What Is Interview Coaching and Do I Need It?
One of my most popular services I offer in coaching is Interview Coaching and there’s a good reason for that. Interviews have transformed from mere Q&A sessions into dynamic evaluations of your personality, communication skills, problem-solving acumen, and cultural alignment.
As you might imagine, and potentially why you are reading this blog post, job seekers are increasingly recognizing the value of honing their interview performance. This is where the concept of interview coaching steps onto the stage, armed with insights, techniques, and strategies to guide candidates toward success.
In this article, I outline what Interview Coaching is, exploring its benefits, identifying who stands to gain the most from it, and helping you assess whether it's the missing piece in your journey to career success.
What Is Interview Coaching?
Interview coaching is the deliberate art of preparation, refinement, and empowerment. It's akin to a personal trainer for your career aspirations, helping you attain peak performance when it matters most. Just as an athlete trains for a championship, interview coaching arms you with the tools to present your professional self in the best possible light during those high-stakes interview moments.
An interview coach serves as your mentor, strategist, and ally, guiding you through the intricacies of everything from body language cues to structuring compelling narratives about your experiences.
As the job market grows increasingly competitive, interview coaching has transitioned from a luxury to a strategic necessity as a way to ensure your potential doesn't go unnoticed due to nerves, lack of experience, or inadequate presentation.
Coaching To Enhance Interview Skills- Not Memorizing
Coaching isn’t simply about me as your coach telling you what to say or how to act in interviews. Sure, I give you the best tips and advice I’ve amassed as an industry expert but ultimately, coaching is a partnership in helping you develop and enhance your essential skills in your own way like verbal communication skills, body language, and mindfulness when interviewing. Most career coaches use role-playing and mock interviews to refine responses and delivery to help you not only prepare for interviews but feel more confident in delivering authentic and relevant answers.
How Interview Coaching Boosts Confidence
One of the key aspects of interview coaching is helping clients understand the psychology behind nervousness or anxiety, which is often what clients say is their biggest challenge in interviewing. By coaching around the reasons behind these jitters, interview coaches empower individuals to reframe their perspective.
Instead of viewing nervousness as a hindrance, candidates learn to see it as a natural response to a challenging situation. This shift in mindset is crucial in transforming nervous energy into positive anticipation, allowing candidates to channel their adrenaline into enthusiastic and impactful responses. If you are someone that is plagued by nervousness in interviews, here are my top 5 pieces of advice/tips to keep you moving forward:
Breathing Techniques: Coaches often introduce candidates to calming breathing exercises that can be discreetly practiced before an interview. Deep, controlled breaths help lower heart rate, ease tension, and provide a sense of control over one's reactions.
Visualization: Through guided visualization exercises, candidates can mentally rehearse the interview process. Visualizing a successful interview scenario helps in building familiarity, boosting confidence, and reducing the fear of the unknown.
Positive Self-Talk: Interview coaching encourages candidates to cultivate a positive inner dialogue. By replacing self-doubt with affirmations and reminders of past achievements, individuals can counteract negative thoughts that contribute to nervousness.
Preparation and Practice: Knowing that you've thoroughly prepared can significantly diminish nervousness. Interview coaches guide candidates in crafting compelling responses, practicing mock interviews, and anticipating potential questions. The more familiar you are with your own experiences and skills, the more confidently you can present them.
Anchoring Techniques: These involve associating physical sensations (such as touching a specific finger or tapping a wrist) with feelings of calmness. Candidates can discreetly use these techniques during the interview to trigger a sense of composure.
Need Help With Your Job Search?
Enroll in our online course, Find a Job Fast: The Job Search Accelerator For Career Professionals
Coaching For Recent Graduates and Entry-Level Candidates
For recent graduates and entry-level candidates, your challenge of interviewing is your lack of experience. The experience gap isn't just about the number of years on your resume; it's about aligning your existing skills and accomplishments with the requirements of the role you're pursuing. Interview coaches recognize that experience isn't solely defined by job titles and responsibilities – it's also about the transferable skills, achievements, and characteristics that can make you a valuable asset in a different context.
The STAR Technique: Situation, Task, Action, Result – framework is your ally in structuring your responses to behavioral questions. Interview coaching breaks down how to use STAR to clearly convey your role, actions, and outcomes in various situations, even if you have little to no formal industry experience.
Beyond years of experience, focus on your accomplishments you do have to date. Numbers speak volumes. Interview coaches guide you in quantifying your accomplishments, adding weight to your claims. Whether it's increased sales, reduced costs, or improved efficiency, numbers provide tangible evidence of your impact.
Lastly, in addition to technical skills, interview coaching delves into soft skills and cultural fit too. Coaches help you tailor your responses to align with the company's values and the team's dynamics, which is super important when you are just starting out your career and you may not know a lot about the professional world yet.
Coaching For Career Changers
For career changers, switching industries or career paths can be a formidable endeavor. You might wonder how your current skills and experiences relate to your new desired field. This is where interview coaching plays a pivotal role, offering guidance on how to effectively frame your transferable skills and navigate the transition with confidence.
Skill Mapping is a unique career coaching tool that helps identify the common threads connecting your current skill set with the requirements of your desired industry. This activity can help you uncover how your abilities can translate into your new role, making you a strong contender despite the apparent disconnect.
Interview coaching that teaches you storytelling techniques helps your advocacy to go beyond mere bullet points on your resume. Coaches help you craft compelling narratives that demonstrate how your transferable skills have played a crucial role in your current and past positions. These narratives bridge the gap between your current experience and the industry you're entering.
The significance of rebranding oneself cannot be overstated when transitioning to a new industry. Your interview is an opportunity to position yourself as a viable candidate with a fresh perspective. Be sure to emphasize your relevant skills. Highlight learning agility and showcase your industry knowledge or research.
In the eyes of hiring managers, rebranding yourself effectively signals not only your willingness to evolve but also your commitment to making a meaningful contribution in the new industry. Interview coaching equips you with the strategies to turn your career transition into a compelling narrative of growth, demonstrating your ability to leverage your existing strengths to excel in your new field.
Transitioning careers isn't about discarding your past; it's about leveraging your transferable skills to carve a unique path forward. With interview coaching, you can confidently step into a new industry, armed with the ability to communicate your value and potential in a way that resonates with prospective employers.
When To Consider Interview Coaching
Typically, if you’re struggling with interviews, call a career coach! If you are experiencing repeated rejections, poor feedback, or no feedback at all from those you interview with, these are signs you may want to start seeking professional help to identify exactly what is going on with your interviewing process.
You may also be experiencing low self-assurance or simply don’t have a lot of interviewing experience and want to partner up with a coach to increase your confidence and just feel really good about yourself going into your next interview. Either way, coaching is for you!
DIY vs. Professional Interview Coaching
To get you started, check out some self-help resources like online articles, videos, and books for improving your interviewing skills. I wrote a fantastic article (if I don’t say so myself!) for another career blog explaining How to use ChatGPT as an Interview Coach and Practice Partner, give it a read!
While AI can help you prepare and practice your interviewing skills, nothing is as good as practicing with a human partner (at least not yet!). Remember, people hire people. We pick up on the nuances of tone and body language and if we don’t “feel right” in your interview, we likely won’t hire you. So use a balanced approach of AI preparation and practice but ultimately make sure you are getting in front of human beings that can give you empathetic and human-centric driven feedback!
Looking For An Interview Coach?- Let’s Chat!
As I said at the beginning of this post, interviewing coaching is one of my most popular services. In the Interview Coaching package, we go through 2, 60 minute virtual coaching sessions and 2, 30 minute mock interviews with 30 minutes of feedback to help you prepare, practice and perfect your interviewing. If you’re interested in learning more, let’s chat! You can email me at nadia@beyonddiscoverycoaching.com or fill in our contact form.
Related:
How To Answer The Interview Question: What Are You Passionate About?
3 Best Practices For Participating In Exit Interviews Professionally And Honestly
Recording Virtual Interviews: Ethical Considerations and Best Practices
Meet The Writer!
Hi! My name is Nadia Ibrahim-Taney and I help people design happy and fulfilling careers through authentic career coaching. My expertise includes career exploration guidance, resume writing, interview prep and LinkedIn profile optimization. My pronouns are She/ Her/ Hers and as a member of the LGBTQ+ community, I focus on how diverse identities impact and influence folks holistically and professionally. Please connect with me on LinkedIn or at Nadia@beyonddiscoverycoaching.com
