The Phone Interview

By Stanley Wynett

An unexpected telephone interview will invariably catch you off-guard. At work, the chance of being overheard is great. At home, chances are that your mind is focused elsewhere and you are not prepared to discuss job matters. One wrong answer could screen you out. There are several ways that you can maintain control of the situation. In general, use the phone to get information, not to give it out.

Take all messages on voicemail whenever you have résumés in the mail. Once you know the employer's identity from the answering machine, you are in the driver's seat. If you responded to a blind ad, you now know who placed it.

Use a pay phone to return the call to create an atmosphere that is not conducive to an interview. Thank the employer for their interest in you and immediately ask for a face-to-face meeting. Have a time and date in mind when you call. Most interviewers will accept your request. Keep in mind that they called you.

If your qualifications didn't come close to what they are looking for, they would not have called. The best response to the question "What kind of salary did you have in mind?" is "Please let's leave that until we meet. We won't have a problem with salary if we are right for each other, I assure you."

Say goodbye fast. Don't try to sell yourself on the phone.

Most interviewers will secretly admire your phone determination and skillful use of it. What you are doing to them, they know you can do for them.
 

- Stanley Wynett (Reprinted with Permission)

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