Butterflies in your stomach, sweaty palms and a nervous demeanour as you sit there patiently waiting to see who you will be meeting. You’ve done your research, you know their name and what they look like from a photo, but that’s the extent of it. Then the panic sets in, “what if they don’t like me”, “am I dressed to smart?”, “what if I make a terrible first impression and they don’t want to see me again”. Sound familiar… yes we’ve all had a job interview.
Now the world of employment and dating are of course very different indeed, however some of the skills you need to excel at dating and interviewing are similar, and this is why:
Swipe if you like
Job applications today are easier than ever before. Most recruitment sites and job boards use a cloud based system that means using programmes like google+ will make applying for a job as simple as swiping “like” on a dating app.
The Ping
o you’ve sent the CV and a killer cover letter and folio, you wait a week, sometimes more and almost give up hope of hearing back; then you get a ping on your email or phone and you can’t disguise the joy that they actually want to MEET YOU!
The Background Check
For any job opportunity, you will need to research the company, their latest projects, recent wins and what their culture is like. You’ll also run a search of the person you are meeting so you can familiarise yourself with them and their achievements. This is not unlike preparing for a date, you’ll find out as much as you can about the person before the meet, often scan a few different social media sites to see if you have any friends in common and what they might like to do in their spare time.
The Meet
You’re as prepared as you can be. You’re in your ‘lucky outfit’ feeling good and ready for anything. But no matter how confident you are on the way there – once you arrive at the building, the nerves creep in, throat gets a little dry and your mind goes blank about what you are meant to say!
All about YOU
ob interviews and dates alike are all about the big “sell”. You just have to talk about yourself, share some insights into your history, work experience, what you do in your spare time. It is also a chance for you to ask them a bit about themselves and find out more. Similarly, this is exactly what first dates are like – it’s your opportunity to talk and find out more about each other to see if you are a match.
Visualisation
So you are sitting opposite this person and you are chatting away – taking in the surroundings and their words and your mind wonders. ‘Can I see myself working here?’, ‘Can I see myself spending everyday with this person’, it’s exactly the same as a date! You can’t help yourself as your imagination runs away with you and you’re picturing what your friends would think of them and even what your kids would look like!
Body Language
You can usually tell if they person across the table likes you – just from their body language and social cues. Read the signals and trust your instinct (you are usually right) – are they keen on you? Most people can instinctively tell whether there will be another meet/ interview by the time you leave.
Once the interview is over, you automatically call your friends/family to fill them in on the gossip. What did they say, how did it go, did you like it? You then embark upon the long waiting game, where you will look at your phone every 2 minutes to check ‘did they call yet?’! (We’ve all been there!)
Whether you are a seasoned interviewee or dater, you will never shrug off those nerves and concerns that plague you throughout the process. But there are ways to make the whole procedure a little easier and while we do often view ourselves as “match-makers” here at Cogs, we can’t unfortunately, promise that you’ll meet the love of your life, but we CAN promise to find you the perfect digital job and make the whole interview process easy, stress-free and even fun! So give us a call, come have a coffee and let’s discuss what exciting opportunities lie ahead for you.
