When you are one of the lucky few that get called into a job interview, you may wonder how much of your personality that you should allow to shine through. The goal is for you to put your future employer at ease and for you to not come off as unprofessional.

You do want to use humor but only as a driving point of your professionalism. For example, you can say, "I stayed late working on a project and realized that the client had gone home for the day!" This will let the hiring manager know that you are dedicated to getting results. You should not use personal humor, the key is to keep it work related.

Nervous energy? The first thing that will help with your nervousness is to be prepared. Research the company as well as the job title that you are interviewing to fill. You obviously have the skills needed to perform well in this position or you would not have gotten the interview in the first place!

Not a humorous person? Now is not the time to be a stand-up comedian! It is OK if you are more of a straight shooter. Just be yourself; remember that this is a professional situation.

Some additional tips outside of using humor to help prepare you for your interview are below. Since this is a professional setting that will hopefully lead to a job offer, I would be remiss in not sharing some tips to help prepare you for the actual interview.

Be prepared to ask the hiring manager some questions of your own. You want them to see you as an engaged and witty member of the team. Some of these questions could include:

· Is this a new role and if not, how long has this position been in place and how has it grown since its creation?

· What are some of the biggest hurdles that the team member that last held this position faced?

· What are your expectations of a successful year in this position?

When you have questions of your own, this lets the hiring manager know that you have put some serious thought into what it would be like to be a member of the team.

Did you remember to research the company? If not, at the very least, you need to quickly pull the company’s web-site up on your Smartphone in the parking lot! A candidate not knowing a thing about the company that they supposedly want to work for is a nail in the coffin and you might as well save the hiring manager some time and cancel your interview. Did I get your attention? This is the most important step before going into an interview. Now that you have reviewed the company’s web-site, some questions that you should be prepared to ask are as follows:

· I reviewed the company’s web-site and it looks like a great product/service. Can you tell me a little of the owner’s vision when they first started the company?

· What are some of the plans for future growth of the company?

· What is most exciting to you about the product/service that the company utilizes?

Most of all, you don’t want to work for a company where the vision does not excite you. You want a job that you can be passionate about as this will help you grow into a successful member of the team that any employer would be lucky to have! Engaged individuals always get the best results and your hard work will pay off financially and emotionally for you in the long run.

Investing in a Lifetime of Success,

Angela Roberts

www.craresources.com