As the job market is hot in the construction industry right now many opportunities are opening up, which means you have the chance to step up in your career and discover the role you’ve been searching for. 

Of course, aside from the first step of applying for a new position, the second and most important is the interview. 

It can feel incredibly overwhelming to secure an interview, and if you’re not confident or comfortable in these situations you can easily miss out on roles that were made for you. 

Whether you’ve got one, or multiple interviews lined up, we’ve revealed our top tips for preparing for the interview so well, that hopefully you get handed the job.

Do your research 

Days or even weeks before your interview you should be learning all about the company and what it is they do, and how they operate. 

There are now many resources you can look at to get a good idea of the type of company they are, and if you would make a good fit. 

Start by looking at their website, especially their about us page. This should give you some background knowledge about who founded the company, and what their goals or mission is as a business. 

You should also take a good look at their social media, as this will give you an insight into the projects they may have recently completed, and even a glimpse into their company culture. 

Researching your potential employer is useful in several ways. 

By understanding the company you are being interviewed by you will feel more prepared and ready for the interview and any potential questions, rather than getting there and feeling underprepared. Especially if the reality of the company doesn’t meet your expectations. 

Having done extensive research on the company you will also engage better with the people who are interviewing you, as you will be able to take a genuine interest in what they’re doing, which outside of the interview definitely scores you brownie points. 

When it comes to your career pathway, research can help you to see if this is a company you can see yourself working for in the long term, and whether your career goals can be met by the company.

Practice interview questions 

If you get particularly nervous in interviews practising the questions can help to ease your nerves and help you get clarity on what you would like to say to typical interview questions. 

There is no right or wrong way to answer most interview questions, in fairness much of it is about who you are as a person and whether you can contribute to the company. So do take the pressure off yourself for trying to create perfect answers to every question. Ultimately they want to see the real you in the interview as that’s who’s going to be turning up for the job. 

Ask friends or family to help you practice interview questions, especially ones that may make you particularly nervous.

Dress appropriately 

You rarely have to attend an interview completely suited and booted these days, but it’s good to know the etiquette of the dress code so you can make a good first impression. 

After all, you can never take back a first impression. 

Generally, the dress code for an interview is smart, however, you can sometimes get away with a smart casual look as long as it looks clean and tidy. 

A great analogy by writer David Perell about how to dress is the Hotel Bathroom Principle. 

David says, Always dress well enough to walk into a bathroom at a hotel you’re not staying at and get away with it. 

David says that he uses this analogy in his life, and not just in work circumstances.

Get in the right headspace 

As we mentioned earlier, you may find interviews awkward and highly overwhelming situations. If you do tend to get extra nervous then it’s good to start a practice or routine that makes you feel more confident. 

There are many ways you can prepare your mind for confidence and clarity when walking into an interview. 

You could meditate for a few minutes beforehand and do some deep breathing exercises. 

Doing long deep breaths triggers our nervous system to calm down. 

Listening to a powerful playlist on your way to the interview can also help inject a bit of confidence and positivity into your mindset. Create a playlist of all the songs that make you feel confident. 

Let yourself shine through

One of the biggest mistakes in an interview is to sit there quietly just waiting for the next question. While this could be because you’re nervous, it signals to the interviewer that you don’t seem very interested. 

By sticking just to the interview questions and not expanding upon them, you lose yourself and become a lifeless robot. 

Instead, try as much as possible to expand on the questions and help people get to know you more. As we said earlier, people want to know the real you, the person who’s going to be doing the work, not some picture-perfect know-it-all who’s just impressing in the interview. 

Share stories and experiences where appropriate, and bring your personality into the room with you. 

Ask good questions 

Again a big mistake during the question part of the interview is when candidates simply use this time to ask about salary and holiday. This is a big red flag to employers and frustrates them because it appears that you only care about the money and not about the projects or work. 

Rather than use this time to get clarity on pay and bonus structures, instead ask more about the company culture, or what it is like to work at the company. After all, the pay could be great, but if you’re having the worst time of your life because of the micro-managing, is it worth it? 

Here are a few good questions to ask during your interview? 

• What recent project are you most proud of? 

(this gives you a chance to see what gets your employer excited when it comes to the work) 

• Can you tell me about a recent failure in the company and how it was handled? 

(this helps you see if they claim a failure, which they should because no company is perfect, and see how they manage difficulties) 

• Can you tell me who I will directly be working with and what their work style is? 

(this gives you an insight into the team and people you will be working with and the possible expectations that will be put on you)

Following these steps, we know that you will walk into that interview feeling confident and soon know if this is the role for you.  If you are looking for a new role in building or construction talk to us about our latest vacancies and what we have coming soon.