Conducting Online Interviews

• 00:05 How should you conduct yourself for an online interview?
• 00:09 The last thing you want to do is be in the middle of an interview or
• 00:12 about to start one, and think I should have done this or I should have done that.
• 00:16 If you're doing an interview through for example, Zoom,
• 00:19 don't just sign on two minutes before the interview's supposed to start.
• 00:23 That is a prescription for disaster.
• 00:26 Go on perhaps a day earlier.
• 00:28 Make sure you have all the most recent updates.
• 00:32 Call a friend or colleague through Zoom, practice.
• 00:37 Perhaps you are used to using Microsoft Teams or Skype, and
• 00:41 you're used to sharing one particular way.
• 00:44 Well, every single online platform has a different way of sharing.
• 00:50 You need to get really, really comfortable with the particular platform
• 00:54 you'll be using for your interview.
• 00:57 The worst possible time to try to learn something is when someone else is
• 01:02 watching you and the stakes are high.
• 01:04 Whether you're being interviewed for key job, a consulting position,
• 01:09 a new contract or whether you are interviewing someone,
• 01:12 someone you really want to come to your organization,
• 01:15 you're recruiting someone, you don't want to be learning in that environment.
• 01:20 You want to have exclusive focus on having that conversation,
• 01:26 being able to really listen to that person,
• 01:29 understand what they're saying, and respond to them.
• 01:34 So you want all the technology stuff already taken care of.
• 01:39 So you got to get used to exactly where do you click to share your documents.
• 01:45 You need to have all of your documents already up on your computer.
• 01:51 Again, if you're feeling stressed or nervous, what would normally be a very
• 01:55 easy task of going into your docs and finding the right file and looking for it.
• 02:00 That becomes a difficult task when you're feeling a little bit of stress.
• 02:04 It's completely normal.
• 02:07 But it is something you should anticipate.
• 02:10 That is exactly why you need to line up everything in advance.
• 02:14 So if you're using a PowerPoint slide, a regular document,
• 02:19 a picture, an image, have everything already pulled up, so
• 02:23 that you can simply click to it, share your screen and you have it right there.
• 02:29 If possible, I find it's much easier to do online interviews,
• 02:33 online meetings, whether I'm interviewing someone or
• 02:37 being interviewed to have two computer screens up.
• 02:41 Now you don't have to, but that does make it easier for sharing screens.
• 02:47 Regardless whether you're just using a small laptop from an airport conference
• 02:52 room, practice in advance and make sure you're comfortable with it.
• 02:57 If you're used to using your desktop at home and all of a sudden you're using
• 03:02 a laptop where there's no mouse, practice that so that you are familiar with it.
• 03:08 You do not want to have to waste precious time excusing yourself or apologizing.
• 03:14 Nobody cares about your technical problems.
• 03:17 Everybody's in the same boat.
• 03:21 So when you tell people, I'm sorry, I didn't prepare this or
• 03:24 I'm not used to this.
• 03:25 What you're really saying is hey, my time is so
• 03:28 much more valuable than your time, I'm going to practice on your time.
• 03:33 That isn't going to help you.
• 03:36 It's not going to impress someone interviewing you for a job.
• 03:39 It's not going to impress someone you're interviewing to come work for you either.
• 03:44 So make sure you've worked out the kinks in advance.
• 03:47 If there are distractions around, if you're working from home and
• 03:52 you have a dog, try to get it out of the house or in the cellar or
• 03:56 some place it isn't going to bother you.
• 03:59 If you have family around, kids around, put a do not disturb sign on your door.
• 04:06 Do whatever it takes.
• 04:07 Mute other phones in the house and
• 04:11 try to eliminate every possible distraction.
• 04:17 What I like to do is on my watch, I put theater mode.
• 04:22 I don't want any distractions whatsoever.
• 04:27 You will come across your very best if you can focus on one thing, having
• 04:33 the conversation with that person at the other end of the camera and internet.

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