Wednesday, November 28, 2012

The Art of Interview Smarts


Hello everyone!

I don’t like exam season…I doubt you do either. I’m going to let Katrina work her magic and try to help us get through it.

Today, I’m talking about something completely unrelated…kind of. Magazines! Job Postings to be exact. It’s a magazine that the AA&CC subscribes to, and it’s linked to the jobpostings.ca website, which is pretty awesome.

At first glance, I wasn’t too keen on picking it up to read through it. Sure, the cover was interesting (a business woman with an epic mustache?!) but how could a magazine about job postings possibility interest me in the slightest? It turned out to be one of the most interesting things I’ve read all week (sorry profs, your textbooks aren’t as stimulating as you think).

In the November 2012 issue, various topics are discussed. Given that I’ll be seeking for a co-op job next semester, I was drawn towards the articles that discussed what to do during interviews. I touched on interviews in a previous blog post, but Job Postings has an added benefit: it includes interviews from industry professionals who are able to tell you exactly what is needed for success.

“Interview Smarts” on page 12 talks to Lisa-Marie Winning, an HR professional at Investors Group. Her biggest tip was about how to approach interview questions. She’s looking for “someone who approaches the answer with excitement, not someone who gives me the sense that it was a taxing experience, that they are glad is over.” Don’t talk about your experiences like they were a pain. Talk about them as learning experiences, as challenges that you enjoyed and thrived in. Lisa-Marie wants a candidate who enjoys working really hard and is inspired by the results of their efforts.

On a related note is the article “Mirror, Mirror, on the Wall…”. It talks about how to answer the classic interview question: “what are your strengths and weaknesses?” Personally, this is one of the questions I dread. It’s so simple, but a small slip-up can make you sound incompetent or like you’re lying your pants off (even though you’re not). The article is great in providing a system to create the perfect (truthful) answer.

Check out Job Postings at the AA&CC (AC213). Drop by anytime and grab a copy; you’ll find it’s an invaluable resource when you’re job hunting!

I hope your exams treat you nicely!

-Farihah

2 comments:

KARMA MRA MGTOW said...

To The University of Toronto Student’s Union


http://www.avoiceformen.com/feminism/to-the-university-of-toronto-students-union/

Monu said...

Her biggest tip was about how to approach interview questions. your essay writer