Let’s start with some basics. Of paramount importance are punctuality and the need to dress appropriately. I don’t think I need to elaborate on the former and with respect to the latter, I must stress that being underdressed isn’t cool and may convey a lack of seriousness or worse, disrespect. And remember, being overdressed is better than showing up underdressed. Another qualitative behavior I observe is one’s listening skills often evidenced by good eye contact and focused attention on the speaker. As basic and obvious as this sounds, there are many applicants who fail to do this.

Moving on, I strongly suggest for applicants to do thorough research on the company and the job position one is applying for. This is important as it evidences preparedness, motivation as well as one’s high level of interest. It also helps the interviewee to ask intelligent, well thought out questions during the interview. Applicants who ask insightful questions, as it shows their intelligence and interest in the position, consistently impress me. These are two important qualities I seek during interviews as they also reflect one’s potential fit to company culture and values. Obviously, there are many other factors and criteria that are critical but the ones I’ve cited above are fundamental yet surprisingly, are where many interviewees fail. Regardless of how good or experienced one believes they are in job interviews, I still believe there is room for everyone to strengthen interviewing skills. One should also watch out for sounding arrogant and showing overconfidence, as they are killers…but those are topics for another day.