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Published in U.S. 1 Newspaper on June 28, 2000. All rights reserved.
Preparing to Interview: Marc Dorio’s Guide
You have been fired and are afraid of what your former
boss will say if contacted by your current employment prospects. What
do you do?
Marc Dorio provides at least one quick-fix solution to this
problem in his recently-published book for the jobseeker, “The
Complete Idiot’s Guide to the Perfect Interview” (Alpha Books,
MacMillan Press, $14.95). Although it might be difficult, Dorio writes,
call your old boss to ask where you stand, and if he or she would
be willing to say that you were laid off rather than fired. Put it
this way: “The problem is that every time I tell a prospective
employer about my termination I blow another shot at a paycheck.”
A human resources expert based in Titusville (who earned a master’s
degree in organizational psychology after leaving the priesthood),
Dorio is also author of the “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Getting
the Job You Want” (Alpha Books, Macmillan Press, $24.95), in which
he puts to rest the age-old myth that human resources people actually
read resumes.
Once you’ve gotten past the gatekeeper, the next big step is the dreaded
job interview. Dorio’s advice: don’t prepare for the interview, prepare
for interviewing.
In this 320-page book, Dorio dispels some common interview myths (Myth
No. 1: Employers know what they want) and tells people how to translate
their work experience into verbiage that prospective employers can
understand. He also lists a few ice-breakers (using the word “we”
rather than “I” in an interview), and provides industry-specific
advice on answering those nasty open-ended interview questions.
Everyone is nervous during an interview, writes Dorio, but most of
the time an interviewer is inexperienced and just as uncertain. This
is a great opportunity to step in and shape how you’re perceived by
the interviewer. Dorio’s advice:
End the run-around in human resources. If you’re cold-calling,find out who the person is in charge and arrange an “informational”phone call with him or her. Remember, a company doesn’t hire a person,says Dorio; a person hires a person.Sell skill, not experience. Don’t waste time ticking offyour employment history. Tell the prospective employer what you’veaccomplished in general (I sell) and specific (I sold X amount) terms.Provide a solution. Appeal to the hiring manager’s self-interest,writes Dorio; if you know what’s currently plaguing the company orindustry, offer some solutions. If you don’t know, ask the interviewerwhat kinds of problems currently exist and suggest how “we”could work to solve those problems.Don’t pinpoint a salary figure, even if the hiring managerasks you to name your current or desired salary. Always state a range,with the low-end overlapping the high-end of the employer’s range.Thinking positive is the key to a good interview, says Dorio.If you get hit with some tough, problem-solving questions, have fun.It’s not the answer, but the processes you use to think through problemsthat employers are really interested in.And if you do find yourself in a disaster situation in an interview,Dorio has at least one solution to every problem. What do you do ifyou’re asked a question to which you have no answer?Don’t fake it, says Dorio, but don’t give up either. Instead, commenton the quality of the question, then explain how you would go aboutgetting the answer, i.e. studying customer service staff complaintsand assessing the effectiveness of this response over time. A goodanswer: “Only with that data could I give an informed, meaningfulresponse. Anything else would just be guessing or manufacturing anopinion.”Previous StoryNext StoryCorrections or additions?This page is published by PrincetonInfo.com— the web site for U.S. 1 Newspaper in Princeton, New Jersey.
