One key strategy for succeeding in a job interview, whether you are an early career professional or an experienced candidate is this:

When you make a claim about yourself in an interview, follow it up immediately with a concrete example, even if you aren’t asked for one.

When you follow a claim with an example, you verify the claim and most interviewers will also attribute other skills and knowledge to you when they hear the example. The example is simply a story of what you’ve accomplished.

For example, suppose in an interview, you claim to have good negotiating skills. You would follow that up with…”For example, when I joined XYZ company, I renegotiated contracts with several outside vendors used by my department and we were able to save $xxxxx in the first year.”

This strategy suggests that you create a list of your accomplishments, the results you’ve achieved on previous jobs, internships, school assignments, etc. for which you are also proud. That list can form the basis for examples to use in your interviews. You can tag each example with words that represent the range of skills/qualifications illustrated by the example. One example or story may illustrate negotiation skills, communications skills, initiative taking, team leadership or others.

Photo: ams-int.com