperates the company is their mission, their goals, their work/life balance, and their culture. The more you know about the company, the more you can tweak your answers in your interview
  • If this is an interview with a new company, remember that you are also interviewing them.
    Your future leader is likely one of the people interviewing you, and you can feel out their style, or ask questions about their goals for you or the team.
  • Avoid the trap of going over your resume in your opening. The interviewers read it. Tell them a story about something that sets you apart or that will draw their interest.
  • Be prepared with 3-4 stories you want to tell, and try to weave them into your answers. For a non-technical interview, there is a high likelyhood that you can weave at least one of the 3-4 stories you want to tell into an answer for whatever question you are asked. If there is one story to tell that you didn't get a chance to tell that you think makes you uniquely qualified, close with it!
  • Don't feel pressured to ask questions at the end just for the sake of asking questions. Be genuine. It is fair to ask about timelines for next steps, but I personally am not a fan of staged questions.
  • Showcase why you are UNIQUELY qualified to be the best person for the role. What experiences do you have that nobody else has?
  • Similar to above, consider who your competition might be, and what sets you apart from them. What stories are they going to tell and why is your story more compelling?
  • Practice. If you get the questions or themes ahead of time, it should feel like reading from a script on TV with the occasional conversational drift during follow-up questions.
  • If the interview is virtual, don't be afraid to have notes on your computer. They can't see your screen so you can use that to your advantage!

I tried to keep this at 10 recommendations, otherwise I’d run the risk of offering too much advice. If you have my contact information, feel free to reach out so we can plan your interview together!