How to Answer Interview Questions About the Competition

How to Answer Interview Questions About the CompetitionHow to Answer Interview Questions About the CompetitionWhat makes you better than the competition? Is it your work ethic? Your education? Something else? During your interview, its important to be able to share information on why youre the person who should be hired for the job. Separate Yourself from the Other Applicants Its not uncommon for employers to receive hundreds of applications from eager job seekers, with most of them meeting some or all of the job requirements. Employers makehiring decisionsby comparing these various candidates. They may ask you to help them decide by asking you to explain whats so distinctive about you as an applicant, or advantageous about hiring you, during a job interview. In most cases, youll have no idea who youre competing with for a particular job, sothis schrift of questionis really an invitation to summarize your strengths as a candidate with an emphasis on any assets that might separate you from the typical applicant. Make a List of the Priority Job Requirements In order to give a solid answer to this question, it helps to be prepared before you go to the interview. Start byanalyzing the requirements for the joband decide which ones appear to be of the highest priority. You can find this information in the job description look for qualifications or job requirements. Reviewing this information will give you some cues about what the organization values most from candidates. Some of the qualifications will be mandatory for the job, and some may be suggested be koranvers to look at all of them. If the job listing is short on substance, then look for advertisements for similar positions on major job sites to discern a pattern for employer preferences. What are the most common requirements and qualifications? Using the information youve collected from the job listings, make a list of the top five qualifications for the ideal candidate. Review that list and try to think of how youve previously applied those skills, qualities, or areas of knowledge in your current or previous jobs, or other related positions.Make sure to choose those skills and qualities that helped you make a strong contribution in your paid employment, internships,volunteer work, academics, or activities. Best Answers to the Question Be prepared to reference each of your assets and be able to describe situations where you used those strengths along with the positive results you helped generate. Or you can describe how your organization has benefited from your actions. For example, your answer might begin with an acknowledgment like, Of course, Im not aware of the other candidates in the applicant pool, but I can say that my skills in Excel are quite advanced. I have created complex macros to track seasonal variations in sales and expenses which have helped my department to save money. In addition to addressing the standard job requirements, try to adda strength that is r elatively unique, and would add value, even if its not listed in the job description.For example, although foreign language skills might not be listed in the job advertisement, you might mention that your Spanish language skills would enable you to establish rapport with Spanish-speaking clients. Bring a Copy of Your High Points Now that youve done all this work, you may want to type up the list and print out a copy to offer to your interviewer. That way, if they miss any part of your spiel, theyll be able to look back on the document post-interview. More Tips for Your Interview You want to make a great first impression on your interviewer, and that includes your appearance and demeanor. If youre not used to job interviews, you may feel a bit nervous, which is only natural. You can reduce your jitters by preparing properly. Review potential job interview questions and rehearse your answers. It can help to ask a friend or family member to pose as the interviewer he or she ca n read the questions to you, and you can answer. Its also important to look the part and choose clothing thats appropriate for the interview. You dont want to show up in jeans and a t-shirt for a job where youll be wearing a suit or business casual attire. If youre not sure what type of clothing is appropriate, youre better off choosing something a little more business-like. If you get the job and the workplace doesnt have a dress code, you can dress down if thats what most other employees wear.

How to Advance Your Gig and Avoid Hassle

How to Advance Your Gig and Avoid HassleHow to Advance Your Gig and Avoid HassleEvery ensemble has had the experience at least once (and probably more than once)- you get to the venue, and no one is there to help you tischset up, the gear you need is nowhere to be found, and it landseems like no one in town even knows youre playing. The way to avoid all of this hassle is your advance your gig. Advancing your gig gives you an extra layer of insurance that everything will go smoothly on the night of the show, so all you have to worry about is getting up there and playing a good set. Assign the Task I thought you were going to do it. No, you said you were. Sound like the kind of conversations you have with your bandmates in the run up to a gig? Advancing your gig is too important of a task to assume someone else is going to do. If your band has a manager or an agent, then the job of advancing the show will usually fall on their shoulders. If you have booked the show yourself, the jo b of advancing falls on someone in the band. It is a good idea to have a band spokesperson who can act as the business contract for your band and take on responsibilities like these. Artist ManagerAgent Promo On? If you want people to come to your gig, you have to promote it. Whose job that is depends on if you booked the gig with a promoter, who will take on most of these tasks, or if you are promoting the show yourself. If youre working with a promoter, it makes sense to check in during the run up to the show to make sure all promotional plans have been implemented. Ask questions like Is thevenue/town postered?Has the press been told about the gig?If there are to be ticket presales, are the tickets ready and on sale? Ideally, you should be looking at this stuff at least 4-6 weeks before the show. Confirm the Details Before the show, confirm the details in your contract, like What time is load-in? Soundcheck? On stage time?Lengthofset?Will there be accommodation provided? W here? At whose cost?Will your rider or meal requests be ok?Have they arranged to meet all of your tech needs? If you need special equipment, will they be able to provide it? At whose cost? You should already know these answers, but its funny how things change at the last minute. You should do this 1 week or so before the show- late enough that final arrangements should be in place, early enough to adapt if there are any problems. The Final Day On the day of your show, it is time for one last confirmation of the details. Check in with the promoter or venue early in the day to make sure everything is on track. If you had to make any changes to your original plan when you confirmed the details the first time, make sure those changes are all in place. Arrive on time for your load in/sound check and scope things out. If you see any problems with the stage set up, the gear, or anything else, speak up right away so you have the best chance of fixing things. Tips Advancing your gig is a great way to try and make things run a little more smoothly, but theyre not a guarantee. Things can go wrong, things do go wrong- often, you can count on the fact that things WILL go wrong. Be ready to go with the flow - it will make things much easier for you. This is especially important for smaller, up and coming indie bands who may be working with smaller venues and part time promoters. If something goes wrong, before flying off the handle, try to step back and weigh the situation. Trying to fix the problem and learning for next time is the best remedy for any show night disaster. When you are confirming the details about things like hotel rooms and transportation with a promoter, it is worthwhile to do a triple check by calling the hotel/the airline, etc, to see if they have a reservation for you.Even if you are self-promoting a show, you can still advance the gig by running through the pre-gig checklist with yourself.When youre confirming the details, that is also a good time to make sure you have directions to the venue and a contact number for someone in case you get lost coming into town (and you can bet you will- getting lost is part of being on tour). While youre keeping everyone else on task, make sure you stay on yours. The one thing that is absolutely guaranteed to ruin a show is if you turn up not ready to play. You expect the promoters and venues to be professionals- make sure you are one, too.

How to Prepare for Your Performance Review - The Muse

How to Prepare for Your Performance Review - The MuseHow to Prepare for Your Performance Review Youve waited months for this moment- the chance to prove your worth to your boss and get a leg up in your career.Let me break it to you You wont get what you want if you dont prepare properly. In fact, your review will only go well if you get organized and collect all your information before the talk.So, with that in mind, heres what you need to do the night of your next performance review to put yourself in a great position for a productive conversation thatll get you ahead in your career and get you on your boss good side1. Learn How to Respond to FeedbackYou know not to yell (right?). But do you know there are ways to respond to negative feedback that actually make you look good?Youre going to want to pay attention to the following because its possible youll receive some not-so-great feedback. And even if youve been doing fabulous work, its alfruchtwein guaranteed youre going to receive some form of constructive criticism (no ones perfect, after all).First, as Muse Career Coach Emily Liou points out in an article about handling negative feedback, own up to your mistakes and be ready to offer a solution or show initiative to do better.And, says Muse Writer Rich Moy, avoid blurting out things like I didnt realize that was wrong or It wont happen again (Heres what you should prepare to say instead.)How to Respond to Negative Feedback in (Almost) Any Possible Scenario2. Collect Your AccomplishmentsThink you deserve a raise?Its so important to state your case by listing out your accomplishments (including how much money youve made for the company, the skills youve learned, the relationships youve built, and the projects youve completed) over the past six months or year.We made it easy for you Just fill out this worksheet right from your computer.How to Ask for a Raise When You Hate Talking About Money3. Review Your Current GoalsDid you set goals at your last review? Or , do you have some personal ones of your own?Either way, reviews are a great time to look back at what you were hoping to accomplish and see if you, well, actually did them.If you met your goals, what did you learn along the way? Which ones are you most proud of? How can you build on them in the future?And if you didnt achieve them, how far did you get? Did your priorities change? What held you back? What can you do differently going forward?Jot down some notes to discuss further with your manager when you meet. Which leads me to6 Ways to Make Your Next Performance Review Way Less Painful4. Set Some New GoalsNow that you know how far youve come, now you can decide where you want to go.Do this by setting some realistic, yet ambitious goals. Consider the followingWhat skills would you like to master by your next review?What responsibilities do you want to take on?What projects are you passionate about pursuing?What weaknesses would you like to improve upon?What goals would you like to continue to build on?What role do you want to shoot for one to three years from now? What can you do now to put yourself in the running?How to Set Ambitious Career Goals You Can Realistically Accomplish5. Prepare Any Lingering QuestionsEspecially if one-on-one time is rare in your office, reviews are super helpful for getting some of your most burning questions answered. It could be about the status of your team or department, or the goals of the company, or possibilities for career growth (like budget to get some professional development help).6 Phrases You Should Have in Your Back Pocket if You Want to Ace Your Performance Review6. Prepare for a Tough ConversationMaybe your boss will bring up some serious concerns. Maybe you even seen a performance improvement plan coming. Or, maybe itll be a normal review on your managers end, but youre going to have to raise your hand to discuss bigger issues. For example, nows a good time to talk about the fact that youre bored in your role or youd like to consider an internal transfer.Having ansicht conversations is hard But being prepared makes it a little easier.The Best Way to Make Sure Youre Not Blindsided in Your Performance Review7. Pat Yourself on the BackFinally, give yourself some credit for making it to this big milestone. Sure, it happens every year, and you may not even receive anything special except for a simple Great work from your manager, but youve made it through what was probably a busy, exhausting, or even tumultuous period- look back on it, pat yourself on the back for everything awesome you did, and know youre going to kick even more butt after this review.Now all you have to do is double-check your review time (in case you have a jam-packed day), lay out a slightly-nicer-than-usual outfit (it doesnt hurt), and get some beauty sleep.And no matter what happens, because youve prepared, youre sure to handle it like a champ.