Interview Questions: The Aftermath

When the interview ends, leave the building as gracefully as you entered, making sureyou're as cordial to people on the way out as you were coming in. As you decompress,take some time to review the interview while it's still fresh in your mind. Becauseinterviewing is a learnable skill, use the experience to help you in the future.

Ask yourself: how could you have better answered the questions? Where did you succeed?Where did you fail? What will you do differently next time?

In assessing the interview, don't let the fact that you didn't feel aconnection with the interviewer frighten you away from a great job. And lastly, considerwhat you?ve learned about the company and whether or not, all things considered, itwill be a good place for you to be.

A thank-you note is essential. Get it in the mail the day after the interview. Ifcompetition between you and another candidate is intense, the thank-you note just might bethe extra burst of effort that propels you to victory. Avoid hyperbole and excessiveenthusiasm. Keep your note cordial, brief, and let the tone bespeak its having beenwritten from a cool remove. Thank the interviewer for inviting you to the interview. Tellthe interviewer it was a pleasure to him or her. And then mention something you learnedduring the interview and assure them of your continued interest in the positionproviding you are still interested.

Follow-up calls can also provide that extra thrust over the job wall in some cases. Butit?s a good idea to assess the situation before you call. Calling can make you lookover-eager and can, if overdone, turn off prospective employers. After interviewing with alarge and busy company along with several other candidates, it's probably better tojust send a note and wait for the response. And until prospective employers make theirdecisions, everything you say to them can be used against you at decision time.

For this reason, both calls and letters should be viewed as extensions of theinterview. The last thing you want is for a clumsy follow-up call to dash a favorableimpression of you. But a well-placed follow-up call or letter can give you an opportunityto state an idea you failed to mention in the interview, to position your name in theirmemories, to demonstrate perseverance, and to separate yourself from the majority ofcandidates who don't follow up.