#22 My First Job Interview

It's been a long time sinced I was interviewed for a job before. I won't gonna forget that as it was so memorable for the first time I was interviewed. After sending my resumé to different companies I finally received an interview invitation from the Human Resource representative. They called me and asked me if I am available for an interview, ofcourse I replied "Yes!" immediately without any doubt. I am very happy that time because I really wanted someone to invite me for a job interview and I do really need it. In my mind, I finally have a chance to get an employment so I will make everything to get the job offer.

After finishing my college I am eager to seek for a job right away. That is why I had sent application as many as I could. The moment a Human Resource personnel contacted me it means that they are considering my application and somehow interested to know me better. As I felt overwhelmed I do actually had a difficulty on how I am going to prepare myself for the said interview due to my intense excitement.

That time I only have 3 days to prepare for my first ever job interview. I was lucky enough as I still have time to prepare myself and to make familiar with the Job I applied for. The first thing I did is I made some research about the company. I want to have at least something that I could tell about the company I am going to be part of other than the job title itself.

First impression must be good enough as it will be part of their assessment in choosing the qualified applicant. Proper attire is a must to look more pleasing. It will then create a good impact on how I can introduce myself to other people. Make sure also to dress as simple as possible. Too much clothing and accessories are not good. I am attending an interview not a party.

I also prepared my things like copy of my resumé, a 1×1 ID Picture, pen and valid ID. I put all those stuffs in an envelope so that I won't gonna forget to bring it in my interview. Those are the only things that the Human Resource personnel told me to bring. I just want to be organized so that I won't ruin my first job interview.

As part of my preparation I also review some of the possible questions that may be asked during my job interview. I don't want to get mental blocked when the interviewee starts asking me questions. We had a subject before (Business Communication) where our professor taught us the basic knowledge about interview question and answer. That helped me a lot to have an idea on how to properly answer a question, therefore I had an advantage in giving good answers.

I already set an alarm at my phone because the time of my interview was early in the morning. I want to be there as early as I could. I came to the company 1 hour before my interview. It would be embarassing on my part if I do come late. It will only make a bad impression on how I am interested to get the job offer.

I was surprised that there are also many applicants on the same date. I am not sure if they were applying the same position as mine or not. I really felt nervous by that time as I know that I need to be more competent and standout among other applicants. Being nervous for the first time is normal. I just try to focus my attention on what I need to do and try to calm down so that I can give my best performance.

Initially all applicants are required to take an examination before the interview. The exam consists of analytical, vocabulary and mathematics. All are multiple choices and it was just a basic questions. I think that is only for formality or they actually get the rate of that exam. It took me 20 minutes to finished the exam. After finishing the exam we are now all lined up and waiting to be called for the interview.

My heart beats faster and faster as the moment my name was called. What I did is took a deep breathe and told myself to answer with confidence. Self-confidence is my only key to finish the interview in success. I do remember some of the questions asked to me.

Here are some of those questions:

1.) Tell me something about yourself.

2.) What brings you here?

3.) What are your strengths and weaknesses?

4.) What is your long-term plan?

5.) Why do you want to work in this company?

6.) Why should I hire you?

7.) What can I expect from you?

Actually there are still some questions that were asked to me but I forgot those. I am prepared to answer the first question as I expected that will be asked to me, I reviewed it and it was all about myself. That question is very important as it gave me the chance to tell the interviewee why I do qualified for the job I am applying for. I do point out every characteristics I possess that are useful for the job I am applying.

To answer with honesty and straight to the point is the best way to pass the interview. In my experience I know that the interviewee noticed how nervous I was at that moment but I do answered every question to the best of my knowledge. As much as I speak clearly and loud enough that is good. I also practice to smile while speaking to make the situation more uplifting and to boost my confidence. I believed I gave justice to each of my answers as it was based on my personal experiences.

After the interview we are told to wait for a call regarding the result of our job interview. It was 1 week after I received a call from the Human Resource Personnel and to my great surprised I was very happy to hear that I passed the interview and they will give me the job offer.

My first job interview was successful. All of my preparation and efforts are all worth it. It is not easy for me at the first place because I need to overcome my fear and weaknesses. But one thing for sure if we do something to help ourself then we could expect for a better result. Believe in yourself and always make preparation to achieve your goals and make it happen.

I hope you learned something from my first job interview experience. I hope it could give you ideas on what to do if you will be having a job interview too.