You already know the typical interview strategies - eye contact, firm handshake, and speak clearly and slowly.  But you’re reading this today to take your interviewing to the next level. Read the strategies below to bump up your interview game and seal the offer letter.  

• BAR Method - For behavioral questions that ask for an example situation, utilize the BAR method, which stands for Background, Action, and Result.  Start each answer off with a brief Background - including your role, the organization and the situation. Next, delve into the Action, or what happened in the situation and what you (yes you personally) did, followed up nicely with the Result - why this story mattered or why it relates to the position you are interviewing for.This method allows for succinct but detailed responses to the questions the interviewer is asking.
  
• Get a perfect 10 on the ‘Tell Me About Yourself?’ and final ‘Why Should We Hire You?’ questions.  These are the two questions interviewers use to establish their first impressions and when they are wrapping up their final opinions.  If you excel in these questions, some stumbling in the middle ones won’t matter as much - the interviewer’s opinion will already be formed.  Think about your answers beforehand and make sure you are sharing what you want the interviewer to remember about you and use in making their hiring decision.
  
• For positive focused questions, keep the example/topics directly related to the position.  For negative focused questions, try to give examples that aren’t as directly related to the position if possible.  This allows the interviewer to directly connect positive attributes and gives more of an indirect question for negative aspects.  For example, when asked about your weakness for the cold calling sales position don’t say you ‘take a while to warm up to people’ this is inherently going to negatively affect your performance in that role.  Instead give an example about how you have been working on your procrastination and have noticed that tight deadlines help you excel so you have started creating pseudo-deadlines for yourself at work.
  
• Bring a list of prepared, researched questions.  Pulling out a list of questions when you get the floor is not a negative sign but more of a signal of your preparation and thoroughness.  Prepare a list of questions based off your research and focused towards your interviewers. You’d ask your boss, director, and colleagues different types of questions so be prepared with various questions focused on direction, leadership style, culture, and recent news for the organization.
  
• Write thank you notes, everyone knows it and hardly anyone follows through with it.  Draft the emails or handwritten notes beforehand to make the post-interview sending faster.