What to Say in a Job Interview
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So, you’ve spent time preparing for the interview. You’ve practiced answering interview questions, reviewed your past professional experience, and you’ve confirmed the interview. All that’s left is putting your best foot forward.
Below, we’ll spell out what subjects you should be prepared to talk about in an interview. We’ll also present options based on whether you’ll be interviewing in-person, over the phone or via Zoom or another video conferencing platform.
Topics that may come up in an interview
In an interview, you should be prepared to talk about these and related subjects in detail:
Your past work experience and accomplishments.
Why you’re interested in the position.
What you like about the company or employer.
Your long-term professional goals and interests.
Your salary expectations.
How to approach the interview topics
Give focused answers and examples
Before the interview, take a few hours to review some common interview questions. You could be asked questions on a wide array of topics, from how you manage stress to what motivates you professionally. Reviewing sample questions will naturally force you to refresh your memory on past work experiences and help you provide focused, straightforward answers.
When reflecting on the questions, take notes and jot down specific anecdotes or stories you’d like to share. If you’ll be doing a phone or video interview, you can keep these notes handy, but don’t overly rely on them — your interviewer will be able to tell if you’re reading your answers.
If you’re interviewing in-person, you should only reference notes that contain specific dates or figures during the interview. Otherwise, prepare to speak about your prior experience and preferences without looking at your notes. The more conversational your responses, the better.
Ultimately, though, if you need to look to avoid struggling through an answer, definitely do so.
Go beyond your resume
When asked about your past experience and accomplishments, keep in mind: Your interviewers have already read your resume. This is an opportunity to talk about the accomplishments you couldn’t capture there.
If you achieved impressive sales numbers or results, for example, you could talk about what skills you specifically used to achieve those results. Think about instances at your previous jobs in which you showed initiative, drive or another desirable skill. Share those experiences, and illustrate how you’re uniquely equipped to achieve the kinds of results your interviewer and the company are looking for.
» MORE: What to bring to an interview
Explain why you want the job
Your interviewer will likely ask why you’re interested in the position. Mention specific parts of the job that interest you and align with your skills and experience. Highlight a few specific job responsibilities, and illustrate why you’re the ideal candidate to fulfill those responsibilities.
Also, talk about how the job supports your long-term career goals. That’ll show the interviewers that you see this job as a long-term commitment.
Specify what you like about the company or employer
Interviewers ask this question to see how serious candidates are about the role, and to ensure they’re hiring candidates that believe in the company’s mission. This is why it’s important to research the company before your interview.
At minimum, you should be able to talk about what the company does, its long-term plans (if these are publicly available) and its mission statement. You could also check out the company’s social media pages and LinkedIn page, as both can provide insights into its culture and workplace. Mention a few specific parts of the company’s products, services or culture that appeal to you. If possible, bring up a growth opportunity that the company could potentially explore. Even if it's not on the company’s radar, it’ll show your interviewer that you did your homework and are genuinely interested in helping the company reach its goals.
Share your long-term professional goals and interests
If you’re asked about your goals, your interviewer wants to see how seriously you take your career, and whether there's alignment with the company's goals and opportunities. Talk about what interests you most about your work, and what kind of job you’d like to have in five or 10 years. Be as specific as possible — if you want to manage people, oversee a division or advance in a related field, say that.
And if you aren’t totally sure where you see yourself in five or 10 years, you could bring up the most fulfilling aspects of your job, and say that you’d like to advance into a role that allows you to advance in those parts of the job.
Gather information to decide your salary expectations
Finally, if the interview goes well, your interviewer may also ask about your salary expectations or start date. The former can be a tricky question to answer. You don’t want to give a number that’s lower than what the company’s prepared to pay, according to the Harvard Business Review, but you also don’t want to provide a number that’s dramatically higher than the role’s salary range.
To buy yourself some time, the Harvard Business Review recommends you ask to instead focus for the time being on the role and your qualifications, which will give you time to provide an appropriate answer later. You could also tell the interviewer that you’d like some time to research comparable wages based on what you've learned about the role, and that you can send over your ideal salary within one or two business days.
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