Your Interview Was Final, Until It Wasnt

Your Interview Was Final, Until It Wasnt Your Interview Was Final, Until It Wasnt INBOX: “I was supposed to have a 3rd and final interview today. But after telling me this morning the interview time changed to later in the day, they emailed and ended up canceling the entire process. The recruiter didn’t supply much information besides they are moving on to another candidate. Should I just leave it as is or ask the recruiter for more info?” The reality of job search is that it’s not always as smooth as we would like it to be. The changes, delays, and runaround are all frustrating, particularly in the absence of substantive information. Let’s walk though some simple strategies for when your interview process gets convoluted or comes to a halt altogether, so that you have the tools to land the opportunity you deserve in a reasonable time frame. It's Not Personal. It's Business. Mindset matters. On the one hand, your goal is to build rapport and be engaging with the interviewer, so that you can begin to cultivate a relationship. Execute that approach, but avoid falling into the trap of becoming too emotionally invested. They may say the like you. They may say you’re great. They may say you’re perfect. But regardless of how friendly things seem to get, you're not forming a new friendship here. In your mind, keep things at arm’s length until they extend and offer and you accept it. Professionalism Is Paramount. You can tell over the phone when a person is smiling, right? That’s what I want you to do over the computer. Make sure every email communication with the interviewer is upbeat, with a positive tone, and free of complaints. This is not to say that when they change the interview day or time more than once that you have to jump up immediately to accommodate them. They don’t get to dictate, necessarily. You have the right to say, “I’m very interested in continuing the discussion, but I have another meeting at that time. May I suggest Thursday at 10 instead?” Saying this is a professional thing to do, and it helps you take back some control so you’re not victim to their every whim. Fire Up Those Irons. You’re not going to be slave to one convoluted interview process once you know how to regularly position yourself for multiple interviews with multiple employers simultaneously. Make it a best practice in your job search to directly reach a decision maker regarding every opportunity. Just submitting an application online gives you a 1-2% chance of success at most. But making direct contact skyrockets that figure to 40-70%. Making direct contact is not just about spamming your network to ask if anyone knows of any opportunity that might be good for you. This is a strategy to use with precision. Tell a decision maker what your brand is, your areas of expertise, and your specific interest in his organization. “Specific” is important. It’s a little bit like a 1st date: you can’t just say you’re interested because the person is nice. The 2nd date happens because you dug a little deeper than that. Every direct contact takes more time than just clicking “apply” and “submit.” However, every direct contact takes you further faster â€" that’s how you’ll end up in the quite enviable position of juggling multiple interviews simultaneously. If one process stalls or ends, you already have other irons on the fire. There’s a free masterclass, “How to Land Your Ideal Role in 8 Weeks or Less” featuring a candidate who just started a Director-level position. I demonstrate the process he used to land more than a dozen interviews. He was able even able to turn down several employers and focus in on the handful he really wanted. Learn how to do the exact same thing in “How to Land Your Ideal Role in 8 Weeks or Less.”