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During a job interview, people often have the tendency to provide answers which they think an interviewer wants to hear. This is especially so for questions such as ‘What are your career goals’ or ‘Why do you want to work here’, where a typical response is a re-phrased/grander version of what the company might have on their website.

For example – “I want to work in investment banking because of the fast-paced life and dynamic learning environment. I want to dedicate myself towards creating value-based financial solutions for clients, in order to help them maximize shareholder value. What attracts me to your company in particular is the focus on integrity and team work. I am also excited by the opportunity to work directly with senior management on the client’s side and diverse people within the company”

This is the wrong approach to impress an interviewer and usually comes across as fake/rehearsed/run-of-the-mill. Your interviewer has probably heard the same response from many people before you and his eyes will just glaze over when he hears another one. Also, often there is a big gap between what a company writes on their website/publicly and the reality on the ground.

Focus instead on what your actual thoughts and beliefs are. Communicate what is really important to you. It will be more believable and also different from most other candidates. If you have chosen and targeted companies which match your preferences, then this approach makes sense automatically. Having said that, if you are looking at companies which do not match all your preferences, then you have to be sensible/smart and not communicate things which are important to you but will certainly land you in the reject pile.

Also, there is no harm in adding a little bit of what the interviewer wants to hear. However, instead of relying on public information provided by the company for this, talk to people who have had direct experence working there, to find out what angle you should take.

Amit Puri is the Managing Consultant at Sandbox Advisors. He has over 10 years of business, career services and HR related experience, with companies such as Bain & Co, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup. Sandbox Advisors is based in Singapore and provides career management/advice, job search, interview, resume and HR consulting services in Asia.
Author Website: http://www.sandboxadvisors.com/insights/transition-job-search-strategy/real-job-interview

Article courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap, a content exchange service sponsored by CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students looking for internships and recent graduates searching for entry level jobs and other career opportunities.

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This entry was posted on Monday, November 23rd, 2009 at 10:19 am and is filed under Article, Interview. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.