How to make a great first impression p1 - Military Transition - Military Times EDGE

The interview started off with his “I’ve got this job in the bag” attitude. And when the fresh-out-of- college wannabe professional was asked where he pictured himself in three years, he went on to say he wasn’t sure about that, but he did know he’d be “making a lot of money.” So far, his future wasn’t looking so prosperous.

It’s the basics — attitude, dress and how you conduct yourself — that can give you a leg up on getting an offer.

Be open to learning

When employer Sherrie Graham was reviewing responsibilities of the job with a young candidate, Graham said, she “informed me that her professors told her she was an outstanding writer and leader and should be given lots of responsibility in her first job. She also didn’t see why it was important to learn any more about using office software than she already knew — which was not much. The candidate wanted to know why she could not start writing press releases instead of learning corporate policies and standards. Ironically, her sample releases showed typographical errors and misspellings.”

Phone etiquette

Even after asking young candidates to turn off their phones, they don’t, employers say. Plus, they answer them. One candidate kept her phone on vibrate (which it continued to do) throughout an interview with employer Graham, who found this “very annoying.” Another candidate had told her child she left at home by herself to call every 15 minutes — which the child did. The candidate wasn’t considered.

Hemming, hawing, blaming

A 20-something-year-old dug his bad-first-impression hole deeper when asked to share an example of a recent mistake he made. He hemmed, hawed and finally shared one, then retreated, saying. “‘No, umm, that wasn’t my mistake, it was a co-worker’s,’” says former human resources manager Mary Schneider. After sharing another mistake, he said, “‘No, that was my teacher’s fault.’ Agh!” Schneider exclaimed. No one’s perfect. Better to impart that insight by admitting what you did and being a smart cookie by sharing what you learned from the experience.

Prepped on the company

When younger workers are asked, “Why do you want to work for us?” or “What do you know about us?” many fail miserably. For example, when Schneider asked a 20-something-year-old what he knew of her Fortune 500 company, he said, “He knew people who worked for us and had seen our commercials on TV.” That didn’t go over well.

Projecting confidence

How you talk about yourself says a lot. “I asked one candidate to ‘please describe your knowledge and skills in using a computer,’” Graham said. The response, in a very soft voice, with head down: “I don’t know. I can type in Windows and send e-mails.”

Bad behavior

Winding things up, when Schneider asked one candidate if he had anything else to share, he said, “‘Nope, I think you’ve got it all.’ To top it off, he actually slouched in the chair and put his foot up on my desk! Needless to say, he did not get the job.”

(Originally published May 5, 2008)