How To Prepare For a Job Interview

I recently got a new job (yeah me!). It's at the same place as my old job, but I get to do new and interesting things. It is always good to keep learning right?

When I have had the opportunity to be the interviewer instead of the interviewee, what always amazes me is that some people don't prepare for interviews. Seriously? They may know how amazing they are, but the employer does not. Proper preparation can mean getting the job or not getting the job. I am most certain that this was the case with me and my new position.

So, how to prepare? Of course there are hundreds, if not thousands, of sites online dedicated to this, but I thought I'd take a second and write down what works for ME, and may work for others. (I've gotten every job I've ever interviewed for except one, and honestly, when I got there I knew I didn't want it, so I wasn't trying- just watching the exit door!)

1.       Spend time on the application and your resume so you can qualify for the interview!
 

I have missed out on some great jobs because I wasn't paying enough attention to this step. Sure, the HR personnel that is reviewing your application probably won’t even spend ten minutes on your application during their first pass through, but that doesn't mean you get to put it together just as quickly. You should update your resume and application for EVERY job you apply for. Yep, not one of them should be the same. SPEND THE TIME- got that part of it? So, what are you spending the time to update?
 

· Use the same vocabulary and trigger words that are used in the job announcement in your resume and application.
· Ask the HR department if you can have a copy of the official job description (not just the announcement). This not only helps you get a better feel for the job, and if you're the right fit, but it gives you more specific things to mention on your resume and application.
· Make sure you clearly delineate your qualifications - even if you don't have all of the required qualification on the job announcement, it doesn't mean you don't qualify, but make sure you explain why you do qualify.
· Have a friend, co-worker, or someone in the same line of work read over your resume. If you know someone in HR make them your best friend, they can show you the secrets to making a stand out resume.

Read over it again and again. And again. If you have any grammar or spelling mistakes then you've just made yourself an easy target to be booted in the first run through the applicants.

*Something I do is keep a list of my past employment with a detailed description of my job duties and successes (usually written while I had the job), along with salary and all contact information. This way I have it all in front of me and I can concentrate on using the right wording, spelling, and grammar, rather than spinning my wheels trying to remember every success I've ever had at work or who that new manager was right before I left. Keeping this list updated and extremely detailed is key for me when I update my resume.

2.        Prepare answers to commonly asked interview questions

Prepare a list of commonly asked interview questions and then answer them. There are loads of examples of interview questions on the Internet (like here, and here), or you can also use questions that you remember being commonly asked in your line of work. I have even worked at places where their interview questions are listed right on their website or internal web pages. In my experience, I have been lucky to only be asked extremely common questions, but every once in a while I get a crazy odd ball question. The thing to remember with odd ball questions is that the interviewer is looking for HOW you answer the question, not exactly what your answer is. They are trying to throw you off your game, but if you keep in control, then you just won the match.

Once you have your list of common questions, write out a few bullet points of how you would like to answer them. Don’t write answers out verbatim, you want to prepare, but you also don’t want to go into an interview and answer questions like a pre-programed robot. Plus, thinking on your feet is often required during an interview, so if all you do is memorize your answers, then when a question comes up that wasn’t on your list, you’ll be totally taken off guard. I write out a few main ideas and then verbally practice my answers out loud. This especially helps me, because I know what I want to say, but sometimes when I actually go to say it I fumble and can’t get my words out. Actually verbally answering questions from your list will help you be better prepared for the real world interview.

3.       Prepare a list of experiences

Most of the time, no matter the research you put into your list of questions, there is always going to be something that comes up during the interview that you didn’t prepare for. An exercise I recently started, in addition to my list of questions, is to create a list of job traits and experiences. I created a table with 3 columns, where I listed where I was working, what work trait I exhibited, and the experience I had.  See my example below:

Job	Trait	Experience
Bank XYZ	Great Achievement Learn Quickly Detail Oriented	SME- Just a few months after being hired, I was designated as a Subject Matter Expert and fielded calls from several districts. I researched, troubleshot, and answered employee and managers questions in addition to my regular duties.
College	Research Organization	Study Abroad- Organized my research on ABC with museums and the national archives from across the ocean to best utilize my  limited time to complete my research while in London.

Doing this helps me think of the different accomplishments and experiences that I have to discuss during an interview. So many interview questions start with “Tell me about a time you faced a major challenge and how did you  . . .” and so on. It can be hard to come up with all these experiences on the spot, making a list like the table above means that I already have thought about them before I ever even sat down for the interview.  I also take this list with me to my interview in addition to my list of questions, so if I really get stuck for something, I ask for a moment and look my lists over. Even if my table doesn't hold the answer, at least it gives me another 20 seconds to formulate an answer.

4.       Research of the company/organization in depth

Part of your preparation for an interview must be to research the company or organization you are meeting with. I think this step is the one I see people forget to do most often. I mean think about it, you just gave this place a whole bunch of information about yourself, do you really want to go into the interview and not know at least a little bit about the other side? I usually start with the organizations official web page. A lot of the good stuff is hidden here on their website. Do they have annual reports? Do they have any statistics? Do they have an organization chart with departments and their respective managers? All this information is golden.

After I search the website and see how the company presents itself, I move to a general Google search on the company and see if any additional information comes up that I didn’t catch on their web page. I also look to see how the employer is perceived by others, what recent news articles have been written about them, etc.  If HR will give you the names of those that will be interviewing you then give them a quick Google search as well. This may sound kind of creepy, but again, don’t you want to know who will be sitting on the other side of that table? I am not suggesting to go to their personal Facebook pages and stalk them, but sometimes you will come across a news article, a LinkedIn page, or brief work history synopsis that has been written on them. It helps to know going into the interview if you are meeting with Harvard graduate or a self-made entrepreneur. Getting to know more about the other side helps me feel more in control of the situation and better prepared.

Quick Tips for the Interview:

·         Don’t Rush-Take your time to answer the questions. This isn’t a race, you can take 5 seconds to best frame your answer. Take a breath, then answer.

·         “Can you repeat that?” This is a great question to ask if you need a few more seconds to think up something, or if you didn’t understand- ask for clarification, no shame in that.

·         Be Nice- Your last boss was crazy (whose isn’t?), an interview for a new job is NOT the place to bring this up.

·         Be Inquisitive- Not only do you need to think about your answers for the interviewer, think about what you want to know from them and come up with a handful of questions for the end of the interview. I always struggle with this, but that’s when I employ Google Search!

·         Dress Well – This should go without saying, but society has become increasingly casual recently. At my first job after college I was paying particular attention to how they chose to hire a new employee. I swear the deciding factor between two candidates was that one girl wore a suit and the other top candidate did not. The suite was the one hired (and she was an excellent employee). I also hear from my HR friends to wear a white or blue shirt, for what it’s worth.

·         Don’t fidget- This one is very hard for me. I’m a fidgeter. Just resist the temptation and calmly place your hands where everyone can see them.

·         Be Genuine- People can usually tell when you’re faking it. Of course you have to put your best foot forward during an interview, but don’t lie about your qualifications, or play to the crowd so much that you just end up playing a part and not being yourself.

·         Smile- Smile when appropriate. Yes, an interview is serious business, but you can still be happy. Plus even if you are a bucket of nerves, smiling will actually calm you and make it more enjoyable.

Well, there it is, how I prepare for an interview and some quick tips for the interview.  Again, there is lots of information about interviewing out there, and what works for me may be different than what works for someone else- but the thing that stays the same is that YOU MUST PREPARE. It really is key. Would you take a test without studying? No, then why would you interview without preparing properly? In this day in age, in this economy, you need to be on your game.  I hope this helps someone else out there out, and the next time I interview I’m sure I’ll revisit this post.

Picture Sources: 1,2

Decorating By Memory Part 1- (places you love)

I haven't wanted to blog lately. Which is a problem, because I blog to keep myself motivated and accountable. I blog so that I WANT to do crafts, make things, decorate, and be part of that community. Sadly, however, real life seems to be taking a hold of me lately. I am so busy that I can't keep my head on straight, let alone try to think of creating something pretty. I guess that is how summer always is though. So I thought up a plan to get myself motivated again. After all, fall is just around the corner, time for baking, making, and getting my act together!

Something I have always struggled with is "defining" my home decorating style. I never know if I'm classic, rustic, country, modern, or what. I take style quizzes and read up on the styles but nothing ever seems to fit me. That is when I it hit me, I am not one of those styles that can be pulled from a box. I am ME! And I am happiest when I am surrounded by those that I love and things that remind me of the amazing people in my life. I was a history major, so I have always been a sucker for history, but what I finally decided is that I want my home to remind me of MY history, my family, and all those memories that I treasure up in my mind. Not just with the pictures on the wall, but with my decorating style as well.

(This is a poorly taken photo of little me)

But how do I do that? Of course I have to have a plan. What is life without a plan? This is when I thought up my idea. Why not create mood boards and lists filled with things that remind me of the people and places that I love? If I fill my home with those things, then I will always feel comforted and loved at home.

First up, I decided to create a mood board after my Grandparents on my fathers side. Not necessarily things that they have in their house exactly, but things that remind me of them and hanging out with them, listening to their stories. Those are some of my most favorite and treasured memories!

Sources: 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8, 9, 10

 

This is how I envision my grandparents style. When I think of them and their homes I think of:

• Brass: Lots of gold and brass. I use to be a silver girl, but now I always find myself going for gold and brass over silver. I get it, my grandmother is a smart lady for liking these metals.

• Luxury: My grandmother is a very stylish and classic woman. One of my favorite stories is that she bought her mother a fur coat with her first real paycheck, when what they really could have used was something much more practical. So when I think of them I think of fur, velvet, soft shag carpet (like the green shag in their old house), beautiful floral wallpaper, crystals and sparkly things.
 
• Mirrors & Glass: My grandparents always have lots of mirrors around too. My parents inherited this extremely large mirror with a golden frame that goes above their fireplace. It use to be in my dads house growing up. Currently, my grandparents have two walls completely covered with mirrors in their house.
 
• Owls & Figurines: I also think of owls for some odd reason. My grandfather always reminds me of a wise old owl. No more reason behind it then that I guess. Plus, they have tons of figurines and chachkies from all of their worldly travels

• Rocks: My grandpa is always collecting cool rocks that he finds on his hikes and walks. He brings them home, places them in the garden or on a shelf. I try to do the same, but I don't find as cool of rocks as he does.
 
• Petrified Wood: Grandpa is also always bringing home drift wood or petrified wood. He sets it on a table and admires its shape and beauty. I love this about him. He finds beauty everywhere.
 
• Family Picture Galleries: My grandma has a row of family portraits that lines her hallway. They are all in non-matching gold frames. She keeps pictures of her loved ones always near her.
 
• Roses and Cyprus: Lastly, I also think of rose bushes and cypress trees. They have had them all over their yard in both of their houses. A good garden definitely reminds me of my grandfather.

Next up is my grandparent on my mothers side of the family. I have lots and lots of things to choose from there. Can't wait to put it together! (. . . but I will most likely get distracted and it'll take me a month- haha).



The Fam. Reunion

In July my husbands family had a family reunion. I was a little hesitant when I heard the location, Hurricane Utah, but it honestly turned out to be so much fun. I can't wait to do it all over again.

The only bad part about the trip was that I couldn't take this sweet girl with us. When I was packing up the car I went in the house to get another load and came back out to this. She had jumped in the trunk of the car and she WAS NOT getting out. She wanted to come! She went and played at her BFF's house Zoe, so she had her own fun, but I can't wait until we go on a trip when we can take Scout with us.

We stayed at this great house on the Sand Hallow golf course (that didn't allow dogs). The place was miraculously large enough to hold all 30 some odd of us . . .

. . . and our shoes. This pile grew at least 3x this size by the end of the trip.

One of the main reasons we headed up to southern Utah was for the Shakespearean Festival up at Southern Utah University. Some people saw a number of shows but Jeff and I just saw Le Miserables. They put on an awesome show with a lot of talented actors and singers. Very glad we saw it.

The house was near Sand Hallow Reservoir (no one was unlucky enough to get Swimmers Itch, even though there was a high risk at the time). Most the "kids" headed to the Sand Hallow every day to play, and play we DID!



Here is my sis-in-law Amanda with the wake board. (I wont embarrass anyone by posting pictures of them while they were wake boarding. Don't get me wrong, we have some pretty talented wake boarders in the family, but there is always that look of concentration or fear of falling on wake boarders faces that isn't the most flattering.)

We also did our fair share of para-sailing. Yep, Uncle Kim also has a para-sailing kite in his bag of tricks. I've done this several times on vacations elsewhere so I didn't go up this trip, but lots of family enjoyed the ride.



I think this is my sis-in law Natalie going in for a dip, whether she wanted to or not- haha.

This was more my speed this vacation, I stole some time away from the "kids" and went tubing. I hadn't done this for ages and it was pretty awesome. I snuck a ride in right before the boat ran out of gas. We had to get towed in, which was kind of fun in its own right. Pictured are two of Jeff's cousins. Spending time with family like them is what really made the whole week great!

Sorry for the Instagram Pic



Besides my quick tubing trip this is what I spent most of my time doing at Sand Hallow, cliff jumping! Honestly, it wasn't as fun as I remember, I think I am getting old or something. But it was still a bunch of fun. Some of the cousins got to show off their swimming and diving skills making up all kinds of dives off the rocks.

We even snuck in some hiking. Here the family is up at one of my favorite places, Zion National Park, earlier in the week before I drove up.



This is our cousin Nathan jumping into a small pool up at the Red Cliffs hike I took them on later on in the week. Nathan just got back from his LDS mission. It was so great to see him again. He is pretty much awesome sauce, as you can clearly see from this picture.



Jeff, of course, took his normal role in the family and was a bit of a dork. Seriously, why did he put mud on his face? Not really sure, but he is super cute anyway. Spending time with him and his family this week was so relaxing and joyous. It made me think about what the next life must be like, where we get to spend more time with our family, then say, with strangers at work that we've never met before we got the job. We were both just in the best mood the whole time because we were having fun and surrounded by people that we love and who love us. I don't know if there can be a better feeling then that.

This is a pretty good picture of the whole crew. Not sure if we ever got more people then this all together for one event. This is at the Red Cliffs hike trail head.

On our last full day of the reunion we went to the St. George temple. I did a session with some of the other adults, while Jeff went and did baptisms for the dead with the younger cousins. There were a number of family names that we did the work for in the temple that day, so I'm sure we had even more family in attendance at the reunion that are not pictured ;)

Lastly, we took over a local burger joint for lunch. After that different families started to head out at different times. Jeff and I left the next day, did some killer shopping in St. George and visited with my grandparents (who took us out for an awesome lunch and we had a great visit).

 It was an awesome family get together. I loved getting to spend time with all of them. I hope that my family can get it together and have a reunion sometime soon too. It makes me just want to go hang out with our family all the time. Jeff and I are so blessed to have amazing family so close on all sides!

30 x 30 Completed . . . Kinda

Well, it's that time to see how I actually ended up doing on my 30 x 30 goals.

(italicized is something I've completed since my last post. Gray bolded text is new.)

So, I didn’t get my list done. That’s okay. I still think I did a lot more than I would have without making the goals. Jeff says it’s better to aim for the moon and miss than to aim for the ground.


So here is what I missed:

5) Lose 20 lbs, feel more fit. Lazy
12) Print the disposable camera pictures from our wedding- Didn’t print due to budgetary constraints.
14) Complete 5 crafts from the Martha Stewart Encyclopedia of Crafts. Lazy.
15) Find at least 5 go-to recipes from "Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cook Book." Lazy.
17) Write, record, memorialize my grandparents history. Started, not finished.
19) Decide if I'm going back to school and for what. I decided I can’t decide until at least Jeff is done with school. One person at a time.
25) Get preggo. Working on it, may take some time.
26) If preggo, decorate the cutest nursery ever! Maybe I will get to someday :)
29) Learn how to play my favorite piano song from the Sense and Sensibility movie. Lazy . . . and I have no piano.

Here is what I did that WASN’T on my list:

-Get a new job! (Tell you about it later)
-Paint the guest bathroom,
-Re-do the flooring after our flood (okay, technically Jeff did the work, but I picked the flooring out.)
-Decorate the guest bedroom,
-Upgrade our patio furniture,
-Finally buy a rug for the living room,
-Get a DOG, Scout!

And I’m sure I did lots of other stuff too. I was busy to say the least. I like making goals and would like to do something like this for this next year too, but am not sure what to do. I learned a lot about making goals for the future. Instead of trying to do 5 things from such and such, I need to just start with doing 1 thing. I also need to be more specific in some instances, like "pray more" and more vague in other areas.

This year I was thinking of making a list of things to accomplish each month instead of doing 31 things. I also thought about just trying to do 31 acts of service. Not sure where I’ll end up, and again, I may not succeed at everything, but I’ll do better than if I make no goals at all. I’ll keep you posted.

I'm Old

I know, seems like all I've been taking about lately is my birthday. I just can't believe I'm really 30. When did that happen? I thought I'd be so much cooler by now! Honestly. But, I do want to share some more birthday stuff this week (last week I promise).

This year was a big birthday for me, so I wanted to do something a little different. Low and behold- Groupon came through for me! They had a great deal on a two night stay at the Hard Rock Hotel here in Las Vegas. I thought a staycation - where I did nothing but chill by the pool - sounded like a heavenly idea!

Jeff was a sweetie and upgraded the room for us when we checked in. It is probably the nicest hotel room I've ever stayed in. HUGE bathroom, 2 TV's, nice seating area and big ol' COMFORTABLE bed. Afterward Jeff and I both agreed it may be time to upgrade our mattress at home, this bed was paradise!

We went to eat at Dicks with younger sisters our first night we checked in. It was pretty funny- it's a restaurant where the waiters are purposely rude to their guests. They also do funny hats- my sister's said "My Twilight underwear have skid marks." They were the most clever at the table. Jeff's said "What happens in my butt stays in my butt." and mine said "Ex-stripper."

The next night, on my actual birthday, we went to Bahama Breeze. It's a classic family favorite and is conveniently located by the Hard Rock. After dinner we went back to our hotel room and opened gifts from the family with some ice cream cake.

The main event though, and the reason for picking Hard Rock Hotel (along with the killer deal scored on Groupon) was for this  . . .

The pool at Hard Rock is pretty sweet, and I just sat and relaxed for 3 days at it! Let me show you it's amazingness.

Our Groupon deal came with a daybed by the main pool. It was cushy, had misters and a fair amount of shade from the palm trees. Jeff utilized it mostly to read his books. He does the same thing at the beach. I don't really get it?  I however, played with my sisters like we were little kids! (Well, J still is a kid, so she has a legit excuse.)

We went down the slide (not pictured, too much fun for camera phones).

We swam in the glass sided pool and took silly pictures . . .

Also took some sweet pic on the glass bottom pool . . .

Jeff even stopped by on occasion and participated in swimming and photo taking goodness.

I just used instagram the whole time. It was great, no worries that my nice camera would be swiped at the pool!

But after 3 days of swimming it was time to go and celebrate Independence Day. I thanked the Hard Rock for giving me one of my best birthdays ever! (Really only surpassed by my 19th Birthday in Hawaii.) And we went to Jeff's parents house to finish off the festivities.

Jeff's brother Spencer made his famous hamburgers (he makes the best hamburgers I've ever tasted), I got more gifts, we ate yummy food, Jeff swam some more, and we set off some fireworks.

Seriously, I could not have asked for a better birthday. it was so much fun! Somewhere in all that swimming we also fit in playing some dart, a few games of pool, movies, and exploring that huge rain shower and ginormous bathtub at the hotel. I think staycations are going to become a new tradition at the Bame house!

Dirty Thirty

I am turning 30 this week. It really sucks, which is why I call it the dirty thirty. Dirty ol' rotten birthday is taking away my 20's- which were great. Hope that my 30's are even better!

pic

I am out celebrating with my hubster. I'll be back later this month with birthday pic and hopefully Sage's graduation pics. Have a great Independance Day!

Pinterest Pickings- Independence Day

On New Years I made a "I don't really make resolutions" resolution to add one decorative item to my collection for each holiday. Yeah, it's not gonna happen for Independance Day this time round (read: crazy busy at work, with my church calling, and oh yeah- I'm turning 30 birthday extravaganza plans!) , but that doesn't mean that I haven't thought about what I'd like to craft up if I had the TIME.

Made from Pringle cans- how clever. I only managed to save one can, so maybe

I'll make these after I eat some more Pringles!

found here

So cute for a BBQ in the backyard!

found here

These are from Etsy, but it'd be fun to try and make one if you could find awesome paper like this!

found here

I need to learn how to make layered cakes that don't fall apart!

found here

Awesomeness!

found here

For more cute Fourth of July ideas go visit my friends blog here. Victoria is so creative and always has inventive ideas!