By Jean Baur
Lee Hecht Harrison
NFL Player Engagement has a relationship with Lee Hecht Harrison, a talent solutions company focused on delivering Career Transition, Leadership Development, Career Development, and Change Management solutions. Through this relationship, current and former NFL players can receive one-on-one coaching sessions with Lee Hecht Harrison to help them put together resumes, practice interview techniques, learn the most effective methods for searching for jobs, and various other career development and transition skills.
In this article, Lee Hecht Harrison provides tips for how you can establish a good rapport with your interviewer.
In the context of an interview, it’s important to establish a mutual sense of trust and interest. Doing so helps you to create rapport and allows both interviewer and interviewee to engage in a more authentic, open discussion.
How you do establish rapport? Some suggestions:
Be prepared. You’ve researched both the organization and the person you’re meeting with and want to demonstrate interest in both. Ask questions that allow your interviewer to share some of his or her experiences. This helps you to create a personal connection.
Take note of your surroundings. During the “ice-breaker” or initial questions, comment on something in the office – photos, awards, trophies – and ask a question or express interest. Look for commonalities that allow you to reveal something about yourself.
Dress professionally and conservatively. In a survey of 2,000 bosses, 77 percent aren’t looking for candidates to be fashionable and trendy. And, 65 percent of bosses say clothes could be a deciding factor when selecting one candidate over another.
Practice your handshake. This simple gesture has significant power – and has negatively influenced hiring decisions. While not a fair measure of your candidacy for a job, it shouldn’t be overlooked. You can practice your technique and overcome “handshake errors.”
Focus on how you can meet the company’s needs. Gain clarity and understanding around the needs of the company so that you can share examples of past work experience that demonstrate how you will be able to help them achieve their goals.
Remember, people hire people they like so use your interpersonal skills to establish rapport and interview more effectively.
If you are a current or former NFL player who would like to take advantage of Lee Hecht Harrison’s services, contact your Director of Player Engagement or call the NFL Player Engagement department at 855-4PE-2472.
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