Two Minutes of Research Might Have Saved My Interview

Two Minutes of Research Might Have Saved My InterviewResearch Might Have Saved My InterviewTwo Minutes of Research Might Have Saved My InterviewThere are plenty of ways to blow a job interview, but beingunprepared is probably the most common. Despite knowing that, I once lost out on a great job in marketing communications at a hospital because I didnt bother to do my research before the interview. Why did I pull such a dumbass move? Well, I thought the commute would be too long so I wrote the opportunity off before I gave it a chance. I went to the interview feeling 99% sure I didnt want the job. But, as Murphys Law would have it, it took me a perfectly reasonable 30 minutes to get to the interview. Plus I liked the hiring manager a lot and the job seemed ideal. Naturally, the hiring manager began the interview by asking what I knew about the hospital. But having failed to do any research, all I could come up with welches Um, I know it has an excellent reputation.Hint This is a bad a nswer for anyone to give, but its a REALLY bad answer for a marketing person whose job would be to promote the hospital.She just stared at me in silence for a moment, then said, OK, then Ill start by telling you a little bit about us. Ouch. That was the moment I knew the job opportunity ship had sailed and I wasnt on it.To illustrate how truly inexcusable itwas to be so unprepared, heres what I found out in literally two minutes on the hospitals web siteThis hospital has centers specializing in musculoskeletal disorders, cancer, childrens health, womens health, and emergency/trauma, but its probably best known for its cardiac programs. It ranks 1 in the state and 2 in the country for surviving a heart attack. It earned the Society of Thoracic Surgeons highest designation. It also earned awards for programs to prevent medication errors and promote patient safety. And it offers a range of health education programs and services to the community.Now THAT would have been a good answer to the hiring managers question How to Research the CompanyDoing research on an organization is really quite simple. Just check the employers web site and Google the company name and management team to see what comes up. If youre applying to the one business on earth that doesnt yet have a web site, look for their advertisements in newspapers or in the yellow pages. Public records, annual reports, and industry periodicals might have helpful information. If possible, ask current employees about the company. If you have a LinkedIn account (which you should), query your contacts to see who might know someone there. Basically, you should find out the following about your would-be employerWhat do they do? Do they manufacture products? Distribute products? Provide services? Exactly what kind? Who are their customers? Do they target individual consumers or other businesses? If they market to consumers, is there a specific group they target? (Families? Nurses? Retirees? Heart patients? Sports fans? Pet owners? Coffee drinkers?) If they sell to other businesses, what kind? (Factories? Financial institutions? Schools? Insurance companies? Hospitals? High-tech laboratories? Restaurant chains? Dairy farms?) Who are their main competitors?How big are they?How many employees? How much money do they make? Are they local? National? Global?What are they known for? Are they the best at something? Have they received awards or recognition? Have they been in the news? What do they brag about?With a little homework and a little web research, youll be well prepared to stand out among all the job candidates who think they can just wing it in their interviews.

5 Skills to Help You Succeed in a Sales Job

5 Skills to Help You Succeed in a Sales JobNational Salespersons Day5 Skills to Help You Succeed in a Sales JobIf youre not a salesperson, youve met a few in your lifetime. If you havent, youve been living under a rock, stuck in an elevator for many years, or youre Moammar Gadhafi.Those of us who are unfamiliar with the pressures of selling something may be the saatkorn people who find the art of selling distasteful. But in good times, good salespeople can boost a businesss fortunes, and those of everyone else who works for that business.So, today, we honor the people who bring home the bacon for our employers. Its the 11th annual National Salespersons Day, when we pay tribute to those who sell their companies products and tafelgeschirrs.The average non-salesperson may think that working in sales is easier than their own jobs, and all you have to excel at is schmoozing and befriending would-be clients. Ive never worked in sales, and I used to think that way before I worked more close ly with sales teams in previous roles over the last 15 years.Sales (getting businesses or someone to fork over their money) has a lot in common with job seeking (getting an employer to pay for your services). In fact, salespeople and job seekers need many of these same five skillsListening to Your Audience. Salespeople need to hear their clients and potential clients address the things that keep them up at night. Job seekers need to know what challenges the employer is facing. When you know your audiences pain, you can tailor your sales pitch to show you can offer solutions.Knowing Your Product. Salespeople need to know every detail behind what their companies sell, so they can articulate what their products and services can do for a client. Job seekers need to know their own unique qualifications and value for the same reason.Flexibility. A sales pro can plan what theyre going to do for an entire day, but must be prepared in case something more urgent mucks it up, such as a prospec t with a laundry list of questions, or a procurement manager who wants a conference call with you and his boss to review sales terms before they buy. Likewise, job seekers must be ready for whatever an interviewer might throw their way.Presentation Skills. Salespeople need to be comfortable giving live presentations, using presentation software such as PowerPoint, and answering tough questions. Ditto for job seekers trying to impress prospective employers (and yes, some people have even done presentations in their job interviews).Relationship Building. Its not enough to make the sale and go away. You need to follow up with a client to see how your product or service has helped them, and see if theres something else you and your company can do for them. Relationship building is key at every stage of the job hunt, from networking to interviewing, follow-up, and on-the-job success.If youre looking for a sales job, it looks like a good time to land one. The U.S. economy is rebounding, w hich means employers need people to boost revenue and help them grow.If youre not in sales and have some of these skills, you may have what it takes to work in a sales roleeven if you dont want to admit it. In some way, theres at least a little salesperson in each of us.

Pursue the extraordinary The power of moonshot thinking

Pursue the extraordinary The power of moonshot thinkingPursue the extraordinary The power of moonshot thinkingIn September 1962, President John F. Kennedy stood before a packed Rice University stadium and pledged to land a man on the Moon and return him safely to the Earth before the decade was out. We choose to go to the Moon, he said, not because its easy, but because its hard.At the time, this pledge was a moonshot - literally and figuratively. The Americans were lagging severely behind the Soviets in the space race. Much of the technology required for the Moon landing didnt exist. JFK admitted as much The giant rocket to take the astronauts to the Moon, he explained, would be made of new metal alloys, some of which have not yet been invented, capable of standing heat and stresses several times more than have ever been experienced, fitted together with a precision better than the finest watch on an untried mission, to an unknown celestial body.Yes, even themetalsrequired to buil d the rocket hadnt been invented.We jumped into the cosmic void and hoped wed grow wings on the way up. And grow those wings, we did. In 1969, less than seven years after Kennedys pledge, Neil Armstrong took his giant leap for mankind.As astronaut, and later commander of Apollo 13, Jim Lovell put it, It wasnt a miracle. We just decided to go.In our personal lives, we equate moonshots with miracles. We pause to launch a new business because we think we dont have what it takes. We hesitate to apply for a promotion, assuming that someone far more competent will get it. We dont ask someone on a date if they seem out of our league.If Kennedy were doing the saatkorn thing - if he were looking to stay within his league - his pledge would have been very different (and far more boring) We choose, he may have said, to put humans in Earth orbit and make them circle round and round - not because its easy - but because its doable given what we have.I get it Theres far more uncertainty in moo nshots than in small bets. Once you decide to abandon the comfort of the center and the warmth of the crowds, once you decide to explore the edges, you might fail. You might make a fool out of yourself. People might even point at you and laugh.Do it anyway.Take comfort in Rumis wisdom that the path will appear once you start to walk out on the path. Once you pursue the extraordinary, youll rise above the stale nerven betreffend pathways that dominate ordinary thinking. If you persist - and learn from the inevitable failures that will follow - youll eventually grow the wings you need to soar.All moonshots are miracles. Until you decide to go.Ozan Varol is a rocket scientist turned law professor and bestselling author.Click hereto download a free copy of his e-book, The Contrarian Handbook 8 Principles for Innovating Your Thinking. Along with your free e-book, youll get the Weekly Contrarian - a newsletter that challenges conventional wisdom and changes the way we look at the world (plus access to exclusive content for subscribers only).Thisarticlefirst appeared onOzanVarol.com.