Career Tips for Women # 16

Three Minutes Count!

Julia Goodman runs a consultancy helping women perform well at interview. Using the research from Professor Mehrabian (which I’ve written about before, click here) on the impact of the non verbal messages we give, she films all her clients giving mock interviews.  This has given her a wealth of material to draw on for research.

Keep Focussed

Ms Goodman reviewed over 1000 of these role play tapes and discovered an interesting fact. The first three minutes really count, when you make your initial impression and set the tone for the interview. No real surprises there as we all know the power of first impressions.

However, she also discovered that many interviewees lost focus in the closing stages of interview but those that maintained focus right to the end, gave more successful interviews (at least in the role play interviews). The final three minutes were as important as the first. It makes sense, people remember the first time they meet you, and the last!

Relief

So next time you have an interview, don’t let your relief at getting to the end show too much! Remain focussed and alert and don’t begin to relax until you have left the building!

If you have any interview tips or stories to share, please use the comments box and tell us!

Don’t Rush to Be First

Last in, First out!

If you want to come out on top, according to pyschologists at Carnegie Mellon University, make sure you are at the end of the queue; it doesn’t always pay to rush to be first.

Serial Position Effect

Serial position effect is a phenomenon whereby candidates who are seen last in job interviews, or exams, tend to be viewed more favourably.  The researchers tell us that this has also been observed in TV talent shows. Contestants who appear near the end of the show tend to get higher marks from the judging panel!

See if you can observe this phenomen yourself; and don’t rush to be first!