Job Interview mistakes number 4

Insulting the interviewer or making inappropriate comments.

Suppose the interviewer has a picture of a footballer on their wall.

A bit of light banter is acceptable (so long as they start it..) but launching into a tirade about why this particular player is a cheat and not a good role model is not to be recommended.

Leaving out the issues over the footballer, it shows that you have strong views and can’t always keep them in check.

You are a “loose cannon”

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Job interview mistake number 3

Asking for the maximum salary/wage where your CV or experience doesn’t warrant it. Employers can pay more for an exceptional candidate and usually do this because

1.You have a relevant qualification that no other candidate has or

2. You have extensive experience no one else has.

If you have neither, you would be silly to ask for the maximum salary…

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Job interview mistakes number 2

Approaching the interview in a casual manner and/or assuming that you have the job. Confidence is one thing – breezing in like you own the place is very much another.

The trick is to be confident but not over confident.

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Job interview mistakes Number 1

Going to an interview “for the experience”

Sorry but every interview is an experience.

There is no point going for an interview unless you want the job.

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Sample character reference letter

Writing a character reference can be tricky. You need to make sure that you get the main points of the persons character over in a short space of time without getting too boring. Here is a sample to use.

Your address
Date
Phone
Mobile

Correspondents Address

Character Reference – Fred Chump

Dear Sir/Madam

I have known Fred Chump for a many years. He first arrived at S&S as a trainee and has since become Head of section. He is a respected and loyal member of the team and handles the staff that work with him using a firm but fair hand.

He has a pleasant sense of humour and can always find a way to make people smile even during the hardest of tasks.

He has never missed a day of work except through illness, and we will all be sorry to see him leave our factory.

I wish him well in the future and I know he will be an asset to your company.

Yours faithfully

Your name

Your character reference should be FACT based.

You should not include anything on the reference that you wouldn’t let the subject see.

Including something like “Fred is lazy and good for nothing” is probably not a wise think to do…

It would be better to include Fred’s sickness record – hopefully this isn’t the subject of too much debate and the prospective new employer can make up their own mind.

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