Telephone Interview 2 Do’s
Many people play off a telephone interview as something minor expecting it to be the appetizer to the main course, the face to face interview. Too often when you do not take the telephone interview as serious as you would have taken the face to face interview, you are never called in for the face to face interview.
Let me tell you if you do not already know, the telephone interview is more difficult to maneuver than the face to face interview for the simple reason that you can not see facial expressions. More than 60% of our face to face communication is non verbal. On the telephone the communication is 100% verbal. This disparity results in a higher percentage of misinterpreted communication. When you are on the telephone the only thing that you have to help you interpret the meaning of the statement being said is the tone of voice of the person saying it.
There are 2 things you must do if you are going to be successful in a telephone interview, stand up when talking and smile. By standing up when you talk you sound more energetic and that will come across in your tone of voice. Remember the telephone interview is another attempt to weed you out of the competition. You want to sound lively on the phone; the goal is to connect with the person who is interviewing you. The smile can also be heard in the tone of voice. The lyrics of the song, “When your smiling, when your smiling, the whole world smiles with you†is true when you smile during your telephone conversation. If you do not believe me call up a relative or friend and try it. Smile during your entire conversation with them and at the end of it ask them if they could hear your smile. More importantly, ask them if they noticed that the smiled too. Smiling is contagious. It is a force that no mortal can resist.
If you do nothing else during your telephone interview remember to stand and smile, these two 2 do’s will serve you well in your next telephone interview.
Recently
November 20th, 2007 at 8:18 am
Excellent points that ring true for job hunting purposes as well as for life in general. So much rides on the words we write, whether they be part of our resume, or in an email or letter. So much is at stake by our tone of voice and in our choice of words, whether it be in a telephone interview or in a personal conversation. Yet nothing beets or can ever replace the personal encounter. Thanks for the insight into getting that face-to-face encounter that will help us realize our dreams.