A job interview is a weird experience. You never know what you're walking into. Will the interview be a lively, stimulating discussion about meaty topics -- a conversation that will inspire you?

Or, will it be a hopeless slog through a list of idiotic questions asked of you by a not-very-smart person who also has a chip on their shoulder?

You have to get there to find out!

I understand completely why some job applicants become cynical. They can start to think "I have a job interview tomorrow, but it's probably a waste of my time." They don't take the interview seriously. They don't prepare for it. They just show up and hope for the best.

That's the worst thing you can do! If you don't have time to prepare, maybe you should cancel the interview.

Even candidate who are too intelligent to ask the dreaded question "What does your company do?" (an instant "knockout" item for many hiring decision-makers, because it shows that the applicant didn't take five minutes to research the company) will give away their lack of preparation within the first three minutes.


That's not good! You have to walk into every job interview assuming that your interviewers will be qualified for their jobs, even though we know that's not always true. You have to prepare for the best situation, not the worst one.

Otherwise, you could walk into an interview expecting another disappointment and learn to your dismay that the job is a good fit for you, and the company is great -- but you're not going to get the job, because you didn't prepare!

Here are five essential items you must bring to every job interview.

1. Your padfolio, pen and extra resumes

2. An understanding of the organization

3. A Pain Hypothesis

4. A list of questions

5. Knowledge of your value

You must, of course, be dressed appropriately for the interview and perfectly groomed. A "dry run" drive, walk or bus ride to the interview location will help you ensure that you arrive on time.

Prepare your clothes and supplies the day or night before the interview. You'll bring a leather or vegan leather padfolio with a full pad of paper (not the leftover scribbled pages from last week's interview) inside. On the top page of the pad inside your padfolio, write the name of the person you're scheduled to meet, and their job title. Write the job title of the position you're interviewing for.

Do your research online before the interview so that you're well-informed about the organization you're interviewing with. You need to know the answers to these questions:

1. What does the organization do?

2. How long has the organization existed? How was it founded? Who founded it?

3. Who runs the organization now? Where are its locations? How many people work there?

4. What do they sell, and to whom? Who are their competitors?

5. What's new with this organization and in the industry in general? Read industry blogs and news to get a feel for the landscape in which your possible next employer operates.

You are not going to research the organization just so that you can answer questions the interviewer may ask you, but also so that you can formulate good questions of your own. Think about the organization and its challenges and opportunities. What are the biggest issues for the organization to confront in 2018?

A Pain Hypothesis is an educated guess about which problems might be keeping your hiring manager -- that is, your possible next boss -- up at night.

If it is a GNLD company, just carry patience
Because those ppl can make you kill them

Nice and helpful article