Being interviewed is a critical aspect of the hiring process. You have already made it past the resume overview and now it is time for you to have what might be the only face-to-face interaction with your potential employer before they decide to hire you or not. It is essential that you put your best foot forward and allow the interviewer to get to know the person they’d be working with. They learned about your accomplishments from your resume; now show them your personality and how you handle yourself in a professional environment.

Here are 43 items to help you through the interviewing process.

18 things to do before an interview:

1. Get a good night sleep the night before. You’ll look better and feel better, allowing yourself to make the best first impression.
2. Do your research. Know the company that you are interviewing with so you can answer their questions well and in the right context. It will also show that you are truly interested in the company.
3. Eat a good breakfast. You’ll be more alert and focused.
4. Prepare questions beforehand. Know the answers to basic questions that they will most likely ask you. Also come up with a few questions about the company or position you are applying for to show that you’re interested.
5. Make a few copies of your resume and put them somewhere where you won’t forget to bring them.
6. Search the web. It is likely someone else has interviewed with the company, so search the web and see what others are saying about it.
7. Make sure your clothes are clean and wrinkle-free.
8. Know who will be interviewing you, and learn a bit about their background.
9. Know your strengths and put together a list of them.
10. Prepare a solid list of references that you can give your interviewer on the spot.
11. Brush your teeth.
12. Put on deodorant.
13. Pre-write your thank you notes so you can drop them off right afterwards.
14. Know how to answer the question, “What will you add to the company by joining it?”
15. Carry a tissue or handkerchief in your pocket to dry your hands in case you are nervous before you go in.
16. Turn off your cell phone.
17. Prepare for the different types of interviews: behavior, experiential, or combination.
18. Have a story from each place you’ve already worked at that exemplifies one of your strengths. For every strength or skill, you should have a story about how you successfully used it. You will make a far better impression if you can back up your dry list of previous employment with interesting stories that show what you gained from each experience.

11 items to do during an interview

1. Answer the question that was asked.
2. Shake the interviewers hand.
3. Let the interviewer show your chair – now is the time to be submissive, so as to not offend the interviewer.
4. Say “Yes,” not “Yeah.”
5. Take a second before answering a question to show you are putting some thought into your answer.
6. Take notes.
7. Let your achievements speak for you.
8. Ask questions, including asking for a full description of the type of work that you will be doing.
9. Keep eye contact.
10. Be yourself.
11. Start with conversation topics that you are comfortable with. This will allow you to direct the interview to a certain degree and present yourself in a positive light.

11 items not to do during an interview

1. Don’t talk too quickly.
2. Don’t digress from your points. Answer questions directly.
3. Don’t use slang.
4. Don’t use words you don’t know the meaning of.
5. Don’t be arrogant.
6. Don’t talk about your personal life.
7. Don’t give the employer any reason to think you will not perform well.
8. Don’t act nervous. You probably will be, but it is best if you take a few seconds and clear your mind; your answers will be less jumbled. If you find yourself getting really nervous, excuse yourself and go to the bathroom to get some air. Don’t take too long but it is better to collect your thoughts than to plow ahead when you can’t focus.
9. Don’t fidget. This might be something you have to practice but it is worth it.
10. Don’t get defensive. The interviewer will be asking technical questions. Everyone has their weak spots and that is okay – work with it and practice for it.
11. Don’t bring coffee. Sipping a drink is a sign of disrespect during an interview.

What to do after the interview

1. Drop off your thank you note. Always, always thank your interviewer after you’ve left. Email them after you drop off your note. The more contact you have, the more you remain in their minds over the other applicants. It shows you’re thoughtful, motivated, and that you care.
2. Create a list of items that you did well and that you would like to improve on.
3. Follow up appropriately. Sometimes the interviewer will tell you when they will notify you; other times it will be your responsibility to make the follow up.

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Your resume is arguably the most important item you bring to the table when it comes to applying for a job. The elements of your resume should amount to a solid representation of you – who you are, what you have done, and why the stranger you’re giving it to should be interested. They will brand you based on what they read, which is why it needs to be professional, organized, and comprehensive. There are 7 elements to a resume that you should use as a starting basis; however, you can deviate a bit depending on the specific things you have done. Resumes are generally only one page, so keep it simple and only include information that you feel is vital or truly helpful in getting yourself noticed. Consistency is also very important – keep the same format throughout your resume. If you put organization names in bold and positions held in italics in one section, make sure you do it in the others.

Heading

At the top of the page, include:

• Name
• Permanent and local addresses (if you have multiple addresses, identify when you can be reached at each)
• Email address
• Phone number

This is the first thing that the employer will see when scanning your resume, so make your name stand out so they can remember you. Put it in bold or all caps.

Objective

While an objective is optional, it does provide employers with an rough idea of your career goals. This helps employers understand how deeply aligned your goals are with theirs. In other words, it helps them decide if you’d be a good match for the position. If you include an objective, make sure it is tailored to the specific opening you’re going for.

Education

List the schools you attended and where they are. Include:

• Degrees (with dates)
• Majors, minors and concentrations
• If your GPA is at least 3.0, it doesn’t hurt to include it (if your major GPA is a lot higher, you can include that, too)
• Experience studying abroad
• Honors thesis title (if you have one)

Including high school information is a toss-up, so focus on what you’ve done since then. If you must, limit yourself to what still matters. Honor roll, AP classes, or important awards still bode well for your work ethic and academic competence.

Honors and Awards

If you have less than three items, weave these into your education section. If you have three or more, then include:

• Dean’s List
• Honor societies
• Academic awards
• Scholarships (if based on merit)

Experience

This section can include a variety of diverse experiences, both paid and unpaid:

• Part-time jobs
• Full-time jobs
• Summer jobs
• Co-ops
• Internships
• Volunteer experience
• Extracurricular activities

For each item, Include:

• Organization name and location
• Your position there
• Your duration there (include start and end date, including month and year)
• Summary of what you accomplished or gained (make these descriptions support your objective)
• Only include experiences that demonstrate you can succeed in this job opening
• Be concise and start points with action verbs
• Use hard numbers to quantify your success where possible (like statistics or percentages)

Here are three examples of experience points for an item, from Cornell’s career success guide:

• Reorganized inventory procedures, shortening process from 3 days to 2 days.
• Designed and implemented marketing strategy that increased sales 25%.
• Trained and coordinated activities of 33 volunteers, whose efforts resulted in raising $5,000.

You might want to shed new light on minor tasks by focusing on what you got out of them. For example, did you improve your organizational skills by filing? Did you enhance your customer service skills by answering phones?

Skills

Include key skills that relate to the job, such as:

• Computer languages and programs
• Foreign languages
• Laboratory and research skills
• Analytical skills
• Management skills (if not mentioned elsewhere)

Never lie on your resume, especially not here. You’ll look like a fool when an employer asks you to back up your “Excel” skills, and you can’t even find it.

Activities and Interests

Prioritize these in order of importance:

• Student organizations
• Professional associations
• Committees
• Community involvement

Identify the offices or leadership positions you had in each. Try to avoid high school activities unless they are extremely relevant to the job. After activities, you might want to list interests such as music, sports, and the arts, particularly if they pertain to your career interest. Steer clear of controversial content like religious activities or extreme political views as much as possible: they will probably work against you.

The interests section is essentially your only chance to get personal (at least on your resume) and try to connect with your employer. Who knows: the person interviewing you might share an interest with you. I used to mention cars as an interest on my resume, and in a college interview, the guy asked me about my favorite cars. This led to a 10 minute conversation about the guy’s 1965 convertible, and probably a played a big part in how he thought back on our interview.

Next: 10 Tips to Get Your Resume Read

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Meeting new people is a part of everyday life. Some of these acquaintances will come and go, while others will stay prominent for longer periods. Certainly, the people we remember best have strong personal brands. You might have met someone who became one of the most influential people of today, but didn’t realize it because you didn’t take the time to network. So what does it really mean to network and build a relationship?

First off, a networking relationship needs to be mutually beneficial – both parties need to get something out of the connection, otherwise the network is not sustainable. Going to a networking party or randomly handing out business cards will not get you anywhere unless you give back to those who help you.

That is why so many companies have  affiliate programs. Without networking, they cannot grow quickly. For professionals, especially people in sales, detailed and up to date contact lists are invaluable resources.

Secondly, to network effectively you need to be in the right place at the right time; create opportunities by surrounding yourself with good people. There have been thousands of business deals and business networking done in social settings such as bars and clubs, but this should not be your primary focus unless that is compatible with your specific market. Go where the people you need to meet are going to be.

This includes conferences, functions, and events, among many others. The list changes with each different field, making it impossible to cover them all here. The main idea is that you should go where the people you want to target are. It is much easier to network when standing next to a person you are interested in than just cold calling.

It is also important to be prepared for networking. It has happened to all of us, but there is nothing worse than being out on the road and not having a business card when a networking opportunity presents itself. You end up writing your contact information on a napkin and hoping for the best.

Beyond being in the right place and being prepared, you need to rely a bit on chance. There is a high probability that the person you are trying to network with will want to network with you, especially if you provide an added benefit. Therefore, take a leap of faith – introduce yourself, or get someone that knows both of you to make an introduction.

Introductions are one of the most important aspects of business because they give you instant credibility and allow you to start building a relationship immediately. Therefore, if you want someone to make an introduction you have to be willing to return the favor.

You should have a system for maintaining a person’s contact information. Rolodexes are on the out (who uses paper anymore?), replaced by more effective tools like Microsoft Outlook and other address book programs. It never hurts to follow up and keep yourself at the forefront of the person’s memory; you never know when you might need someone’s services.

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Take a deep breath. This may be hard to take. I’m going to be completely honest with you.

You deserve to work at a job you love.

And the job you love probably won’t be the top paying job you’ve been imagining – but that’s a good thing.

People tend to forget that they’re entitled to a job that makes them happy. As Paul Graham writes in his essay, How to Do What You Love, “When I was a kid, it seemed as if work and fun were opposites by definition. Life had two states: some of the time adults were making you do things, and that was called work; the rest of the time you could do what you wanted, and that was called playing.”

Forget that way of thinking. Your career is a huge part of your life and should be fun. As the highest paid  businesspeople will tell you, financial freedom comes from doing what you love.

The career of your dreams is attainable. But you must focus on career development, rather than the size of your paycheck.

So stop searching for “top paying jobs” in Google. Beyond a certain threshold, psychologists have found, higher and higher salaries do not increase your happiness. So you shouldn’t be gunning for the top paying jobs. You should be aiming for the top fulfilling jobs.

“Career development” focuses on long-term goals: landing the job that will make you smile every day until you retire. It means turning down a job that pays well because it doesn’t help your future plans. Otherwise, you will never land a job you love – and may set yourself up for misery. How much misery? About 100,000 hours at a job you hate – the amount of time you’ll work between the end of college and retirement.

As Po Bronson explains in a Fast Company article, What Should I Do With My Life: “The reality is, making money is such hard work that it changes you. It requires more sacrifices than anyone expects. You become so emotionally invested in that world — and psychologically adapted to it — that you don’t really want to ditch it.” This is why it’s so important to start your entire career on the right foot: if you don’t, the work world may start to instill in you a tendency toward money-dominated thinking. Once you’re in that mindset, it’s hard to get out.

You want to think about what you want to devote your life to as early as possible, before the corporate world turns you into another highly paid drone that comes home every day with a headache and no energy.

A lifetime of increased happiness awaits if you approach employment as career development – not simply finding a top paying job.

While you can’t quantify happiness on a scale, you can easily quantify a $2,000 paycheck. And that’s exactly why high-paying jobs suck: they lure you in with the promise of financial stability, which we wrongly equate with happiness. Doing what we love will keep us happy in the long run, ages after that paycheck has been spent and forgotten. A large salary should take a back seat to compatibility with your career goals when prioritizing what you want out of a job.

So stop thinking, “I’m looking for a top paying job.” It’s time for a new motto: “I am matching my long-term goals with the current career marketplace. How can this job offer make my life more meaningful, now or in the future?” This new motto will allow you to work on projects that relate to your core competencies and passions, building your personal brand.

That’s career development. And that’s where a fulfilling work life begins.

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