Practice Your Interview Answers Out Loud

As crazy as this may sound, it is really important to practice your interview answers out loud.

You may have spent hours rehearsing the answers in your head but when you go to open your mouth, seldom does the answer that comes out sound like what you were practicing.

Whether it is in front of the mirror, in a networking group, in a workshop or with your cousin Isabelle in Massachusetts over the phone, just do it.

I had an actor in one of my classes who told us about the 3 steps actors use to rehearse lines:

1. Memorize
2. Internalize
3. Personalize

You don't want to sound robotic, you want your answers to sound "fresh". That's one of the keys.

I also have heard people tell me that they don't need to memorize their answer, that they are better winging it. As you can imagine, they are not as good as they think.

Each time you practice out loud you will feel better about your answer. It becomes crisper, more concise.

Do your prep work before interviewing. Develop accomplishment stories that will specifically apply to that job and company you'll be interviewing for. Know these stories and know why they are important to the interviewer.

Research the company and person you will be interviewing for. It will give you a level of comfort entering into the conversation. By research, I don't mean a brief and last minute google search. Certainly that is part of it. Dig deep. Ask a librarian for help in finding articles and industry news. Definitely use LinkedIn and find people you know who work there and get the inside scoop. This will take a bit of time so don't wait until the day before the interview to gather all this information.