Hi Non-Engineers!

I’ve been putting off this post for quite a while but got an e-mail asking me how I prepare for interviews so here it is!

First off, you really should prep it as if it were an exam. Reading about the company, doing a little google search about what’s going on in the industry, and writing out as well as memorizing some talking points really helped me. After interviewing at so many different jobs, I realized that most of the questions are always variants of the following:

1. Why do you want this job/this position/work for our company?
- This a good opportunity to outline very briefly what you know about the company to show that you care enough to have researched. This is also the time to highlight whatever qualifications you have that MATCH the qualifications that was in the job listing they posted. Think of 2-3 qualities and use brief examples to back them up. For example, you are detail-oriented. Back it up with an example from your last job that demonstrates this quality.

2. What are your strong points/What makes you qualified for this job?
You can basically answer this question the same way as the first question. Just be sure to memorize 3 of your best qualities that match what they are looking for and be sure to be able to back it up with examples.

3. Tell me about a challenging situation at work and how you resolved it.
This could be anything from how you dealt with a demanding client, demanding work load, handling multiple priorities to how you made a process more efficient at work. This is a great opportunity to highlight something that you actually helped IMPROVE at your last job. Be extra careful if you decide to talk about a challenging coworker or manager situation. Remember that they want to hire someone that is easy to work with, not someone who doesn’t get along with others.

4. Your Weaknesses.
If you must, talk about a weakness that you overcame. You can probably use parts of your answer from the last question to answer this one. For example, you were less adept at handling multiple priorities before you started working at your last job…then proceed to talk about how you successfully handled the situation. Make sure to focus on the positive outcome and not the negative qualification/experience.

5. Sometimes they open the interview with simply “Tell me about yourself.”
This is not the time to blab about your personal life or interests. A couple of lines max about where you’re from and what you studied. Then jump straight into why you are qualified for the job. This is essentially the same question as question 1+2.

6. Are you a team player?
Nobody wants to work with someone who can’t function within a team. Make sure to have examples of how you are a team player, but also talk about how you can work autonomously as well. Be sure to act friendly and smile a lot. People want to work with people they like and feel comfortable with. Say hi to people you see in the office that you pass by even if they are not interviewing you. Friendliness and politeness can go a long way.

7. What are you plans for the next year? Next 5 years?
Make sure that you reassure your interviewer that you are there to do a good job for the position they are hiring for…at least for the first year…they don’t want to hire someone who has their eyes on something else or might leave the company too soon. You can then talk about your long term goals, which are probably best to be aligned with the general industry that you are applying for.

8. Any Questions?
Some good questions to ask after an interview:
- What do you expect the new hire for this position to accomplish within the first 3 months? first year? After the interviewer answers, make sure to tell him/her why you think you could accomplish what he has told you or even exceed expectations.
- What does your ideal candidate for this position look like? If they already told you at the beginning of the interview what they are looking for, then be prepared to summarize again why you match the qualifications they are looking for.

Oh, and again, I highly recommend reading “What does somebody have to do to get a job around here! 44 insider secrets and tips that will get you hired.”

Hi everyone!

I’ve been away for too long, but I have some wonderful news to share…and a couple of good excuses about my absence for the past month. First off, I switched jobs (cue french horns, marching band, and confetti)! I am now an account coordinator at Federated Media Publishing, which means that I’ve finally made the big jump from real estate marketing to the web marketing industry. If you’ve read my post about setting short term and long term goals, then you know that I’ve ticked off another mini-step towards my career goals.

Why I’ve been so busy the past month

Well, my quarterlife crisis kicked in again so I decided to channel all the negative energy into taking a class to keep myself busy and sane in a productive manner. Taking a PHP class (my first programming class ever) did keep me busy but definitely did not help with my sanity. I still felt despondent. This was when I decided to return to the root of the problem, and now that I am no longer employed at my old job I can finally broadcast this on the internet: I HATED MY JOB. After a 3 month hiatus, I finally decided to resume my job search.

So let’s get to the main point of this post: How YOU can get a job in web marketing without a degree in marketing. Here’s a brief timeline and overview of what I’ve done in the past 2 years helped me get to where I am right now. And holy crap, has it really been 2 years since I graduated?!

April 2008: Graduated from the University of Michigan with a BA in psychology and political science

August 2008: After 4 unsuccessul months of trying to find a job in Michigan, I was forced to reconsider my options. I moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, where all the big tech players are. Click here to see why/how I moved to a new city without a job.

August-October 2008: Interviews, interviews, and more interviews. I submitted no less than 100 cover letters and my resume to jobs posted online as well as in newspapers. At this point I only had vague notions of what I wanted to do and was almost willing to do anything to get employed.

November 2008: I received 2 offers and chose to work at a commercial real estate company as a marketing assistant. I thought it would be a good stepping stone into the world of marketing.

January 2009 – March 2010: Dissatisfaction and disillusionment with the working world grows. I decided that I needed to do something to get me out of my quarterlife crisis. Looking back, this period of time was the turning point and where all the great things started.

- Major cover letter and resume overhaul.
- Major Linkedin profile overhaul. Many recruiters and HR personell will look at your Linkedin profile.
- I took professional development courses at Stanford. <– Great networking – hub and interview talking point.
- I decided to create a professional online portfolio, which eventually turned into this blog. <– Great interview talking point.
- I networked a LOT. I contacted people that I’ve met and added to Linkedin & Facebook in the past two years and let them know the specific type of job I’m looking for. I’ve also asked several of them to refer me for positions I saw on their company’s job board.
- I kept up to date with industry news though blogs, books, various news sources. <– Great interview talking point.
- I studied case studies/brain teasers that are sometimes asked during interviews to keep me on my toes. Click here and here for some basic examples.
- I practiced answering standard interview questions. I think I should write a post soon about how I prepare for an interview. I highly recommend reading “What does somebody have to do to get a job around here! 44 insider secrets and tips that will get you hired.”

April 2010: Started my new job! Everything that I did in the past year helped me sell myself during interviews. Even though I do not have a marketing degree and DID NOT work in the web marketing industry, I was able to arm myself with a wealth of knowledge acquired through classes, networking, and reading.

All of this requires a lot of focus and will power. Yes, your social life might suffer a little, but the result will be worth it.

Anyhow, other than spending an obscene amount of time applying and interviewing for jobs, I’ve also been busy looking for an apartment in the city. Hello San Francisco!

So that’s the quick update. I should be back to blogging more frequently once the dust settles.

Cheers everyone!