The Spotlight’s On You…What Do You Do?
Strategies for approaching virtual cultural and technical interviews
Interviews can be incredibly intimidating. You feel like you’re ready, you research the company, research your interviewer, practice your skills, plan answers to common questions. Then the day arrives and your usual friendly, welcoming, outgoing self, retracts like a snail in a sunbeam.
How do I know this…because I have been there!
I recently went through a technical interview and came away feeling completely defeated, and not because of the time it took me to solve the problem, but because I turned into that snail I mentioned and didn’t present myself as what I am…Me! I got nervous, I forgot to ask questions, I was far from my usual personable self. The interviews aren’t going to stop (I certainly hope they don’t), so this past week my mission was to prepare strategies and make sure I am ready for the next time.
I had the pleasure of attending several events that addressed how to “put your best foot forward” when approaching interviews. Here are 5 of my key take aways for behavioral and preparedness strategies, as well as 4 areas of focus for technical interviews.
Strategies to Be Your Best Prepared Self for an Interview
- Prepare Ahead of Time
- Read up on the company
- Know the job description
- DON’T just wing it
2. Anticipate Questions and Have a Plan for How You Will Answer
- Compare your resume and the job posting for clues about possible questions
- Practice how you would answer these questions
- Practice your answers OUT LOUD. Maybe in front of a mirror, or recruit a friend to help
3. Research the Interviewer
- Know about their background
- Think of ways that you can start small talk about common interests or their personal achievements
4. Treat the Interview as if You are in Person
- Respond and interact like you are in the same room with the interviewer
- Engage in a friendly and interested manner by making eye contact, proper posture, and avoiding distractions
- Remember body language is 80% of every conversation
5. Know How you will Set Up
- Make sure your camera angle is appropriate
- Check lighting
- Know where in your home is optimal for lighting, decreased noise, and adequate connectivity
A lot of these tips sound like just a common sense approach, but the reality is when the pressure is on, the more prepared you are, the more relaxed and natural you can be.
Know the Process for a Technical Interview
The vast majority of technical interviews are assessing your performance based on four specific areas, communication, syntax, verification, and problem solving.
- Communication
- Can you introduce yourself without rambling
- Can you maintain conversation throughout the interview process (small gaps are completely acceptable)
- Do you communicate when you need time to think or process information
- Do you demonstrate your technical knowledge verbally before attempting to execute
2. Verification
- Do you consider possible edge cases
- Do you determine valid inputs other than what was given
- Do you discuss your doubts or uncertainties rather than assuming meaning
3. Syntax
- Do you name variables with meaning and purpose
- Do you use helper methods when applicable
- Do you demonstrate proficiency in your chosen language
- Do you demonstrate an overall understanding of software engineering conventions
Example: functions with names such as isValid are expected to be returning a boolean response
4. Problem Solving
- Can you identify the brute force approach
- Can you optimize the brute force approach
- Can you discuss and reason about time and space complexity of your approach
It is important to understand exactly what criteria the interviewer is looking for, but the only way to truly be prepared is practice! The more practice you put in the better you can translate your understanding of problem solving approaches, utilize strategies, and know how to get started and talk through your approach.
Alright peeps 🐤…now go get those interviews and walk away from them feeling satisfied about your approach!
