Hand book on Soft Skills

Contents
S.No. Topic Page No.
1. Soft Skills 1
2. How to handle interviews 3
3. Common job interview questions 6
4. Tis for !nterview "
#. Su$$ess Tis 1%
6. How to reare for an interview 12
&. 'rou (is$ussion 14
". )anners * )annerism 16
+. ,re -ou to .ive a seminar/ Have some tis/ 1"





1. Soft Skills
,bilit- to e0ress oneself $learl- and $onfidentl- is a ver- imortant ersonalit- trait and this is
.iven the hi.hest imortan$e durin. the evaluation ro$ess in re$ruitment. )an- eole fail
miserabl- in this ase$t even thou.h the- have ver- stron. te$hni$al skills. Communi$ation skills
$an be $ate.ori1ed into oral $ommuni$ation skills and written $ommuni$ation skills.
1.1. GOOD ORAL COMMN!CAT!ON S"!LLS
2ral $ommuni$ation is ver- imortant for an- rofessional be$ause durin. one3s $areer4 ever-
rofessional has to talk to a number of eole of var-in. ba$k.rounds and te$hni$al knowled.e.
5e have to talk to the $ustomer 6to whom we are develoin. the software7 in 8n.lish. The
$ustomer ma- not be a te$hni$al erson4 man- times the $ustomer has no knowled.e of $omuters
even. 5e also have to intera$t with team members to dis$uss the te$hni$al details durin. roje$t
e0e$ution. 5e have to talk to mana.ers in 9mana.ement jar.on3. ,bilit- to talk to a variet- of
eole requires .ood oral $ommuni$ation skills. :.C. ;orbes said4 <Seakin. is essential to su$$ess
in business and the whole of human a$tivities<. Conservative =art- of :ritain feels that the atients
are ut to lot of risk be$ause of the oor 8n.lish soken b- forei.n do$tors4 ese$iall- !ndians4
who $onstitute 2#> of the total medi$al ra$titioners of :ritain.
This does not mean that -ou have to use hi.h soundin. words. !n fa$t usa.e of hi.h soundin.
words and '?8@T28;A t-e of lan.ua.e will irritate the interviewer. ,nswer should be simle
and easil- understandable b- one and all. ;or e0amle4 if somebod-3s answer for a question is
9Co.itative endeavors to romote $elerit- of ambulation not infrequentl- rodu$e retardation of
the desired roinquit- to the .oal34 he ma- be thrown out of the interview room4 even if the
interview is for the ost of a =rofessor of 8n.lishB
!t needs to be mentioned that nobod- is born with .ood $ommuni$ation skillsC we need ra$ti$e to
imrove our $ommuni$ation abilities. )an- times4 inabilit- to e0ress oneself $learl- arises
mainl- be$ause of la$k of rearation. 8ven for a small fiveCminute meetin.4 one has to reare4
deendin. on the a.enda of the meetin.. 'ood rearation keein. in view the t-e of audien$e
would solve most of the roblems that arise out of 9la$k of $ommuni$ation skills3. ?eali1e that
often -ou will have to deal with a nonCte$hni$al $ustomer in 8n.lish. ,.ain4 the $lient himself ma-
be oor at 8n.lish. !n marketin. the rodu$t itself seaks4 $atalo.ues seak4 $ustomers seak and
advertisements seak. 8ven if the marketin. man seaks4 it will be ver- mu$h routine t-e4 same
jokes4 same riddles4 same st-le and same $on$et. !n ?*( t-e of jobs it is not like that. Here4
-ou3ve. .ot an e0$ellent idea or an interestin. $on$et. How $an -ou $onvin$e -our boss or
or.ani1ation about the .reatness and usefulness of it unless -ou are .ood at $ommuni$ation/ How
$an -ou reare a reort on it and be su$$essful/ 8se$iall- in !. T.4 8n.lish is ver- essential. ;or
e0amle4 Daan $ould e0$el in all fields of $onstru$tion4 automobile en.ineerin. and
tele$ommuni$ations but not in !nformation Te$hnolo.-4 as the- refused to a$$et 8n.lish.
1.#. $R!TT%N COMMN!CAT!ON S"!LLS
Software develoers4 durin. the roje$t e0e$ution4 have to reare a number of do$uments E
requirement C se$ifi$ations do$uments4 desi.n do$uments4 test reorts4 user manuals et$. ,bilit-
to e0ress oneself $learl- $alls for written $ommuni$ation skills. This abilit- $omes onl- throu.h
ra$ti$e.
'ood handwritin. ma- sometimes outri.htl- sele$t -ou from a mob of students. Same is the $ase
with $ommand of 8n.lish lan.ua.e. :ut4 then if -ou are .ood4 -ou have to e0hibit it before -our
interviewer and later -our boss. !f -ou hesitate or feel sh- how $an an-one know/
(urin. interviews4 ese$iall- durin. Camus re$ruitments4 the $omanies .enerall- ask to .ive
some information in writin.. :etter be reared to write without an- .rammati$al and sellin.
mistakes in a rofessional manner. 5hen -ou are asked to .ive referen$es4 mention the names of
ersons under whom -ou have either worked or re$eived -our edu$ation or who know -ou
rofessionall-. Students ma- .ive the names of la$ement offi$er4 Head of the (eartment or a
friend or senior workin. in a $oman- in a de$ent osition. See that the ersons are rofessional.
(on3t .ive the names of -our $lassCmates or relatives as referen$es4 )an- eole4 while writin.
letters use what is $alled <?ubber Stam< lan.ua.e4 for all their ersonal and semiCoffi$ial letters.
9,$knowled.in. -our re$ent letter dated so and so3 or 9=lease find en$losed herewith3 or 9!n
resonse to -our hi.hl- valuable inquir-3 or 9!n rel- to -our favour of even date 9 Su$h usa.es are
outdated and borin. and hen$e are reje$ted in the first instan$e. 2ld fashioned words mi.ht refle$t
old fashioned thinkin.B =reare answers thorou.hl- for the followin. $ommonl- asked questions.
"eep t&e follo'ing in (ind fo) bette) $)itten Co((*nication skills+
1. Fee senten$es shortC ma0imum 1# to 2% words. Aon. senten$es are hard to understand and
slow to read.
2. Gse simle4 ordinar- words. ,void bi. words4 fan$- hrases4 te$hni$al jar.ons and a.e old4
wornCout4 borin. usa.es.
3. Fee ara.rahs short C 3 or 4 senten$es ma0imum.
1.,. TO -% ANS$%R%D !N $R!T!NG DR!NG !NT%R.!%$+
Hame4 (ate of :irth4 Hationalit-4 ,ddress4 email4 =hone Humber4 (etails of assort et$.
(etails of last major illness@sur.er-@a$$ident
Trainin. under.one@=roje$ts undertaken 6=la$ement =roje$t@Seminar et$. for students7
Comuter rofi$ien$- 6=latforms worked on4 2eratin. s-stems used4 Aan.ua.es familiar with7
(etails of 8du$ation startin. from SSC
5ork e0erien$e
Stren.ths and weaknesses
,reas of imrovement
Career 2bje$tives
80e$tations from the job
=referen$e for la$e of ostin. 6!ndia@abroad7
(etails of )embershis of asso$iations
Si.nifi$ant a$hievements and (istin.uished honours and awards other interests 6Cultural4 sorts4
$ommunit- work and hobbies7 5hen did -ou first $ome to know about us and how/ ,n-thin. -ou
would like us to know about -ou more/
,n-thin. -ou would like to su..est to our or.ani1ation/
,n- Three ?eferen$es 6not related to -ou7.
1./. PRO-L%M SOL.!NG A-!L!T!%S AND LOG!CAL TH!N"!NG
)ost of the or.ani1ations $ondu$t atitude tests for s$reenin. the ali$ations of jobCseekers.
=erhas atitude tests reveal the roblem solvin. abilities of the individual4 thou.h it is a debatable
issue. 2r.ani1ation of Thou.hts is imortant4 not answer.
=roblem solvin. abilities are a$quired while workin. on develoment roje$ts. , software
develoer en$ounters roblems of var-in. nature while e0e$utin. a roje$t. To think of various
alternatives to solve the roblem and de$ide whi$h is the best solution are the abilities that $ome
throu.h e0erien$e.
The questions $ould be4 5hat is the $aa$it- of this hall/ 5hat. is the aro0imate volume of this
room/ 5hat is -our wei.ht in Hewton3s or ounds/ 5hat $ould be the wei.ht of this buildin./
5hat is -our volume in litres/ 5hat $ould be the wei.ht of a $it- bus or ?ajadhani e0ress/
Some of the famous questions asked b- )i$rosoft interviewers durin. re$ruitment of software
develoers areI How mu$h water flows in the )ississii ?iver/ How man- .as stations 6etrol
bunks7 are there in -our state/ How man- $ars ma- be found in -our $it-/ The e0a$t answer is not
imortant4 but the aroa$h to solve the roblem is imortant.
2ften the roblem is 1%%> new to -ouB !t is a deadl- u11leB !n atitude tests4 if there are no
ne.ative marks4 answer all the questions under an- $ir$umstan$es. , ;22A ma- be defined as one
who does not answer all the questions even thou.h there are no ne.ative marks for itB
1.0. GOOD 1NDAM%NTAL "NO$L%DG%
Jou should have a sound knowled.e in atleast one or two se$ifi$ fields rather than overall
eriheral knowled.e. (on3t tr- to $redit -ourself with doubtful or unearned oints while
answerin. in an interview. 'ood fundamental knowled.e and hard work are the ke-s to .ain the
abilit- of learnin. fast. !t is not ossible to join a s$hool for learnin. ever- tool and te$hnique4 and
hen$e4 one has to also develo tl1e habit of selfC learnin..
5hile stud-in.4 -ou need to be $urious like a $at that $an sot out the milk even ifit is ket in a
remote $omer of the house. ,lso4 for new thin.s to learn4 there must be a $onstant sear$h like an
ant that takes $ontrol of
su.ar $r-stals wherever the- fall within a short time. These are the ke-s of sound fundamental
knowled.e..
1.2. ADAPTA-!L!T3 AND A-!L!T3 TO L%ARN N%$ T%CHNOLOG!%S 1AST
Jou should have interest in u.radin. knowled.e as Software field is $han.in. raidl-4 so raidl-
that skills a$quired after months of hard work and trainin.4 be$ome obsolete in another few
months. 2ne has to $ultivate the habit of learnin. the required tools ver- fast. 5hen one has to
shift from one tool to another4 one has to start usin. the new tool settin. aside earlier tool3s
knowled.e. <Aearn4 Gnlearn and ?elearn< is the slo.an .enerall- used b- man- or.ani1ations
lookin. for this abilit-. Have the habit of referrin. to various Dournals and =eriodi$als. Thus4 one
has to work out the strate.ies for learnin.. These $an beI
SelfClearnin..
Continuin. edu$ation and distan$e edu$ation ro.rams4 e0emlified b- $orresonden$e
$ourses durin. studies. , diloma or a =ostC'raduate (iloma in 9Software 8n.ineerin.3 or
98nvironmental )ana.ement3 from an !nstitution like H!884 8nvironmental rote$tion
So$iet- $an be or a .reat hel to -ou. Jou3re sure to have a thi$k ed.e over -our fellow
interviewee.
Aearnin. on the job.
Aearnin. from $ollea.ues 6eers7 and friends b- knowled.e sharin..
Thus4 :e a Curious Aistener and Aearner4 and develo thirst for knowled.e.
4 4 4
#. HO$ TO HANDL% !NT%R.!%$S
#.1. T&e inte)5ie' lette)6notification is in 7o*) &and+ Con.ratulationsB Jou know that -ou have
over$ome the first hurdle of an- job sear$h. !n the sele$tion ro$ess that -ou ma- have
en$ountered so far4 -ou would have submitted an ali$ation whi$h no doubt measured u to the
standards e0e$ted b- -our otential emlo-erK -ou ma- also have aeared for a written
e0amination that -ou lave also $leared. So -ou know now that -our aroa$h so far has been
$orre$t and -ou have been found well reared. ,t his oint -ou must remind -ourself that just as
untid- or oorl- reared ali$ations never stand a $han$e4 neither do untid- or oorl- reared
$andidates.
T&e inte)5ie' call (eans t&at+
The emlo-er is interested and believes that -ou have the ri.ht otential for the =ositionK
There are other $ontenders and man- of them are .oin. to be unsu$$essful and -ou don3t
want to be amon. themK and
Jou need to seriousl- start -our reCinterview lannin.4 whi$h would in$lude workin. on
-our ersonal resentation and also resear$hin. the ba$k.round information.
#.#. T&e G)o*nd'o)k+ !n an interview -ou are sellin.4 -ourself4 a ro$ess -ou be.an when -ou
submitted -our ali$ation form or Curri$ulum Litae 6CL7. !t is no lon.er a matter of just needin.
the ri.ht qualifi$ations or e0erien$e4 althou.h these ase$ts will la- their art4 -ou now have to
demonstrate that -ou also have the enthusiasm4 motivation and $ommitment the interviewers are
lookin. for. ,s a means of sele$tion interviews are not without drawba$ks but the- invariabl-
$ontinue to be oular.
5hat to take with -ou for the interviewI 8ven if these are not se$ifi$all- requested4 it is a .ood
idea to take these with -ouI i7 s$hool $ertifi$ates4 ii7 re$ord of a$hievements after s$hool4 iii7
e0amles of artwork or te$hni$al drawin.s4 roje$ts@ublished aers4 where aroriate.
Take with -ou an-thin.4 whi$h is relevant and suorts -our ali$ation. ,ll this should be
$hronolo.i$all- arran.ed in a file. Aet the file be of sober hue and not .arishl- atterned@$oloured.
#.,. P)epa)ation+ ,art from lookin. .ood at the interview -ou should also be able to show that
-ou are interested not onl- in the job that is on offer but the firm@$oman- whi$h is offerin. it.
Carr- out resear$h to find out about the stru$ture and rodu$ts and servi$es of the or.ani1ationK to
find out where the job fits into the or.ani1ational setCu and to dis$over as mu$h as ossible about
the job itself. Thorou.h ba$k.round rearation will boost -our $onfiden$e4 it hels $on$entrate
-our mind on wh- -ou have alied for that arti$ular job@osition and it imroves -our $han$es
of su$$ess.
!n a standa)d inte)5ie' 7o* s&o*ld be p)epa)ed to tackle 8*estions f)o( t&ese a)ea+
i7 ;amil- E these hel the interviewer to see -ou as a $omlete ersonK
ii7 S$hool and $olle.e4 substantiate with do$umentsK
iii7 Hobbies and interests outside s$hool or $olle.e E reveal motivational drives or attitude to workK
other ersonalit- $hara$teristi$sK
iv7 5ork e0erien$e E su$h questions reveals motivational drives4 enthusiasm towards trainin.4
attitude towards work and authorit-4 abilit- to $oe and flourish within the work or.ani1ationK
v7 'oals for -ou resonses -ou are e0e$ted to draw uon -our values4 interests and to skills.
#./. Pe)sonal p)esentation+ !f there is a time when first imressions $ount4 then it is undoubtedl-
when -ou .o for an interview. Jours interviewers sees -ou before seakin. to -ou and have
alread- formed an imression before the interview starts. (on3t aear with wildl- st-led hair4 or
unrul-4 un$ombed hair4 latest mirror lenses4 batCbreath4 .arish makeu4 dirt- or ra..ed fin.er nails.
Choose formal $lothes that are neat4 tid-4 $lean and well fittin.. Ho4 desi.ner names or brand
names are not imortant at all. Deans4 TCshirts are out. Aet -our shoes $omlement -our outfit bein.
both $lean and well maintained. )ake sure that -ou feel $omfortable and $onfident in the outfit
-ou have $hosen E $he$k out the fit before de$idin.. ,lwa-s be ra$ti$al E take a $oat or rain$oat
and umbrella to kee -ou warm and dr- or both. Deweller- should be ket to the minimum4 no
di.ital wat$hes@mobile hone@a.er that bee. Clean fabri$ handker$hief to $oe with snee1es.
=erfume afterCshave to be as unobtrusive as ossible and use a less erfumed deodorant.
As 7o* ente)+ 5alk forward $onfidentl-4 bod- strai.ht4 head u. Smile and be reared to shake
hands briefl- but ositivel- if -our interviewer offers to shake -our4 not otherwise. Sit strai.ht4 but
in a rela0ed $omfortable osition4 kee -our hands4 rela0ed4 referabl- in -our la4 )aintain .ood
e-e $onta$t with the interviewer as soon as -ou have settled.
#.0. T7pical inte)5ie' 9*estions+ These are some frequentl- asked questionsK -ou ma- be asked
all4 some or ossibl- onl- a few of them. Dust .o throu.h these and reare in writin. the answers
-ou would like to .ive.
$&at a)e 7o*) st)engt&s:+ !dentif- areas where -ou erform best4 tr- to mat$h these with the
skills required for the job @ rofessional ro.ramme 6that -ou have alied for7.
$&at a)e 7o*) 'eaknesses:+ Sti$k to minor fa$tual roblems whi$h $an be remedied b- addin. a
ositive rider to -our answer. <! suose ! didn3t tr- hard enou.h4 but ! intend to have a .ood tr- at
it<.
Ho' 'o*ld 7o* desc)ibe 7o*)self:+ Con$entrate on the des$rition of the erson bein. sou.ht
and tr- to ut forward a i$ture of -ourself to mat$h as $lose to that as ossible. :ut -ou need to be
honestK make the most of -our .ood oints but don3t make them unbelievable.
;Do 7o* &a5e plans fo) additional ed*cation+; Here the interviewer is tr-in. to find out whether
-ou see this line of work as art of a lon.Cterm $ommitment as oosed to stoC.a measure. !f
-ou do have lans for additional edu$ation4 be se$ifi$ about what -ou want to learn and how an
emlo-er $ould ossibl- benefit.
$&at 'e)e 7o*) fa5o*)ite s*b<ects and '&7: + This should be eas-. Dust make sure that -ou
make -our resonse relevant to the job that -ou alied for. ,lso4 make some referen$e to the more
broadl- based skills that -ou have4 su$h as roblemCsolvin.4 $ommuni$atin. or writin. effe$tivel-.
$&7 do 7o* 'ant to 'o)k fo) *s: 6 $&7 do 7o* 'ant t&is =ob:+ Jour answer must $ontain
.enuine4 ositive reasons ba$ked u b- suortive eviden$e. Jour answer $ould be one of man-
su$h asI
! enjo- meetin. eole.
! think it mi.ht be interestin. work.
! like ta$klin. a $hallen.e.
2n their own these statements la$k $redibilit-4 their meanin.fulness $omes when -ou ba$k them u
with somethin. substantial. 'ive some e0amles of $hallen.es -ou have ta$kled re$entl-.

Ot&e) 8*estions t&at co*ld be asked incl*de.
How do -ou .et on with -our s$hool friends@tea$hers/
5hat did -ou like the most@least about -our eriods of work e0erien$e/
5here do -ou see -ourself five -ears from now/
5ho has been the .reatest influen$e in -our life and wh-/
5hat do -ou think has been -our .reatest a$hievement/
5hat is the .reatest hurdle that -ou have $rossed/
!n answerin. questions on an- of the above or related areas4 remember to $on$entrate on the
ositive4 if -ou have e0erien$ed diffi$ulties then own u to them4 show how -ou have over$ome
them4 learnt from them4 ideall-4 take advanta.e of mo$k interviews to evaluate -our rearation. !n
the absen$e of a formal mo$k interview4 -ou $an alwa-s ask friends or relatives to a$t as
interviewers but this is ver- mu$h the se$ondCbest otion sin$e the- ma- feel sill- or embarrassed.
:ut -ou $an $omensate b- develoin. -our owers of selfCobservation. Cons$iousl- ra$tise
other wa-s of standin. or seakin. b- reviewin. throu.h a mirror ima.e and tae re$order. :ein.
videoed under mo$k interview $onditions is4 of $ourse4 an unbeatable learnin. e0erien$e.
#.2. SOM% DON>TS+
,t an interview4 do not ut -ourself in a osition where -ou have to lie or sa- -ou don3t know or
blame someone else for a failure or shru. -our shoulders. 8ven if this is true4 don3t sa- -ou $ame
for 9the mone-3. Tr- not to ut -ourself in a bad li.ht without sa-in. somethin. ositive to
$omensate.
Al'a7s s&o'+ Jou have valid reasons for -our answers. Jou are honest and oen with -our
relies.
T&e e?it E should be a stunnin.l- .ood one. The wa- -ou leave is just as imortant as the wa- -ou
enter.
Steps to an effecti5e e?it+ .ather to.ether the items -ou brou.ht with -ou ensure -ou have a ti.ht
.ri on them.
Stand u and strai.hten -our $lothes.
Shake hands with -our interviewers if this is e0e$ted.
Thank the interviewers for their time.
Smile
)ake -our e0it b- E stoin. at the door4 turnin.4 smilin. and thankin. a.ain4 leavin.4
$losin. the door quietl- behind -ou.
Re(e(be)+ , .ood interviewer will be lookin. forI
Mualifi$ations
80erien$e
)otivation
=ersonalit-
,dditional or transferable skills
Jour interviewer will also be lookin. for si.ns that -ou are interested4 attentive4 $ommuni$ative4
keen and most imortant of all4 be able to show -ou have that 9somethin.3 e0tra. !n the overall
anal-sis of an interview4 a .ood interviewer sums -ou u on several fronts at on$e b-I
Jour answers to fa$tual questionsK
How -ou answered these questionsK
How -ou resonded to questions desi.ned to en$oura.e -ou to 9sell -ourself3I
:- -our overall demeanourI
,earan$e4 awareness4 de$isiveness4 oliteness4 humour4 oenness and so on.
=*st befo)e+ The ni.ht before and the da- of the interview4 $lose -our e-es for a few minutes.
Create a i$ture in -our mind of the interviewK i$ture -ourself rela0ed and $onfident4 resondin.
to questions and askin. questions of -our own. Sea -ourself .ettin. u to leave the interview and
the interviewer sa-in. e0a$tl- what -ou want to be said. Aiterall- ima.ine the words -ou will hear
from the interviewer. :elieve me4 it worksB )ake sure -ou have $lear dire$tions to the interview
lo$ationCthe busCroutes@suburban train links4 et$. and @ or landmarksCand lan to arrive a few
minutes earl-. Gse -our e0tra time to assess the atmoshere4 talk with a re$etionist4 $he$k out the
ubli$ations in the room or .o throu.h the da-3s newsaers and i$k u an- ba$k.round
information -ou $an.
! am sure that -ou $an see that rearation is -our best all- when handlin. a standard interview.
Jou $an alwa-s make thin.s better for -ourself b- usin. an-time -ou have before the interview to
do -our homework for -ourself and the emlo-er3s needs. 8ven if -ou are doin. a series of
interviews on the same theme4 reare for ea$h one as thou.h it were the onl- one. 5hi$hever wa-
the interview ends4 alwa-s tr- to leave a favourable imression behind.
#.@. Ho' to *se t&e inte)5ie' %?pe)ience+ ,s -ou leave the interview room4 -ou $ould be
e0erien$in. all sorts of rea$tions4 from e0hilaration and e0$itement to the deeest desair or a
sense of antiC$lima0. )ake an effort not to waste the valuable time immediatel- after -our
e0erien$e. Tr- to use the e0erien$e as a sour$e of learnin. to erform better in future.
#.A. Reasons fo) 7o* to take stock of '&at &appened as soon as possible afte) t&e inte)5ie'+
To hel -ou to fi0 events4 ersonalities and fa$ts asso$iated with this one firml- in -our
mind for more interviews.
Jou will be able to $ome u with the reasons@areas that une0e$tedl- let -ou down and
need workin. on or whi$h -ou handled well and need rememberin..
To be $ertain that -ou have enou.h information to de$ide whether to a$$et the job if it
were offered to -ou.
!f thin.s went reall- badl-4 reviewin. what haened hels -ou to work throu.h -our
tension4 and if done thorou.hl- and obje$tivel-4 should rovide ositive ointers on how to
handle the ne0t interview differentl- and to better effe$t.
!f -ou thou.ht that to shine at interviews -ou just turn u in -our best outfit4 look imma$ulatel-
.roomed4 smile4 shake hands in a ositive manner are enou.h4 -ou now know better. !t is true that
initiall-4 interviewers ma- be imressed b- a .ood turnout4 hen$e -our ersonal resentation as in
$lothes and aearan$e are imortant to make a ositive first imression. :ut this is onl- art of
the stor-. To raise -our $han$es above the rest4 -ou have to show -ou have that e0tra se$ial
somethin.. The ma.i$ in.redient for this is thorou.h rearation.
,. COMMON =O- !NT%R.!%$ 9%ST!ONS
:- rehearsin. interview questions4 -ou3ll be$ome more familiar with -our own qualifi$ations and
will be well reared to demonstrate how -ou $an benefit an emlo-er. Some examples:
4 ;Tell (e abo*t 7o*)self.;
)ake a short4 or.ani1ed statement of -our edu$ation and rofessional a$hievements and
rofessional .oals. Then4 briefl- des$ribe -our qualifi$ations for the job and the
$ontributions -ou $ould make to the or.ani1ation
4 ;$&7 do 7o* 'ant to 'o)k &e)e:; o) ;$&at abo*t o*) co(pan7 inte)ests 7o*:;
;ew questions are more imortant than these4 so it is imortant to answer them $learl- and
with enthusiasm. Show the interviewer -our interest in the $oman-. Share what -ou
learned about the job4 the $oman- and the industr- throu.h -our own resear$h. Talk about
how -our rofessional skills will benefit the $oman-. Gnless -ou work in sales4 -our
answer should never be siml-I <mone-< The interviewer will wonder if -ou reall- $are
about the job.
4 ;$&7 did 7o* lea5e 7o*) last <ob:;
The interviewer ma- want to know if -ou had an- roblems on -our last job. !f -ou did not
have an- roblems4 siml- .ive a reason4 su$h asI relo$ated awa- from jobK $oman- went
out of businessK laid offK temorar- jobK no ossibilit- of advan$ementK wanted a job better
suited to -our skills
!f -ou did have roblems4 be honest. Show that -ou $an a$$et resonsibilit- and learn
from -our mistakes Jou should e0lain an- roblems -ou had 6or still have7 with an
emlo-er4 but don3t des$ribe that emlo-er in ne.ative terms (emonstrate that it was a
learnin. e0erien$e that will not affe$t -our future work
4 ;$&at a)e 7o*) best skills:;
!f -ou have suffi$ientl- resear$hed the or.ani1ation4 -ou should be able to ima.ine what
skills the $oman- values Aist them4 then .ive e0amles where -ou have demonstrated
these skills
4 ;$&at is 7o*) (a<o) 'eakness:;
:e ositiveK turn a weakness into a stren.th. ;or e0amle4 -ou mi.ht sa-I <! often worr-
too mu$h over m- work. Sometimes ! work late to make sure the Dob is done well<
N <(o -ou refer to work b- -ourself or with others/<
The ideal answer is one of fle0ibilit- However4 be honest. 'ive e0amles des$ribin. how
-ou have worked in both situations.
N <5hat are -our $areer .oals/< or <5hat are -our future lans/<
The interviewer wants to know if -our lans and the $oman-3s .oals are $omatible. Aet
him know that -ou are ambitious enou.h to lan ahead. Talk about -our desire to learn
more and imrove -our erforman$e4 and be se$ifi$ as ossible about how -ou will meet
the .oals -ou have set for -ourself
4 ;$&at a)e 7o*) &obbies:; and ;Do 7o* pla7 an7 spo)ts:;
The interviewer ma- be lookin. for eviden$e of -our job skills outside of -our rofessional
e0erien$e ;or e0amle4 hobbies su$h as $hess or brid.e demonstrate anal-ti$al skills
?eadin.4 musi$4 and aintin. are $reative hobbies !ndividual sorts show determination
and stamina4 while .rou sort a$tivities ma- indi$ate -ou are $omfortable workin. as art
of a team.
,lso4 the interviewer mi.ht siml- be $urious as to whether -ou have a life outside of work
8mlo-ees who have $reative or athleti$ outlets for their stress are often healthier4 haier
and more rodu$tive
4 ;$&at sala)7 a)e 7o* e?pecting:;
Jou robabl- don3t want to answer this one dire$tl-. !nstead4 defle$t the question ba$k to
the interviewer b- sa-in. somethin. likeI <! don3t know. 5hat are -ou lannin. on a-in.
the best $andidate/< Aet the emlo-er make the first offer.
However4 it is still imortant to know what the $urrent salar- ran.e is for the rofession
;ind salar- surve-s at the librar- or on the !nternet4 and $he$k the $lassifieds to see what
$omarable jobs in -our area are a-in. This information $an hel -ou ne.otiate
$omensation on$e the emlo-er makes an offer.
4 ;$&at &a5e ! fo)gotten to ask:;
Gse this as a $han$e to summari1e -our .ood $hara$teristi$s and attributes and how the-
ma- be used to benefit the or.ani1ation. Convin$e the interviewer that -ou understand the
job requirements and that -ou $an su$$eed.
Here are some other job interview questions -ou mi.ht want to rehearse.
3o*) 9*alifications
5hat $an -ou do for us that someone else $an3t do/
5hat qualifi$ations do -ou have that relate to the osition/
5hat new skills or $aabilities have -ou develoed re$entl-/
'ive me an e0amle from a revious job where -ou3ve shown initiative
5hat have been -our .reatest a$$omlishments re$entl-/
5hat is imortant to -ou in a job/
5hat motivates -ou in -our work/
5hat have -ou been doin. sin$e -our last job/
5hat qualities do -ou find imortant in a $oCworker/
3o*) Ca)ee) Goals
5hat would -ou like to bein. doin. five -ears from now/
How will -ou jud.e -ourself su$$essful/ How will -ou a$hieve su$$ess/
5hat t-e of osition are -ou interested in/
How will this job fit in -our $areer lans/
5hat do -ou e0e$t from this job/
(o -ou have a lo$ation referen$e/
Can -ou travel/
5hat hours $an -ou work/
5hen $ould -ou start/
3o*) $o)k %?pe)ience
5hat have -ou learned from -our ast jobs/
5hat were -our bi..est resonsibilities/
5hat se$ifi$ skills a$quired or used in revious jobs relate to this osition/
How does -our revious e0erien$e relate to this osition/
5hat did -ou like most@least about -our last job/
5hom ma- we $onta$t for referen$es/
3o*) %d*cation
How do -ou think -our edu$ation has reared -ou for this osition/
5hat were -our favourite $lasses@a$tivities at s$hool/
5h- did -ou $hoose -our major/
(o -ou lan to $ontinue -our edu$ation/
/. Tips 1OR !nte)5ie'+
Here are some Tis@'uidelines that mi.ht hel -ou reare for a .ood interviewI ,rrive on time.
:e un$tual and attentive. Take -our seat onl- when -ou are asked to take. !ntrodu$e -ourself. Gse
ositive vo$al qualities and fa$ial e0Cressions. Sit attentivel- to demonstrate -our interest and
enthusiasm.
:rin. alon. a wat$h4 en4 and a ad of aer for takin. notes. (on3t kee a urse4 ke- $hain4 loose
aers et$4 in -our o$kets4 if -ou $an4 it ma- detra$t from -our rofessional ima.e. ,lwa-s take a
few e0tra $oies of -our resumeB (on3t kee -our belon.in.s like ;iles on the table. Fee them
onl- on -our la until -ou3re asked to use the table.
Lerbal Communi$ation SkillsI Aisten $arefull- to what is bein. asked and answer the question. ,sk
for $larifi$ation if -ou don3t understand the question. Sa- 9=ardon me4 Sir3 or 980$use me4 Sir3.
'ive $lear4 $on$ise answers. Gse roer .rammar. :e se$ifi$4 refer to $on$rete e0erien$es. (on3t
ask about salar- and benefits until the emlo-er brin.s u the subje$t. (on3t take an- interview
ver- $asuall-. (on3t talk to the interviewer the wa- -ou talk to an- of -our friends.
OTH%RS+
,nswer for a few ver- $ommonl- asked questions like introdu$e -ourself4 famil-
ba$k.round4 $ontribution to so$iet- et$. -ourself4 re$ord them and hear them a.ain and
a.ain to refine -our skills.
!f -ou3ve a oint to be $onve-ed4 sta- with the main oint and i.nore the unimortant ones.
O Think about what an emlo-er wants to know and reare e0amles.
=reare a strate.- for ever- interviewK make sure -ou share the information that -ou feel is
most aroriate and relevant. :e se$ifi$ and kee to the oint. (on3t brin. u e0traneous
matters.
,sk aroriate and well thou.htCout questions. (on3t e0e$t an offer on the sot.
Talk a bit4 then ause. The ause indi$ates that now it is time for the other .u- to talk.
)an- times we $ome out of interviews4 thinkin. the- were erfe$t. ,nd then we wait for the job
offer4 but it never haens. , few $alls later -ou .et the hint that the re$ruiter is not interested or is
siml- avoidin. -ou4 2r in lar.er or.ani1ations4 -ou ma- .et a re.ret letter. !t3s natural to feel
disaointed4 but at the same time4 it3s imortant to refle$t on the interview4 and anal-1e it a.ain.
)ake it an oortunit- to learn from -our mistakes4 2r understand that interviews are not oneCwa-
situations.
! went to a showroom to ur$hase a $ar. ! found )aruti4 ;ord4 )er$edes :en14 To-ota4 ;iat4
,mbassador4 Santro and what not finall- sele$ted )aruti "%% and $ame out drivin. it. This deal
does not mean that )er$edes :en1 or ;ord or ;iat is not .ood. The- ma- be far better than )aruti4
but were not sele$ted b- me. 'ot itB Jou also ma- be like that for a few $omaniesB
,ttitude =roblemsI Sometimes4 $andidates ma- $ome a$ross as arro.ant and <know it all< h1 their
aroa$h4 !t ma- turn off the interviewer4 and -ou must kee in mind that while the- $an afford to
be selfC$entered4 $andidates $annot. :e a .ood listener C be $ourteous and $urious with a leasant
fa$e throu.hout while hearin.. Sometimes the interviewer tries to e0lain about their $oman-4
their roje$ts4 their s$holarl- a$hievements et$. whi$h ma- be ver- well known to -ou. Dust listen
to him $ourteousl- with a smile but never nod -our head imatientl- and never sa- 9! know it4 Sir3
9! know4 ! know3 or 92k..2k..2k..2F 9!f -ou sa- so4 it as bad as sa-in. 9! know it all Sir4 Jou are
borin. me4 =lease sto it SirB3 Similarl-4 don3t $riti$i1e the revious $oman- or the eole -ou
worked with. :admouthin. others makes -ou look u.l- C bod- and sirit.
(o ?esear$h on :a$k.roundI Fnow somethin. about the job4 $oman- or industr- rior to the
interview4 Lisit the librar- or use the !nternet to resear$h the $oman-4 then talk with friends4
seniors and other rofessionals about the oortunit- before interview.
Hot Havin. Muestions to ,skI ,skin. questions shows -our interest in the $oman- and the job.
=reare a list of intelli.ent questions in advan$e. See that the questions have fewer words4 sa-
ma0imum 1% words.
/.1. Not Readil7 "no'ing t&e Ans'e)s to !nte)5ie'e)>s 9*estions+ 'enerall- questions whi$h
-ou $an answer easil- onl- will be asked. Comanies send hu.e amounts on re$ruitin. ersonnel
and therefore3 $ondu$t interviews onl- to sele$t4 not to reje$t. ,lso the- want -ou to be in a ver-
rela0ed mood so that -ou $an e0ress -our thou.hts and ideas freel-. That is wh-4 questions like4
!ntrodu$e -ourself4 5hat about -our famil- ba$k.round4 5ho is -our favourite $ine hero et$. are
first asked. !f -ou $an answer these standard questions well4 -ou are a free man to .ive -our
answers $onfidentl-. ,lso4 when a question is asked4 .ive a ause4 think and tell. (on3t .ive an
instantaneous answer even if -ou3ve a read-made answer. The interC viewer wants to know how
-ou think4 how -ou formulate -our resonses and how -ou relate thin.s. 5hat will he do with the
answer/ 2r.ani1ation of thou.hts is imortant4 not the answer.
Too )u$h Humilit-I Candidates are sometimes relu$tant to des$ribe their a$$omlishments.
80lainin. how -ou rea$h diffi$ult or imressive .oals hels emlo-ers understand what -ou $an
do for them. So4 reiterate -our skills and $onvin$e the emlo-ers understand what -ou $an do for
them.
Handlin. Salar- !ssuesI Candidates often ask about salar- and benefits too earl-. !f the- believe
and emlo-er is interested4 the- ma- demand inaroriate amounts and soil their oortunities.
Candidates who ask for too little undervalue themselves or aear deserate. Gse a little ta$t.
Fnow when it3s ri.ht to talk mone-. ,nd avoid showin. how mu$h -ou want the job to the oint of
undersellin. -ourself.
Aa$k of Career (ire$tionI Dob hunters who are not $lear about their $areer .oals reveal their la$k of
dire$tion and their inabilit- to $ontribute to the .rowth of the or.ani1ation.
0. SCC%SS T!PS
#0 Tips fo) s*ccessf*l !nte)5ie'ing
The job interviewin. sta.e of -our job sear$h is the most $riti$al. Jou $an make or break -our
$han$e of bein. hired in the short amount of time it takes to be interviewed. ,n-one $an learn to
interview well4 however4 and most mistakes $an be anti$iated and $orre$ted. Aearn the followin.
to 2# interviewin. te$hniques to .ive -ou that winnin. ed.e.
1. :rin. e0tra $oies of -our resume to the interview. Hothin. shows less rearation and
readiness than bein. asked for another $o- of -our resume and not havin. one. Come
reared with e0tra $oies of -our resume. Jou ma- be asked to interview with more than
one erson and it demonstrates rofessionalism and rearedness to anti$iate needin.
e0tra $oies
2. (ress $onservativel- and rofessionall-. Jou $an establish -our uniqueness throu.h
other wa-s4 but what -ou wear to an interview $an make a tremendous differen$e. !t is
better to overdress than under dress. Jou $an4 howC ever4 wear the same $lothes to see
different eole.
3. :e aware of -our bod- lan.ua.e. Tr- to look alert4 ener.eti$4 and fo$used on the
interviewer. )ake e-e $onta$t. HonCverball-4 this $ommuni$ates that -ou are interested in
the individual.
4. ;irst@last imressions. The first and last five minutes of the interview are the most
imortant to the interview. !t is durin. this time that $riti$al first and lastin. imressions are
made and the interviewer de$ides whether or not the- like -ou. Communi$ate ositive
behaviors durin. the first five minutes and be sure -ou are remembered when -ou leave.
#. ;ill out $oman- ali$ations $omletel-C even if -ou have a resume. 8ven thou.h -ou
have brou.ht a $o- of -our resume4 man- $omanies require a $omleted ali$ation.
Jour willin.ness to $omlete one4 and -our thorou.hness in doin. so4 will $onve- a .reat
deal about -our rofessionalism and abilit- to follow throu.h.
6. ?emember that the urose of ever- interview is to .et an offer. Jou must suffi$ientl-
imress -our interviewer both rofessionall- and ersonall- to be offered the job. ,t the
end of the interview4 make sure -ou know what the ne0t ste is and when the emlo-er
e0e$ts to make a de$ision.
&. Gnderstand emlo-ers3 needs. =resent -ourself as someone who $an reall- add value to
an or.ani1ation. Show that -ou $an fit into the work environment.
". :e likeable. :e enthusiasti$. =eole love to hire individuals who are eas- to .et alon.
with and who are e0$ited about their $oman-. :e rofessionalK -et demonstrate -our
interest and ener.-.
+. )ake sure -ou have the ri.ht skills. Fnow -our $ometition. How do -ou $omare with
-our eers in edu$ation4 e0erien$e4 trainin.4 salar-4 and $areer ro.ression/ )ention the
thin.s -ou know how to do reall- well. The- are the ke-s to -our ne0t job.
1%. (isla- abilit- to work hard to ursue an or.ani1ation3s .oals. ,ssume that most
interviewers need to sele$t someone who will fit into their or.ani1ation well in terms of
both rodu$tivit- and ersonalit-. Jou must $onfirm that -ou are both a rodu$tive and
ersonable individual b- stressin. -our benefits for the emlo-er.
11. )arket all of -our stren.ths. !t is imortant to market -ourself4 in$ludin. -our te$hni$al
qualifi$ations4 .eneral skills and e0erien$es as well as ersonal traits. ?e$ruiters $are
about two thin.s C $redentials and ersonalit-. Can -ou do the job based on ast
erforman$e and will -ou fit in with the $ororate $ulture/ Talk about -our ositive
ersonalit- traits and .ive e0amles of how -ou demonstrate ea$h one on the job
12. 'ive definitive answers and se$ifi$ results. 5henever -ou make a $laim of -our
a$$omlishments4 it will be more believable and better remembered if -ou $ite se$ifi$
e0amles and suort for -our $laims Tell the interC viewer somethin. about business
situations where -ou a$tuall- used this skill and elaborate on the out$ome. :e se$ifi$.
13. (on3t be afraid to admit mistakes. 8mlo-ers want to know what mistakes -ou have
made and what is wron. with -ou. (on3t be afraid to admit makin. mistakes in the ast4
but $ontinuousl- stress -our ositive qualities as well4 and how -ou have turned ne.atives
into ositive traits.
14. ?elate stories or e0amles that hei.hten -our ast e0erien$e. =ast erforman$e is the
best indi$ator of future erforman$e. !f -ou were su$$essful at one $oman-4 odds are -ou
$an su$$eed at another. :e read- to sell -our own features and benefits in the interview.
1#. Fnow ever-thin. about -our otential emlo-er before the interview. Customi1e -our
answers as mu$h as ossible in terms of the needs of the emlo-er. This requires that -ou
$omlete resear$h4 before the interview4 about the $oman-4 its $ustomers4 and the work
-ou anti$iate doin.. Talk in the emlo-er3s lan.ua.e
16. ?ehearse and ra$ti$e interview questions before the interview. =rior to -our interview4
tr- to a$tuall- ra$ti$e the t-es of questions and answers -ou ma- be asked. 8ven if -ou
do not anti$iate all of the questions4 the ro$ess of thinkin. them throu.h will hel -ou
feel less stressed and more reared durin. the interview itself.
1&. Fnow how to resond to tou.h questions. The majorit- of questions that -ou will be
asked $an be anti$iated most of the time. There are alwa-s4 however4 those e0$etional
ones tailored to throw -ou off .uard and to see how -ou erform under ressure. Jour best
strate.- is to be reared4 sta- $alm4 $olle$t -our thou.hts4 and resond as $learl- as
ossible.
1". Translate -our stren.ths into jobCrelated lan.ua.e of a$$omlishments and benefits
relevant to the needs of emlo-ers. 5hile -ou no doubt have se$ifi$ stren.ths and skills
related to the osition4 stress the benefits -ou are likel- to rovide to the emlo-er.
5henever ossible4 .ive e0amles of -our stren.ths that relate to the lan.ua.e and needs
of the emlo-er.
1+. !dentif- -our stren.ths and what -ou enjo- doin.. Skills that -ou enjo- doin. are the
ones that are most likel- to brin. benefit to an emlo-er. =rior to the interview4 know what
it is that -ou enjo- doin. most4 and what benefits that brin.s to -ou and -our emlo-er.
2%. Fnow how -ou $ommuni$ate verball- to others. Stron. verbal $ommuni$ations skills
are hi.hl- valued b- most emlo-ers. The- are si.ns of edu$ated and $ometent
individuals. Fnow how -ou $ommuni$ate4 and ra$ti$e with others to determine if -ou are
resentin. -ourself in the best ossible li.ht.
21. (on3t arrive on time C arrive earl-B Ho matter how s-matheti$ -our interviewer ma-
be to the fa$t that there was an a$$ident on the freewa-4 it is virtuall- imossible to
over$ome a ne.ative first imression. (o whatever it takes to be on time4 in$ludin.
allowin. e0tra time for une0e$ted emer.en$ies.
22. Treat ever-one -ou meet as imortant to the interview. )ake sure -ou are $ourteous to
ever-one -ou $ome in $onta$t with4 no matter who the- are or what their osition. The
oinion of ever-one $an be imortant to the interview ro$ess.
23. ,nswer questions with $omlete senten$es and with substan$e. ?emember that -our
interviewer is tr-in. to determine what substan$e -ou would brin. to the $oman- and the
osition. ,void answerin. the questions asked with simle <-es3 or <no3 answers. 'ive
$omlete answers that show what knowled.e -ou have $on$ernin. the $oman- and its
requirements. Aet the interviewer know who -ou are.
24. ?edu$e -our nervousness b- ra$ti$in. stress redu$tion te$hniques. There are man-
stressCredu$in. te$hniques used b- ubli$ seakers that $an $ertainl- aid -ou in -our
interview ro$ess. =ra$ti$e some of the rela0ation methods as -ou aroa$h -our interview4
su$h as takin. slow dee breaths to $alm -ou down. The more -ou $an rela04 the more
$omfortable -ou will feel and the more $onfident -ou will aear.
2#. :e sure to ask questions. :e reared to ask several questions relevant to the job4
emlo-er4 and the or.ani1ation. These questions should be desi.ned to eli$it information to
hel -ou make a de$ision as well as demonstrate -our interest4 intelli.en$e4 and enthusiasm
for the job.
2. Ho' to P)epa)e fo) an !nte)5ie':
Here are some strate.ies or .eneral rules that will hel -ou about an- question that $omes -our
wa-. =reare well for various frequentl- asked questions thorou.hl- and ra$ti$e several times.
The first few questions likeI !ntrodu$e -ourself4 5hat about -our famil- ba$k.round4 Jour
stren.ths and weaknesses4 How -ou have over$ome them4 Jour favourite subje$ts4 Dournals -ou
refer4 et$. et$. are .enerall- the same for all. ,t the same time4 -ou shouldn3t .o into an interview
with a s$rit of e0a$tl- what -ou are .oin. to sa- or with so mu$h rehearsal under -our belt that
-ou sound like an automation. 5hat -ou need to take with -ou are ta$ti$s that are versatile enou.h
to navi.ate an- twist and turn the interview mi.ht take.
(o answer the question4 be$ause not answerin. the question is a $ommon and disastrous
itfall. Aisten $arefull- to what is bein. asked4 and answer that question.
:e $andid C but do so strate.i$all-. ?emember that emlo-ers want to .et to know -ou. !f
the- feel the- are .ettin. $old resonses4 the- will be turned off.
(on3t ever .ive a -es or no answer. ?eali1e that ever- $han$e -ou have to resond to a
question is a $han$e to $onvin$e the emlo-er of -our value. 5henever a question is asked4
don3t .ive awa- the answers immediatel-. 'ive a ause4 think about it and then .ive -our
answer 6even if -ou know the answer thorou.hl-4 a$t as if -ou3re thinkin.B7. !f -ou are not
sure4 -ou $an alwa-s .uess it. Jou $an even tell them that -ou3re .uessin. with -our bod-
lan.ua.e4 but never bluff boldl-4 never ar.ue.
(o review -our stren.ths before ever- interview4 and adat them as needed for ea$h
rose$tive emlo-er.
Sa- 9we34 9us3 or 92ur3 instead of 9!34 9me3 or 9the-3. Aet -our words show that -ou like
-our resent job4 -our $ollea.ues and the emlo-ers and their oli$ies. Jou3re otin. this
$oman- for -our betterment4 not be$ause -ou3ve roblems with -our resent emlo-er.
(on3t .et hun. u on the a$tual wordin. of a question. ;o$us instead on what qualities and
O< e0erien$es are bein. sou.ht.
(on3t be thrown b- questions off the subje$t of the job. ,skin. about -our thou.hts on
$urrent events or about -our hobbies $an -ield valuable information for the interviewer and
add a human dimension to the interview.
:e dire$t. Hever be evasive or hesitant. !f a question makes -ou un$omfortable4 answer it
dire$tl- while resentin. -ourself in the best ossible manner.
:e atient. Ho matter how tedious the interview ma- be4 tr- to s $ooerative.
(o $olle$t -our thou.hts before seakin.4 avoid unne$essaril- qui$k resonses.
(on3t ever be ne.ative. Gnless -ou are se$ifi$all- asked about su$h subje$ts su$h as
death4 illness4 a$$ident or failure. ,lso don3t seak ill of an- erson4 la$e or thin..
:e ori.inal. !f -ou3re like someone else4 what do the- need -ou for/
2.1. T&e T)ickiest 9*estions+ !n some rese$ts4 no one interview question is an- more or less
diffi$ult than the ne0t. !f -ou follow the above .uidelines and .o into an interview equied with
fo$us on -our stren.ths4 -ou should be able to handle an- question with alomb.
Tell me about -ourselfI
<Tell me about -ourself3 is a $al$ulated wa- of findin. out how -ou or.ani1e -our thou.hts4 how
-ou arti$ulate them4 and on whi$h information -ou $hoose to fo$us. Hen$e4 for <Tell me a stor-<4
-ou should resond in the same wa- as -ou would for <Tell me about -ourself3.
2.#. $&en planning &o' 7o* 'ill )espondB conside) t&e follo'ing st)ategies+
=reare suffi$ientl-. This question requires mu$h more rearation than an- other be$ause
there is a dan.er of not knowin. where to be.in C or of knowin. where to start but not
knowin. when to sto talkin.I
Tell -our stor- fo$usin. on -our stren.ths4 e0erien$e and what -ou $an $ontribute to the
or.ani1ation.
;o$us on rofessional toi$s more than ersonal ones. !t is aroriate to mention a $oule
of brief fa$ts about -our ersonal a$hievements.
:e $on$ise. 9(on3t elaborate on -our $hildhood4 details of -our a$ademi$ re$ord et$.
2.,. Tell (e abo*t a ti(e '&en 7o* &ad a pe)sonalit7 clas& 'it& a coC'o)ke) o) boss.
This question is mainl- to as$ertain -our interersonal skills. (on3t $omlain about -our boss or
$oCworker unne$essaril-. =ersonalit- $lashes ma- be be$ause of oinion differen$es. !nform how
ami$abl- the- were solved b- oen dis$ussion.
2./. $&7 s&o*ld 'e &i)e 7o* instead of so(eone else?
:e aware of the emlo-er3s needs4 to assess what -ou have to offer related to those needs and to
.ive an e0amle of how -ou have met similar needs in the ast. The worst answer -ou $an .ive to
this question $ould be <Jou should hire me be$ause ! am a hard worker with e0$ellent skills and
e0erien$e<. So what/ ,n-one $an sa- thatB !nstead of $on$entratin. on -ourself as a erson4
Think of -ourself onl- in relation to the rose$tive emlo-er. 80a$tl- what $an -ou offer them/
Jou have to 1eroCin on the two or three qualifi$ations the emlo-er $ares most about4 and the one
or two roblems that need to be solved. Tell -our otential to do somethin. valuable for them in
future. Then deliver a owerful un$h of a rel-4 su$h as thisI <:ased on our dis$ussion4 it seems
-ou need someone who has a stron. ba$k.round in database desi.n4 and ! fit the bill.<
6.5. Where do you see yourself 0610/15 years from now?
Jou mi.ht sa-4 <5ell4 of $ourse4 ! $an3t sa- e0a$tl- where ! want to be five -ears from now4 but !
know that ! will still be involved in tele$ommuni$ations and will be $ontinuall- learnin. and
al-in. $uttin.Ced.e te$hnolo.ies. <!n brief4 ! think ! will be in m- eakPS as a learner and just
framin. $on$rete future lans and brin. a roer shae to m- ideas and thou.hts<B
6.6. Have you applied anywhere else?
, dire$t aroa$h to this question is usuall- the best aroa$h. !t will also have the added benefit
of .ettin. the emlo-er3s $ometitive jui$es flowin. when -ou sound like -ou are in demand. :e
frank enou.h to mention the or.ani1ations for whi$h -ou alied@aeared for interview. There is
nothin. wron. in lettin. the interviewer know that he has to $omete with others for himB
<! am in the earl- sta.es of dis$ussin. oortunities at two other firms< is a hand- euhemism for
sa-in. that -ou have la$ed reliminar- $alls to a human resour$es reresentative who told -ou
that some oenin. mi.ht e0ist and that -ou should send in -our resume and the- will $all -ou4 ma-
be4 2f $ourse4 if -ou are not interviewin. an-where else be$ause -ou are not in an a$tive sear$h4
-ou $an siml- sa- so.
6.7. Wha is your salary expe!aion?
Jou robabl- know not to brin. u the issue of salar- in a first interview4 and also not in
subsequent interviews until an offer is made to -ou4 !nterviewers don3t alwa-s live b- the same
rules4 and -ou mi.ht find -ourself asked oint blank what salar- -ou are e0e$tin..
,void statin. an- re$ise amount4 but don3t avoid the question entirel-. Sa- somethin. like know
that m- salar- needs are in line with t-i$al $omensation for 6t-e of osition7 in an or.ani1ation
of this si1e. ,nd4 ! am $onfident we will be able to $ome to an a.reement on an aroriate
$omensation a$ka.e4 but ! would rather not dis$uss se$ifi$s until ! have a $han$e to know more
about the osition and until -ou know more about what ! have to offer.<
What do you think about (controversial topic)...?
Su$h questions are asked not be$ause -our oinions are ver- imortant4 the interviewer would like
to see how -ou $an handle a $ontroversial issue with a balan$ed and lo.i$al aroa$h. 'o ahead
and .ive -our oinion4 but without hurtin. the sentiments of a .rou or $ulture.
!f -ou want to la- it safe4 make sure that an- oinions -ou e0ress are likel- to be shared b- the
interviewer. !f -ou want to take the safest $ourse of a$tion e0ress no oinion at all or one that is
entirel- neutral. !f the interviewer asks. <5hat did -ou make of that mandate the =oe announ$ed
this mornin./< ?el- with somethin. inno$uous like <That was reall- somethin.4 wasn3t it/ ! am
interested in seein. how the world rea$ts<. 5ith this ta$ti$4 -ou defle$t the quer- and ut the
dialo.ue ball ba$k into the interviewer3s $ourt. Subtl- $han.e the subje$t.
2.A. =*st t&e 1acts
5hile it is imortant to be reared for se$ifi$ questions4 -ou shouldn3t e0e$t an interview to
$onform to a te0tbookCst-le format. Jou $an3t redi$t e0a$tl- whi$h questions will be asked or
how the- will be worded4 So arm -ourself with versatile strate.ies rather than detailed s$rits. ;or
e0amle4 -ou ma- be asked about the bio.rah- of a .reat ersonalit- or the basi$s of -o.a or
differen$e between alloath- and Homeoath-4 How to imrove $reative thinkin. or what is
human s$ale/ 5hat is !S:H/ 5hat is borin. um/ 5hat is the ower $onsumtion of a
$omuter/ 4
@. G)o*p Disc*ssion
Howada-s4 'rou (is$ussion '(4 is a oular sele$tion tool in business s$hools and for entr-C
level ositions in$ororates. 5hen number of ali$ants is more4 '( as a sele$tion elimination
tool is ver- $onvenient.
Colle.es like T. , =alC)anial4 )(! 'ur.aon4 !!)s4 Tata !nstitute of So$ial S$ien$es E )umbai.
A?!4 !)T 'ha1iabad4 !C;,! :usiness s$hool4 !=84 S-mblosisC=une4 :hartidasan Tri$h-4 ;)SC
(elhi4 S = Dain4 )umbai4 !ndore universit-4 H)!)SC )umbai4 'oa !nstitute of mana.ement.
Similarl-4 $omanies like A*T4 HAA4 Hestle4 Cadbur-3s4 )ari$o4 Coke4 !TC4 !C!C!4 5iro have
also used '( for some of the entr- level mana.ement sele$tions.
:ut the wa-s and means of su$$ess in .rou dis$ussion is somehow elusive. 2ne has to a$tuall- sit
in a '( in a ver- $ometitive environment to understand what it e0a$tl- is/
@.1. $&at is GD:
Jou ma- find -ourself seated in a .rou of #C1# arti$iants. 'enerall- a toi$ is .iven and the
.rou is asked to dis$uss that toi$. 8a$h $andidate is assessed on the basis of his@her erforman$e
durin. the 'rou (is$ussions. '(
5hat are the- tr-in. to jud.e/ :asi$ skills like $ommuni$ation skill4 anal-ti$al skills4
assertiveness4 $onfiden$e and inter ersonal skills are jud.ed.
T!M% L!M!T+ There is no fi0ed time limit. 'enerall- .rou dis$ussions are $ondu$ted for a
eriod of 1% to 4# minutes.
There are broadl- two t-es of .rou dis$ussionsK one where the dis$ussion is toi$ based or
se$ondl-4 a $ase stud- ma- be .iven to the .rou. Here are some do>s and don>ts of 'rou
(is$ussions.
@.#. So(e Do>s
Opening
Seakin. first is a hi.hCrisk hi.hCreturn strate.-. !t $an make or mark -our '( erforman$e
deendin. on how -ou handle it. !n most '(s the oenin. seaker is the erson who .ets
ma0imum uninterruted airtime. The reason is simle E at the start most other arti$iants in the
'( are still tr-in. to understand the basi$ issues in the toi$ or are too nervous to seak and are
waitin. for some one else to start. Therefore the evaluators .et the best $han$e to observe the
oenin. seaker. How this is a doubleCed.ed sword. !f the oenin. seaker talks sense naturall- he
will .ent $redit be$ause he oened and took the .rou in the ri.ht dire$tion. !f on the other hand
the first seaker doesn3t make too mu$h sense while talkin.4 he will attra$t the undivided attention
of the evaluators to his short$omin.s. He will be marked as a erson who seaks without thinkin.
merel- for the sake of seakin.. So rememberI seak first onl- if -ou have somethin. sensible to
sa-. 2therwise kee quiet and let someone else start.
:od- lan.ua.e is at la- in its best form in a .rou dis$ussion and evaluators $an easil- make out
as to who is nervous et$. This is somethin. -ou $annot $orre$t in short time but if -ou leave
ra$ti$ed roerl- then the $han$es of disla-in. ositive bod- lan.ua.e is more.
8-e $onta$t qui$k movement of e-es is required if .rou si1e is more. 8ven then tr- to make e-e
$onta$t b- rotatin. -our e-es. '( as a tool has .ot its own limitation as some eole ma- have to
shout to make themselves heard4 se$iall- if -ou have a soft voi$e. That3s oka- and desirable4 as
-ou have to make -our oint.
The .rou is .iven a $han$e to de$ide the toi$ think of a .eneral toi$ on whi$h eole $an seak.
5hen the time is short then -ou should .ive oints4 whi$h are be-ond the obvious4 and hen$e
seaks of -our knowled.e base. Common tenden$- is for $andidates to start with the most obvious
oints@quotes@definitions4 whi$h should be avoided.
(ealin. with toi$s in $ase of sensitive toi$s like reservation or .ender biased toi$s. !t3s best to
kee a neutral stand. !n other $ases4 -ou should tr- to take a stand and tr- to justif- it4 based on
-our knowled.e and e0erien$e even if nobod- is a-in. an- attention to -our oints and -ou
haven3t .ot enou.h time just lou.h on as the evaluators ma- be listenin. to what -ou are sa-in.
sin$e it3s a $ometitive situation. 2thers ma- not a- an- attention to -ou deliberatel-4 however4 if
-our oints are .ood4 .enerall- -ou .et the attention.
)annerism is also imortant no matter how frustrated -ou are be$ause of the .rou3s behaviours
maintain de$orum.
!f rearation time is .iven4 -ou ma- use a ad and note down the imortant oints -ou want to
brin. forward4 in brief. Jou $an also use this time to $omose -our thou.hts and develo a line of
thinkin..
Sin$e a '( is alwa-s in a formal settin.4 formal dress $ode is $alled for. Aistenin. is as imortant
as seakin. in the .rou dis$ussion. !t is alwa-s re$ommended to start with some oint be-ond the
obvious or anal-ti$al oints as $li$hQd oints will not motivate eole to listen to -ou and in an
ideal '(4 the toi$ is dis$ussed threadbare b- the .rou in an intelli.ent and erudite manner.
:efore .oin. in for an- '(4 brush -our .eneral knowled.eK the moment a toi$ is allotted to -ou4
tr- to think of as man- .ood oints as -ou $an about the toi$. !f it is allowed4 list them down on
aerK never hesitate to be the first one to seak. :ut avoid .ivin. an- $omment on how '(
should be $ondu$ted. )an- '( arti$iants often $omlain that the- did not .et a $han$e to seak.
The fa$t of the matter is that in no '( do -ou .et a $han$e to seak. Jou have to make -our
$han$es. !f -ou are not a ver- assertive erson4 the road ahead will be tou.h and -ou have to
$han.e -our attitude in those fifteen minutes and if -ou deseratel- want to .et throu.h the '(4
-ou will be able toBB
Tr- to .ive short4 to the oint e0amles. The moment -ou .et a $han$e to seak4 .rab itK otherwise4
-ou ma- interje$t somebod- at the ri.ht moment and seak. !t a-s to think laterall-.
The qualit- of what -ou sa- is more imortant than quantit-. Tr- to think of the various ar.uments
of -ours and others3 as arts of a ji.saw u11le or as buildin. blo$ks of a lar.er ar.ument for or
a.ainst the toi$.
Jou must not a.ree with another arti$iant in the .rou merel- for the sake of a$hievin.
$onsensus. !f -ou disa.ree4 sa- so. 'ive the justifi$ation first and the stand later. !f -ou were to
state -our stand first4 $han$es are that the others in the .rou who disa.ree with -our stand will
interrut to $ontradi$t -ou before -ou $an elaborate on the reasons wh- -ou have taken that stand.
,$$et joint resonsibilities and take de$ision as a .rou. Jou must demonstrate the fa$t that -ou
are $aable and in$lined to work as art of a team.
most of the time4 evaluators ma- be just $ir$lin. -ou or the- ma- be seated on the same table
quietl- observin. -ou. !f the- are sittin. on the same table4 then e-e $onta$t ma- be made with
themK otherwise4 just talk to the .rou. Clarifi$ations if an- should be sou.ht in the be.innin. of
'( from the evaluators.
Summari1eI 5hen -ou are asked to summari1e4 use oints from all the arti$iants. !t should
rove -ou are a .ood listener. 5hile summari1in.4 -ou should not onl- reeat -our oinion but
.ive a roer summar- of what a$tuall- haened.
@.,. So(e Don>ts
Chan.in. -our oinion on the toi$ in between the dis$ussion is not re$ommended as it shows
-our limited knowled.e base. !f -ou $an3t sti$k to -our oinion for 1# minutes4 it uts a question
mark on -our de$isionCmakin. abilit-.
(eviatin. from the toi$I Takin. an un$onventional stand on the toi$ without roer suort
ar.uments.
2ne to one ar.ument should be avoided with the other arti$iants. !f b- $han$e -ou .et involved
in one to one ar.ument4 ver- dilomati$all- tr- to .et out of it dire$t senten$es like <let3s not .et
into an ar.ument<. ,..ressive .estures and an unne$essar- show of or.ani1in. the '( should be
avoided. ?emember natural leaders imress others throu.h their knowled.e and e0ressive ower
rather than tr-in. to dominate others.
Hever disa.ree with an-bod- in a blunt manner. Hever lose the sirit durin. the '(4 tr- to ut u
an intelli.ent fi.ht till the last se$ond.
SubC.rouin.sI form a art of 2C3 eole and then start dis$ussin. amon. -ourselvesK breakin. u
the toi$ should be avoidedK all the oints should be soken to the .rou.
@./. Case st*d7
Jou ma- be .iven a rinted $ase stud- and some time to read the $ase and then dis$uss it. There
ma- be questions or it ma- be an oen ended $ase. Case studies normall- ertain to standard
business situations and ma- have lot of statisti$s. Thus the evaluator attemts to e0amine the
$omrehension and anal-sis ower of the ali$ants aart from other skills.
Aast few se$ondsI !f -ou feel that -ou haven3t .ot enou.h $han$e to seak4 then make ever- effort
to seak some sensible oints before the battle is over. ,$tuall- it3s a ver- tense battle for a ver-
short time in whi$h ressure to erform is hi.h. There are no .eneral rules for a .rou dis$ussion
so a lot of fle0ibilit- is required to win this battle.
@.0. T&e "e7 fo) s*ccess+
a7 =ra$ti$e in simulated '(3s and imrove on -our weak area4 rearin. -ourself for all situations.
b7 ?eadin.4 referabl- a wide ran.e of toi$s.
$7 )ental rearationI understand -our st-le in a .rou and how -ou $ome a$ross as a seaker then
be mentall- reared to use ever- se$ond durin. the .rou dis$ussion.
A. Manne)s and Manne)is(s
2ften we are unaware of our mannerisms. Some $annot be identified easil- while some are
reasonable and a$$etable4 but some mannerisms irritate others and refle$t badl- on our
ersonalit-. Some of su$h mannerC isms@bad habits areI
1. )akin. noise while walkin.4 drinkin. or eatin. or -awnin. or sleein. or brushin. and mouthC
washin.. Gnket hair shows an unrul- head. Chaals show -our feet4 the lowliest arts of -our
bod-. Aoose shirt and loose dresses are alwa-s unrul-. , buffoonish walkin. st-le with over
bendin. does not reresent humilit- or obedien$e but shows la$k of $onfiden$e. !nde$ent
mannerisms irritate one and all and make -ou a 9buffoon3. , serious fa$e with no smile on it
reminds nothin. but a dead bod-.
2. Sa- 9Hi3 with a leasant smile even to the unknown4 the GS wa-. !f -ou3re .oin. to do it
tomorrow4 wh- not toda- in -our own $ountr- with -our own $ountr-men/
3. (on3t make noise with the soon. ,void dis$ussions while eatin.. (on3t oen -our mouth to talk
while $hewin. an. Fee -our late neat while dinin.. 6Some eole eat so badl- that others do
not feel like sta-in. there. Jour dinin. late should not aear like a warCfieldB7 Gsin. shirt or
dhoti or sari instead of a handker$hief. Cou.hin. and snee1in. in the oen without usin. a
handker$hief.
4. 8nterin. someone3s offi$e or house without seekin. ermission. 8ven if the doors are oen4 one
must kno$k the door before .ettin. in. 5hile enterin. as well as while leavin. the room4 walk
strai.ht4 stand strai.ht and sit strai.ht. ,lso4 don3t look here and there while enterin. as well as
leavin. the room. 2ver bendin. reresents overChumilit-4 a weakness. !t shows la$k of $onfiden$e.
#. Hot .ivin. a firm handshake or s$rat$hin. other3s hand durin. the handshake. 6;or4 a friendl-
handC shake4 -ou should alwa-s resent an ener.eti$ livel- hand4 never a dead han.in. hand.7
5hile .ivin. a handshake4 look into his@her e-es4 not at others.
6. !nstead of lookin. into the e-es with a leasant smile some eole look at others or talk to
others. 6Jou $an do it onl- if -ou3ve a squint. 2therwise4 alwa-s look into the e-es leasantl-
while talkin..7
&. 2fferin. water4 fruits4 books or an- arti$le with a left hand or re$eivin.. with a left hand.
". )aintain .ood ostures while sittin.4 standin.4 walkin. and even sleein.. !t also kees one3s
mind and bod- a$tive4 bold and $onfident. )ovin. le.s like a simle endulum while sittin. and
la-in. with hair while listenin.4 are ver- $ommon bad features.
+. ?aisin. e-ebrows while askin. or enquirin. somethin. or Closin. e-es frequentl- in awkward
manner.
1%. )an- eole des$ribe their ersonal roblems in detail irrese$tive of the $onte0t4 like
9-esterda- ! had four bi. vomitin. and five blood- motions3. (urin. the lun$h or dinner also he
won3t hesitate in not $han.in. his filth- toi$ 9! don3t take si$- food toda- as !3m sufferin. from
vomitin. and d-senter-. ! am .ettin. vomitin. sensation even on seein. these $urries and this
sambar.
11. Hot listenin. with $uriosit- and $ourtes-. 5hile listenin. some eole aear bored and
e0ress their restlessness4 b- Cleanin. their e-es4 S$rat$hin. le.s and head alternativel-4 Cleanin.
ears with a en or ;or$in. one $orner of a handker$hief dee into the nose and then al-in.
torsion4 Cleanin. se$ta$les with his own shirt or that of the seaker if he is his intimate friend or
Hummin. son.s loudl- or Jawnin. with funn- sounds or Talkin. on an entirel- different toi$ or
,skin. about $ri$ket s$ore et$. )an- mana.ers have the habit of talkin. or listenin. to their
juniors4 .uests and $lients while shufflin. and arran.in. aers4 look for some do$ument on the
table or talk to se$retar- on honeC all simultaneousl-. This $an be hi.hl- dan.erous for the
mana.er as well as the or.ani1ation. The first ste of su$$ess is listenin.. ,s $alled b-
Shakeseare4 let us not suffer from <The disease of not listenin.<.
12. )an- eole have the habit of tou$hin. the bod- while seakin.C keein. the hands on the
ba$k or attin. the shoulders with a .entle hu. or swattin. the his or .entl- tou$hin. the $hin or
ears et$. These are not bad habits but man- eole dislike su$h thin.s even with $lose friends. ;or
e0amle4 ! m-self had the habit of keein. the hands on the shoulders while walkin. till ! was
seriousl- warned b- one of m- ver- $lose friends4 who said4 <Can3t -ou seak without tou$hin.
Aast week another .u- did the same thin.4 and ! slaed him left and ri.ht<. ! don3t find fault with
m- friend4 but4 better be $areful4 ese$iall- with new friends and some $onservative eole. !n
man- develoed $ountries4 if a bo- and a .irl move ver- $losel-4 nobod- bothers4 but4 if two men
are ver- $lose4 it ma- be $onsidered obs$ene and vul.arB
13. Table )annersI (on3t make noise while eatin. or drinkin.. Fee -our dinin. table4 as well as
-our dinin. late neat and $lean. (on3t waste items at all4 don3t waste even a bit of an item. (on3t
tou$h food items with naked hand. (on3t transfer food items4 from -our late to others in the art-4
however $lose he@she ma- be to -ou. Tea4 water or drinksC avoid la$in. them dire$tl- in the hand.
!f ossible4 kee them on the table or in the tra- itself. Hot that we3re en$oura.in. untou$habilit-4
but4 due to the fa$t that durin. the hand to hand transa$tion there is ever- ossibilit- of sillin.
over on the dressI
:efore leavin. the la$e of sittin. or standin.4 sa- 980$use me3. ;ollow queue s-stem in :uffet. !f
-ou3re eatin. nonCve.etarian items4 kee distan$e from the ve.etarian se$tion. (on3t ask for thin.s
not available like salad4 i$eC$ream4 an4 hot water for throat .ar.lin.4 fin.er bowls4 new nakins
et$. :e ha- with what is available. (on3t .ive free advises like <!t would have been better if -ou
had O rovided withR or <!f ! were the or.ani1er4 ! would have <4 unless there is a searate
su..estion bo0 available.
14. Don>t be too Specific+
(on3t be too se$ifi$ and too ri.id in -our dealin.s with -our friends and $ollea.ues. 9=lease $ome
in -ellow =unjabi dress4 free hair and a red rose when -ou $ome to the ark tomorrow3. Some bo-s
are too se$ifi$ like that.. 'ive her a $han$e to $ome in her own st-le that suits her the most. 5hat
-ou need is that she should resent herself with a $alm and oen mind. ! know a friend who asked
his wife to wear a bla$k bra for the first ni.htB Su$h demands often look sill- and de.rade -our
ersonalit-.

D. AR% 3O TO G!.% S%M!NAR: HA.% SOM% T!PS
E%?t)acted f)o( pape) ;Ad5ice to -eginning p&7sics speake)s;
b7 =a(es C. Ga)land F
A.1. !NTRODCT!ON+
2n$e -ou finall- .raduate4 -ou will undoubtedl- find -ourself standin. behind a odium.
?emember4 whenever -ou make an oral resentation4 -ou are also resentin. -ourself.
!f -ou ramble in$oherentl-4 avoid e-e $onta$t4 flash ille.ible transaren$ies on a s$reen4 and seem
nervous and $onfused4 then -our $ollea.ues are not onl- .oin. to be irritated at havin. their time
wasted4 the- are also .oin. to question -our abilit- to do -our job.
However4 if -ou resent -our ideas $learl- and ersuasivel-4 with selfCassuran$e and skill4 -ou will
$ome a$ross as a reasonable orderl- erson who has rese$t for the audien$e and a $lear4 insi.htful
mind.
$it& t&is t&o*g&t in (indB &e)e a)e a fe' g*idelines to point 7o* in t&e )ig&t di)ection.
A.#. T!PS
1. P)esentation+
The most $ommon error is to la- onl- to the e0erts4 the rationable bein. that the e0erts3
oinions matter the most and that ever-one else in the audien$e will at least leave thinkin. -ou3re a
$lever erson.
Wrong, If you make your talk so technical that only a few can understand it, your audience will
resent you not only for wasting their time but also for violating the implicit contract that a speaker
has with the audience to always be clear and understandable.
#. !nt)od*ction of t&e topic+
80erien$ed seakers .enerall- devote the first half or twoCthirds of a resentation to a $areful
introdu$tion of the toi$ and save the hi.hl- te$hni$al material for the last few minutes. !n this
wa-4 the be.inners $an understand a si.nifi$ant art of the resentation4 and the e0erts will learn
some of the fine oints.
"os imporanly# everyone will end up respe!in$ he spea%er as an auhoriy on he su&'e!
who is also auned o he audien!e and respe!ful of he varied needs of hose in i.
,. S*((a)iGing+
Summari1e at the ver- end the ke- oints the- should remember. That wa-4 if the- have do1ed
throu.h art of the talk or just failed to understand it4 the- would at least walk out of the room at
the end with the major ideas reverberatin. in their heads.
/. Ti(e Li(its+
Ne5e)B e5e)B seak ast -our allotted time. To do so is e0tremel- e.otisti$al4 and even if -our
audien$e is $ourteous enou.h to let -ou $ontinue4 the- will not for.ive -our rudeness. :ut in4
sa-41% minutes4 how $an -ou ossibl- $onve- the si.nifi$an$e of the work that -ou sweated over
for the ast several months or -ears.
However# you(ll almos always $ive a more lively and ineresin$ al% if you narrow raher han
widen he s!ope of your remar%s.
;or ver- short talks4 -our .reatest $hallen.e will be to weed out relentlessl- an- e0traneous subje$t
matter.
Wha you mus never do is aemp o s)uee*e your al% ino he permied ime slo &y spea%in$
rapidly# flashin$ hrou$h your slides and frani!ally s!ri&&lin$ on he &la!%&oard.
0. %8*ations H Mat&e(atics+
!t is not diffi$ult to inte.rate equations into -our talk if -ou kee in mind a few simle re$autions.
;irst4 make absolutel- $ertain that the equations are ne$essar-4 and if the-3re not4 toss them out.
udiences are especially scornful of speakers who load their presentations with e!uations because
of a misguided belief that the mathematics along will highlight their work with a more scientific or
rigorous flavour.
?emember4 audien$es will hail- assume that -ou $an solve equations4 so for.et the al.ebra and
fo$us on the assumtions that led to the equation4 the te$hnique that -ou used to solve it and a
$areful e0lanation of the relevan$e of the solution of -our toi$.
"or e#ample, as youre writing out $%mc& on the blackboard, you should say something like,
'nd so now we see that the energy $ is e!ual to the mass of the ob(ect multiplied by the s!uare of
the speed of light.'
2. T)anspa)encies+
80erien$ed seakers often have stron. oinions about the otimal number of transaren$ies for a
talkCt-i$all- of 3 to 6 for a 1%Cminute resentation. 1% to 1# for a halfChour talk are used.
+ou needn( wrie ou full senen!es on your ransparen!ies ,alhou$h you should !erainly
spea% in full senen!es-.
The .eneral rule is that the transaren$- te0t should be $on$ise enou.h to be selfCe0lanator-4 but
no more than that.
@. A'a)eness of t&e HallB facilities+ Aearn where the li.ht swit$h4 fo$us $ontrol and ointer are
lo$ated before -our talk. ,lso .ive some thou.ht to where -ou3ll often be blo$kin. the view of art
of the audien$e if -ou stand beside the roje$tor. !f that3s the $ase4 stand ne0t to the s$reen and use
a ointer.
)ake sure youve got a table to set your transparencies and notes on, because you wont present a
very dignified image if youre down on your hands and knees shuffling through your papers in the
dark.
A. Re&ea)se+ Gnless -ou3re an unusuall- .ifted seaker4 -ou3ll need to rehearse -our talk in front
of -our $lassmates4 $ollea.ues4 souse or friends.
It is recommended that you avoid writing out your talk and then reading or reciting it.
,lthou.h seakers in nonCs$ientifi$ fields often read their aers4 readin. reared aers is
$onsidered bad form in s$ientifi$ and te$hni$al $ir$les4 where a more e0temoraneous resentation
is referred.
While you practice, try to be attuned to any nervous mannerisms. void wringing your hands,
pacing back and
forth, fidgeting with your microphone trap or (angling the keys in your pocket.
D. !n Panic Sit*ations+
!f -ou3re reall- ani$ked4 tr- takin. a few dee breaths4 .riin. the sides of the odium with both
hands and distributin. -our wei.ht equall- on both feet.
1I. D)ess+
Hevertheless4 other eole do form an imression of -ou based in art on -our aearan$e4 and so
the advi$e is at least to $onsider what statement -our $lothin. is makin.. ,t the ver- minimum4
-ou should avoid lookin. like -ou just dra..ed -ourself out of bed or sta..ered out of the hotel bar
6even if true7.
"or men, this means that you shouldnt wear cutoffs and running shoes if most of your male
colleagues are wearing sports coats and ties.
;or women the same .eneral rule aliesI (on3t look like a slob4 but don3t dress to the mines4
either. )ost $areer $ounsellors su..est not overdoin. the Deweller-4 sta-in. awa- from frill-
blouses and dresses.
void tight or otherwise revealing clothing and very high heels. *our best bet is a tailored,
comfortable dress, skirt+saree and blouse, or suit.
11. %7e Contact+
5hen -ou finall- resent -our talk4 be sure not to i.nore the eole wat$hin. -ou. (on3t stare like
a 1ombie into the sa$e above their heads4 and don3t fo$us intentl- on -our transaren$ies or the
floor or -our shoes or a sot on the wall.
$#perienced speakers pick out several friendly faces and establish eye contact with them, turning
first from one person to another and making sure that no section of the room is ignored.
1#. A*dibilit7+
Ho matter how well -ou have reared -our remarks4 -our talk will be a disaster if -our audien$e
$an3t hear -ou.
1,. 9*estions H Ans'e)s+
,t the end of -our talk4 -ou3ll .enerall- be asked to resond to questions from the floor.
!ne0erien$ed seakers often dread this moment. ,$tuall-4 its not diffi$ult to es$ae from the
question session with -our di.nit- inta$t4 rovided -ou never fail to be soli$itous and rese$tful of
-our questioner and -ou avoid .ettin. into ubli$ ar.uments.
,et your !uestioner finish the !uestion. -ome speakers get so e#cited and nervous that they
interrupt the !uestioner in mid.sentence to blurt out an answer to the !uestion they think is being
asked. /his habit is very irritating to the audience.
:e reared to rehrase the question. !f the room is lar.e or the questioner has a weak voi$e4 -ou
should alwa-s reeat the question for the benefit of the audien$e. !t also is imortant to rehrase
the question in brief and $learl- if4 as frequentl- haens4 the questioner is $onfused or
disor.ani1ed.
0eep your answers short. -tick to the point and dont use the answer as an opportunity to digress
to a related sub(ect.
Confess -our i.noran$e. !f -ou should be thrown a $urveball4 don3t resond defensivel- or with
irritation. !t3s far better to sa-4 <!3m sorr-4 !3m not familiar with that aer< or <! haven3t $onsidered
that oint -et<.
1eflect hostile !uestions. 2ne day you may encounter an angry or aggressive !uestioner. lthough
the e#perience is distressing, theres really no need to panic. 3ever agree with your !uestioner
Instead, simply say something like 'Im sorry, but it appears we have a difference of opinion. /his
probably isnt the proper forum for a debate, but Ill be happy to discuss the matter with you in
private'.
1/. H*(o*)+
How a final bit of advi$e4 ever-one knows that a .ood joke or two $an liven u a resentation.
However4 unless -ou3re naturall- funn- erson avoid $anned humour.