This week on ATS Career Radio we invited Kim Boulahanis in from Health Integrated to help us talk about common interviewing mistakes.  While we covered enough to write a book, I thought I'd share a few highlights:

Don't bring guests, spouses, significant others, kids, uncles, cousins or pets to your interview!   They should stay in the car or out of sight.   Just today, we had a candidate come in escorted by her father.   Not only is this weird but it can make it uncomfortable for both the candidate and the interviewer.  Like going to the bathroom, interviewing is one of those things better done on your own.

Always wear a suit.  Not matter what position you are interviewing for, a suit is almost always impressive.  This goes for guys and ladies.  Think conservative, not only with the outfit, but with your make-up, hair, perfume and jewelry.  No basketball-sized earrings or face jewelry please.

Leave the cell phone in the car.   I know I covered this in another post but yesterday I had a candidate who brought her cell phone into the interview and it rang not once, not twice but NINE times!   She answered it twice!   This is simply unacceptable.  Don't even run the risk of the "vibration" interrupting the interview.  It is not worth it.  Leave it in the car with your guests.

We talked about so many different things including tips on what to bring with you to the interview, how to prepare and we talked about other pitfalls to avoid.  Give ATS Career Radio a listen at www.atscareerradio.com. 

Any other common interviewing mistakes to avoid?  I'd love to hear them at billf@atstampa.com .

This morning at my daughter's school I was greeted with a giant, computer printed sign taped to the door saying "please finish your cell phone conversation before entering the school." As I walked to her classroom, these signs were posted all down the hallway. After I dropped her off, I pulled into the McDonald's drive thru to get a coffee and noticed a HUGE, ENORMOUS sign saying "please do not use your cell phone in the drive thru." Come to think of it, there were three of them!

One would think its common sense not to be walking our children down the hall of their school while talking on a cell phone. If the school is forced to post signs everywhere asking people to refrain, apparently it's not.

This made me think I should post my own sign to candidates who may go on an interview in the near future to remind them NOT to take their cell phone with them into the interview.   There is nothing more inconsiderate and annoying to an interviewer than to have a cellphone ring in the middle of an interview.  It's almost as bad to have  a phone "vibrate" through an interview as well.  My suggestion is to leave your phone in the car or turn it off.  

Truth is this goes for those doing the interviewing as well as candidates although I don't recommend you walk into your job interview with a sign saying "please turn off your cell phone during my interview."   Some things are better left up to common sense.

A colleague of mine shared a story about a candidate this week who was 30 minutes late to a 2nd interview with the hiring manager. Prior to this incident, the candidate was at the top of the list for the job. Due to tardiness, the candidate was declined a 2nd interview. It just didn't make a good impression on the employer.

This may seem obvious to some but unfortunately it seems to happen too often. Never, never, never be late to a job interview. In most cases, this will guarantee you won't get the job.

Avoid this situation with these simple steps: 

1. Get directions using Mapquest or Google Maps.
2. Drive to the interview location a day in advance.   Time the drive, look for parking and make note of any challenges you may have (bridges, rush hour, walking distance from parking, etc).  This preparatory drive will give you confidence on interview day.
3. Plan to arrive to the interview at least a half-hour to an hour early.  You don't have to go in for the interview this early but this way you'll leave extra time in case something comes up.
4. If you ARE running late, call as soon as you know you may be late and let the interviewer know. Don't wait until 15 minutes past the interview time.  Defintely call BEFORE the scheduled interview time.

Most interviewers note the time a candiate arrived for an interview and take it into account when making a decision.   Being early shows you are prepared and you are serious about the opportunity.

Here's a good lesson to share from today. We had a candidate who interviewed with a client. This candidate has the right skills, the right experience and even the right personality. The one thing holding this candidate back from actually getting the job is what the person wore to the interview.

Picture this....you're interviewing with the Senior Partner of a huge, world known financial firm. What would you wear? A suit is the correct answer. Anything else is simply unacceptable. Quite frankly, for any position in the business world, a suit is always the success dress of choice. This goes for men and women. It's conservative, respectful and always in style. If you are serious about getting a new job, then invest in a suit. You don't have to spend alot of money to get one. Discount stores and even second hand stores will have a nice selection to use for interviewing.

Our candidate today decided a suit wasn't necessary. She opted for nice slacks and a blouse suitable for a night out on the town. While she hasn't been ruled out yet, she's definitely hanging on by a fine line. I know you may think this seems like a superficial comment on her dress, but the executive who interviewed her said her lack of poor judgement on what to wear to make a solid and professional first impression is concerning.

When interviewing, why leave anything to chance? Take pride in yourself and show your potential new employer you're serious. Wear a suit!!

What do you think?