As you have learned from my previous posts, I love to read up on new interviewing and job searching trends. Today, I would like to recommend to you a new book that I just read, “Nail That Interview” by Tim Vincent. I have read many books as it relates to networking, job searching, interviewing, careers, etc…, and this one stands out as a must-read.
Before I tell you my review, let me say that this book is for people who already have figured out their passion in life as it walks you through all the job searching phases, not discovering your passion… and I’m okay with that. We need books like this and we need books that help you with your passion.
Now for my review. First, for everyone who is from America or American English, this book is written in proper English, meaning the author is from England; absolutely nothing wrong with that, just be ready for words such as “whilst” and “learnt”. Also, of note, while this book is written from the British perspective, you might not be familiar with some of the terms such as CV (Curriculum Vitae). However, after a few pages, you will quickly realize that Tim explains every term, word and acronym. In addition to this, I found that this book crosses the cultural boundaries as everything is relevant to how we job search in America. Tim focuses on the principles of job searching; the basics and advanced topics. No matter where you are in your job search, this book will take you to the next level. An interviewing strategy is simply that a strategy, it doesn’t matter where it came from.
I would like to point out some areas that I found helpful that Tim discussed in his book. See my list below.
1) He has a whole chapter on USP’s. I love to hear recruiters use this term as I feel it is under-utilized. USP is a marketing term that should be used everyday in job searching and one that you should be familiar with. It stands for Unique Selling Proposition; although Tim describes it as Unique Selling Points… same thing. It is so important that everyone job searching knows what makes them unique so that when they are asked, “Why should we hire you?”, they are able to give a well-though out answer that describes their uniqueness. There is much more to USP’s, but I can’t tell you everything! 🙂
2) He believes in conversations instead of Q&A. Tim puts it this way, “…The big trap that turns the majority of candidates into quivering heaps of mediocrity is falling into a Q&A pattern.” He continues by saying –
Q. Who is in control of the meeting?
A. The person asking the questions!
What Tim discusses is the importance of building a conversation instead of an interview that is just Q&A over and over. I go over this with all of my personal clients constantly. People feel that they are at the mercy of the interviewer and that it’them who controls the interview, but they couldn’t be further from the truth. The company needs you more than you need them. You are unique and you are one of a kind! There are thousands of companies out there with thousands of jobs open! Getting back to the point, since you should be controlling the interview, don’t be afraid to question the interviewer on their intentions on asking a specific question. For example, if they ask you something along the lines of, “Describe a time when your actions made a positive impact on the company”, you should ask back something such as, “What kind of impact are you looking for? Financial, marketing, PR/public image, a project, an enhancement/improvement/fix, etc..” Of course, this depends on the type of job you are interviewing for, so pick the appropriate wording for you. In the book, Tim gives an excellent strategy that helps you conquer these hurdles and dominate the interview.
Lastly,
3) The book is filled with exercises and chapter summations. It happens to all of us; we finish reading a chapter in a book and then completely forget what we read. This usually happens more with a self-help book instead of Harry Potter. The reason is because the books are filled with so much information that it takes us a while to absorb and comprehend it all. At the end of each chapter in this book, it gives a quick and easy summation of what you just read. In addition to that, there are various exercises throughout each chapter to reinforce what you are learning. What’s better than that?
I am truly confident that if you sit down and read this book and take it seriously (I mean complete all the exercises and put in some honest hard work), you will reap fantastic rewards in your job search. You feel more confident going into each interview and will be able to easily articulate your skills and experiences.
To read more about the book and possibly purchase it – click here.
**DISCLAIMER – I am purely recommending a book based off of me enjoying it. I am receiving no financial gain, commission or kickback in any form by recommending this book.
