(Opening music)
Mitch Clingo
Hello everybody and thanks for joining for our third career podcast… career conversation that we’re having. I’m Mitch! I’m one of the Career Education Coordinators at TRU and I’m joined by two of our ambassadors, Bharat and Margo. We’re gonna be talking about interviews today, going through kind of some of the… the ups and downs and quirks of… of our interview experiences. Margo, can you take a sec just to introduce yourself? Let us know, kind of your program and what you did as your Co-op.
Margo Beitel
Yeah, for sure. Like Mitch said, I’m Margo and I’m in my 4th year of the business program with a major in marketing and my co-op experience… I’ve only done one co-op, but I did three work terms with the same group. So that was the Future Students Office at TRU and I was student recruiting and advising which was really fun.
Mitch Clingo
Awesome and Bharat? What about you?
Bharat Nayar
Hello. My name is Bharat and I’m an HR student here at TRU. I’m in my second year currently and I’m looking for my first Co-op, so it’s going to be an interesting thing with COVID.
Mitch Clingo
Talk a little bit about the experience you bring from your home country. Cause before you… you had quite a cool career.
Bharat Nayar
Yes, I was a lawyer by profession. I did my five year law degree, graduated in 2018 and after that I worked in several courts and tribunals for some time after clearing my bar exam. So I practiced law for a while in India and then I came to Canada to study business.
Mitch Clingo
Awesome, so interviews. Interviews are so tough because there’s so much at stake. We are really excited to do them because they lead to this really cool opportunity, but there’s a lot of pressure there. Because essentially it’s a formalized judging process where you’re talking at other people and they judge you on your skills and your experiences. And yeah, it’s just not a good feeling all the time. So let’s start in with how you guys prepare for interviews.
Margo Beitel
One thing I do to kind of reduce my nervousness is remind myself that like, I’m interviewing them too! Like, obviously I’m trying to get the job, but if I go in and they’re rude to me or something, it’s like well, I don’t want to work with them, you know? So in a way, it’s kind of like a two way thing and that makes me feel a little bit less anxious, ’cause you’re like oh… I’m judging them too.
But yeah, aside from that, I do a lot of practice. I research whoever is interviewing me and the company online a lot. I look at LinkedIn. I look at their values on the webpage. And if they give you kind of an assignment like, “we want you to do this during the interview”, I practice that a lot.
Mitch Clingo
Cool, what about you, Bharat?
Bharat Nayar
As Margo said, interviews are definitely nerve wracking and she made a really good point that it’s us also… the person who is being interviewed… it’s their job also to interview the interviewer. So it’s a two way thing definitely. So that takes a little bit of the pressure off.
Mitch Clingo
Do you have any routines or rituals that you go through?
Bharat Nayar
Oh yes! On the day of the interview I always make it a point to shave.
(Mitch Clingo and Margo Beitel laugh)
Mitch Clingo
That’s a great one.
Margo Beitel
Good call! Good call.
Bharat Nayar
So you just have to look very presentable. And you know we have to look very sharp and at your best. So bring your A game to the interview. And you know I what I tend to do is I shave and put my best shirt on and since we’re doing these video interviews now, so you never really know what someone wearing underneath. So yeah, just wear the shirt and wear tracks.
Margo Beitel
Yeah, I guess yeah my only routines would be kind of similar to that as well. Like even if my interview is in the afternoon, I’ll put out my clothes that I’m going to wear to the interview the night before. Just kind of be extra prepared. I put on makeup usually for interviews, which I don’t always do on a day to day basis. So I’m just trying to be more presentable. Yeah.
Mitch Clingo
I like hearing that you lay out everything ahead of time. I’ve definitely fallen into the trap where I’m like… It’s an hour before the interview and I’m like, “Oh my God, where are my nice shoes?” And they’re in the back of the closet covered in dust or… or mud or something. And I’ve gotta like (laughs), get them in good shape. But like you said Bharat, we don’t, we don’t necessarily need that half of our bodies anymore for (laughs). For these COVID interviews.
Bharat Nayar
That’s the cheat code!
Mitch Clingo
Yes! Get around some of the annoying elements. But COVID kind of adds its own dimensions of frustration. What are some of the like, the ups and downs about doing like… virtual interviews?
Bharat Nayar
I think the number one thing is the stability of the connection when you’re on a video call. So you know you can have issues with the voice and the connection can be a bit patchy. So that’s the number one issue that I usually face. And when the background doesn’t display properly and there are issues with the video. So those are my key things.
Margo Beitel
Yeah, there’s pros and cons for sure. I find it a little bit less anxiety inducing because you’re at home on your computer. You’re more familiar with the space if you’re doing an online interview kind of thing. But at the same time you don’t get to shake someone’s hand. It’s kind of like, “Hi, nice to meet you even if it’s just over the phone”, and…
Mitch Clingo
There’s always that little awkward joke in there. Right?
Margo Beitel
It’s a little bit awkward, yeah! But it’s… I don’t know that… Yeah, there’s definitely pros and cons and you can wear pajama bottoms, which is nice to feel a bit more in your element. Yeah!
Mitch Clingo
I had, my last virtual interview was years ago but it’s because I was interviewing somebody in a different town, but I remember sticking post-it notes all over the back of my… my wall. So one of the pros that I found for virtual interviews is that I could put my cheat sheets all right behind my camera and so reference them for the technical questions. And I love that.
Margo Beitel
That’s a really good idea! I never even thought of that!
Bharat Nayar
Yeah, me neither. That’s very smart on your part.
(Mitch laughs)
Mitch Clingo
The trick though, is to put it by the camera so it looks like you’re still looking at the camera. You’re just looking really past… right past it.
Margo Beitel
I have a presentation later today and I’m going to use that now.
(Mitch laughs)
Mitch Clingo
You mentioned kind of ways to kind of deal with the anxiety or pressure when we were talking kind of before this. What are some of the strategies you guys use to calm your nerves? I know like I grew up super anxious and I always try to refocus in that… that waiting room or waiting for that call to start. What do you guys like to do?
Margo Beitel
I try not to focus too much on what it’s gonna be like ’cause you can never really know what the actual interview is going to be like. You already did all your preparing, so panicking last minute doesn’t help. So I try to take my mind off it by like looking forward to something later, like when I get home, I’m going to make cookies! That’ll be so nice! And I just think about that. Like oh, do I need to go to the grocery store? Just kind of take my mind off of it so I don’t go in already like panicked about the possibilities.
Bharat Nayar
What I like to do is because usually I have mock interviews scheduled before the interview. So I usually am very prepared before the interviews. So it kind of… it’s reassuring in a way that I’m prepared and have done whatever I needed to do. So that… that helps me, definitely.
Margo Beitel
Yeah, that’s… that’s actually really smart. If nothing else, I want to be the most prepared candidate that they need. Like, so they meet me and they’re like, okay. She knows all of our values, our mission statement, all of that and it kind of… Even if you don’t get the job you want to look good to them, I guess. So yeah, just being prepared is a great idea.
Mitch Clingo
How do you set up those mock interviews for yourself Bharat? Like do you do them with classmates or friends? Do you provide them with the questions that you think you’re going to be asked.
Bharat Nayar
Actually I do mock interviews with my co-op coordinator. So I had an interview recently so I just send my co-op coordinator a quick email that I have an interview in the next few days. So we had an interview scheduled. And you know, she gave me a very detailed feedback as to what I could do better and what I have done that’s good in the interview and that would help me.
Mitch Clingo
Nice! Yeah. As someone who’s been on the other side of the table it’s… it’s pretty clear when somebody gives you a practiced, rehearsed, confident answer versus trying to make something up on the spot.
Bharat Nayar
The key is to be spontaneous. It shouldn’t look too rehearsed because the interviews do find out. Like you know, if you just you’ve practiced it over and over again and you just… you know, rehearsing it, and it sounds very rehearsed. It should be… it should sound very spontaneous. That’s the key.
Margo Beitel
When I when I got my co-op and I had to meet with my co-op coordinator to let her know that I got it and she was kind of gonna give me a lowdown on it, she said she was actually surprised that I got it because I was the only candidate that didn’t go to her for a mock interview. So it’s really smart! And I think the reason that I got it is because I did a lot of practicing! For that I had to do a mock campus tour. So I took all of my friends on mock campus tours. But the other students that interviewed for it didn’t do as many mock campus tours. They did more mock interviews, so that’s really smart to go to your coordinator.
Mitch Clingo
Yeah, that’s a great way to practice. I’ve definitely had interviews where I’ve been asked to do a presentation ahead of time. So I can see the value in getting a group of friends together to… to being able to run through that beforehand. It’s about that balance between preparing for questions versus being able to sound like you’re talking kind of like off the cuff or off your head. But there’s always going to be those questions that come right out of left field that… that catch you off guard. What are some of the kind of those strange or odd questions that that you might have experienced in interviews?
Bharat Nayar
You had law as a career, why the move to HR now? So that’s the question that’s… I don’t know. I don’t like to answer.
Mitch Clingo
How come you don’t like to answer that one?
Bharat Nayar
Usually I answer that, you know, law and HR are very similar and there’s lot of legislations involved in HR, So you will need to know the laws. It’s very important to know the laws, especially in the Canadian labor workforce where you have different legislations and stuff like that. So that’s how I usually answer it.
Mitch Clingo
That’s a great point of, so you’re trying to find the common threads behind it and make it seem like it’s not a really big jump. You’re trying to tie it together.
Bharat Nayar
Yeah.
Mitch Clingo
What about you Margo? What are some of the kind of the… the questions that kind of seem seems strange or kind of more difficult or more annoying for you to answer?
Margo Beitel
Well, I have a different annoying one, but the strangest one I’ve been asked is they asked me how many dimples I thought were on a golf ball. And I obviously have no idea. So I just kind of asked like… okay, um… give me a second here and I just threw out a number basically. I kind of tried to think how many I think are around the diameter, but I ended up being kind of close. I think there’s like close to 250 dimples on a golf ball or something like that? So that’s the weirdest one. But the one that I like the least is when they ask you what some of your weaknesses are.
Mitch Clingo
Yes, I hate that question.
Margo Beitel
Yeah! You’re not really supposed to answer with what your huge weaknesses are. And kind of trying to make something sound good and bad at the same time. It’s… it’s weird.
Mitch Clingo
Yeah, what do you think they’re looking for from that question? Why did they ask that one?
Margo Beitel
I think maybe to see if you have a sense of humility, and if you’re like willing to work on yourself maybe?
Mitch Clingo
Yeah, I agree. I… I think it’s yeah. It’s the… first of all it’s the self awareness. Are you aware of what your… your weaknesses are? And then, yeah, are you willing to… I like the word humility. I think that’s really important. Are you willing to take feedback and acknowledge that you’re not perfect? But it does seem to just like. It’s in such distinct contrast to the rest of an interview where you’re constantly bragging about yourself. And now you’re supposed to switch gears and… and be almost self deprecating?
Margo Beitel
Yeah, it’s just kind of completely opposite from the rest of the interview. Like, yeah, just all… all positives like oh, I did this. I did this. I can do this! And then you’re like oh yeah, but I’m… I’m not good at this.
Bharat Nayar
The way I answer this question is I mention something that is a work in progress you know? Like okay, I used to be this and this. I usually jumped into the task before knowing the ins and outs of the tasks and the requirements that are associated with the tasks. So now I’m working on it. I received some very encouraging feedback that I would be able to do much better if I improve this thing of mine. So I usually mention it as, uh, as something that’s a work in progress.
Mitch Clingo
Yeah, it’s also… it’s about kind of being tactful in your response and show them that the… yeah, you’re either working on it or it’s not going to affect the job.
Actually, my, one of my favorite jokes comes around this… this situation where the employer asks, “Tell me about what your one of your weaknesses? “And the interviewee goes, “Uhh… well honesty.” And the interviewer goes, the employer goes, “Well… that doesn’t really sound like a weakness.” And the interviewee goes, “Well I don’t give a damn what you think!”
(laughter)
Mitch Clingo
Um, yeah! I haven’t had that question in a while, tell me about your weaknesses. So I hope it’s starting to be phased out! But, yeah.
Margo Beitel
Yeah, I haven’t had it in a while either actually, so maybe it’s going away.
Mitch Clingo
What about questions for the employers? How do you guys… at the end of every interview. This is one of the most common things that that I get, kind of working with students, is what do I ask the employer afterwards? How do you like to prepare your questions for the end of the interview? And Margo, you touched on this right at the start that interviews go both ways. So I think the questions for them are one of the most important segments of the interview.
Margo Beitel
Yeah, if I have a question like I’ve done my research and if I actually have a question that I want to know about, I’ll definitely ask it. But sometimes you know when you just don’t have a question and you’re like, I don’t know. I feel like I can’t say no, I don’t have any questions though. I kind of use that opportunity to flex on like, how much I’ve done my research and kind of ask a… a smart question, I guess. Like about quotas or whatever it may be, but just to kind of show my knowledge of the company.
Bharat Nayar
Yeah, that’s very good. Uhh… that’s a great point you mentioned. That’s it’s, I think it’s important to ask questions. That shows that you’re really interested in the company. Because if you don’t ask questions, they’re gonna assume either you know everything or you’re not as interested. So what I usually do is there are questions that I have for the interview. And during the interview I take notes. And usually there’s 2-3 questions that do come up during the interview. So after the interview when they say okay, do you have any questions for us? I lay down for them… okay, I have three questions or four questions that I would like to ask. And I usually ask them the last question being, okay, so… so when do you expect to make your decision and what’s the timeline going to be? So that is usually the last question, and before that there’s usually two or three questions that I usually ask.
Mitch Clingo
Mhm. Yeah, that that’s a good point, right? You don’t have to wait to ask the questions to the end of the interview. I’m a big fan of disrupting the traditional interview process and trying to turn the interview into a conversation.
Margo Beitel
Yeah!
Mitch Clingo
And so, in terms of that power dynamic as well, like you said, it’s… it’s a shift where you’re, you. start interviewing them as well. And so I love asking questions that lead to deep conversations. I think some of my feedback from my TRU interview was actually I… I managed to ask a question that almost took me out of the room because it got the rest of the staff in the room talking amongst themselves and having that conversation discussing kind of the issue that I brought up. And so it was kind of really interesting. I think that’s when you can make the employers start to see you as a colleague.
Bharat Nayar
Yes, definitely. You mentioned about this that they see you as a colleague. So what I usually do is when they ask, “Okay so what can you do and what are your top skills?” And I usually answer the question and at the end of my answer I usually ask them: “Is this how you see me in this role?” So it’s… it’s a two way thing then.
Mitch Clingo
So we’re going to wrap up pretty quick. What do you think the most important piece of advice you could give to… to another student who is either struggling with interviews, worried about interviews, or doesn’t know how to prepare for them? I’ll get kind of one point or piece from each of you.
Margo Beitel
I think my biggest piece of advice would be to know as much as you can about the company you’re interviewing with. And kind of do some research on the position so that you don’t go into it, and if they ask you like, “Okay, so what do you think you’ll be doing in this role?” And you’re like, “Oh. I have no idea. I just want to work here.” Yeah, just knowing everything you can. So even if you don’t feel like you’re maybe qualified for the job, at the very least, you know a lot about the company and you sound better that way.
Mitch Clingo
Totally, that’s… that’s so important I think. Because you can learn a lot of the skills on a job, but you can’t teach those qualities of, um, research, being prepared, hardworking, committed, and that self drive that you… you show through being able to engage in all of that ahead of time on your own.
Margo Beitel
Yeah exactly. It shows them that you… you can be as self disciplined too, and… and do your research on whatever it is.
Mitch Clingo
For sure. What about Bharat? A what’s your… your one big message for, to pass on to students?
Bharat Nayar
Yeah, I believe that employers are looking for people who are genuinely interested in their organizations. So uh, what I tell students is that you know when you apply for a job, just keep a copy of the job description. Just save it as a Word file or something because it can be taken down from the website at any time. So once the deadline has passed so that usually gets taken down from the website. So make it a point to keep it as a Word file or a PDF. So always save that.
And have a close look at the job description and relate. Like you could have past jobs that are not exactly similar to the position you’re applying for, but there are some of the transferable skills that you could highlight in the interview. So, you know, that attention to detail, conflict resolution and working in teams. So those are some of the transferable skills that you can acquire from some previous jobs and you could highlight in the interview. That, you know, I can do this, I’ve done this in a previous job. So that’s my advice. And always research the company and always have questions and all this. Do a mock interview. Yeah, if you’re in a university, so always go to your co-op coordinator or any of the people from the Career and Experiential Learning department. So yeah, that’s my thing.
Mitch Clingo
Absolutely, that that number one piece of advice that we give through our office too, is that. Be prepared for sure. And then you’re adding on to that. That idea of be enthusiastic about the company that you’re applying for, right? Put them on that pedestal. Make… make every company you’re interviewing with feel like they’re your first pick.
Awesome, well thank you so much for chatting today. This has been fun. It’s gone by really quickly and well, we’ll sign off here.
Margo Beitel
Thank you.
Mitch Clingo
Bye all!
Bharat Nayar
Thank you.
Mitch Clingo
Take care.
(Closing music)