I think many people get nervous about interviews no matter how many times they have them. So, in this article, I will introduce some tips for interviews in Japan, based on my experiences, successes and failures after having interviewed with over 50 companies and receiving 17 job offers. These tips are also applicable outside of Japan, so please read on.
Interview Tips
The first step in preparation is to know the company you are having an interview with and yourself, as the saying goes, “If you know your enemy and know yourself, you will not be defeated in a hundred battles”.
First of all, do thorough research on the company. What is the company’s main business? What are their services and what are their strengths? How many employees does the company have? What is the company’s vision for the future? You should gather all the information you can from the Internet and newspapers. Also, if the company’s business is Smartphone application development, it is important to try using it yourself.
One of the reasons why people get nervous in interviews is because they have to talk to someone they don’t know, but through preparation, they can turn it into someone they do know. Once you have a good understanding of the company, you will naturally have an idea of what you want to do at the company (motivation for applying) and what you can contribute (personal PR).
Conversely, it is unnatural for you to be able to present your motivation and self-promotion without knowing much about the company. If you can speak what comes from your heart in an interview, you won’t get nervous.
Practice!
The next step in preparation is to know your preparedness. Once you have thoroughly researched the company and have a clear idea of your motivation and self-promotion, try practicing for the interview. Nowadays, you can easily take videos with your Smartphone or tablet, so try filming yourself practicing for an interview.
You will be amazed at what you see. “You may be surprised to see how scary you look, how you stare at each other, and how you talk in a whisper. This is unavoidable and a sign that you are serious.
However, you want to convey your seriousness in the content of your speech, and your personality in the attitude of your speech. Practice smiling and speaking cheerfully by shooting and checking your video over and over again.
A good rule of thumb is whether or not you think you would like to work with such a person. Many people would rather work with a cheerful person than with a gloomy person in the same workplace. Know your abilities, strength and weakness, practice for your interview well in preparation for the real interview sessions and trust yourself that you can do it.
Don’t make the same mistakes
Finally, know the “lessons of the past”. Our seniors have made many mistakes in the past, so don’t make the same mistakes again. It is essential to know the mistakes beforehand.
First, remember to be polite when entering and leaving the room. Naturally, when you enter, you should knock, bow and greet. When you leave the room, say “Thank you for your time today” before closing the door. There are many seniors who have forgotten this basic rule.
Next, don’t talk idly (in a lazy manner). The interviewer is tired – to put it bluntly, because he or she has interviewed many people and has heard the same story over and over again. Therefore, the longer you talk, the worse your impression will be.
You must have organized what you need to say well in your preparation. Try to convey it in a straightforward and cheerful manner. As long as you can talk about the points that you want to convey, you will be able to make a good impression.
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