Perfect Interview Answers - " Grab Yourself Out from the Tricky Interview Situations"

By: Bernard Marr

Most of us have been in the situation where we sit in a job interview and we feel things are going well until the interviewer pulls out the ultimate question: Tell me about your greatest weakness? Unless you are prepared, this is the question that can trip up even the most experienced interviewee.

The tricky bit is that you are in a situation where you want to make the best possible impression and sell your greatest qualities, not talk about weaknesses. Therefore, our natural instinct is to say: I don’t have any weaknesses. Of course, you and the interviewer know that this is not true. So, do you lie or apply any other strategies?

Before I explore the ways you might tackle this question I just want to say that I don’t like when interviewers ask the standard ‘tough’ interview questions. For me, it shows that the interviewer is a weak communicator, is inexperienced and not very imaginative. When I interview people I try to create a natural conversation to learn more about past experiences and expectations about the job I am interviewing for. I want to hear real stories and not contrived answers to artificial questions.

The reason why some interviewers like to ask about weaknesses is to get an insight about how self-aware you are. However, I believe that asking ‘What is your greatest weakness’ won’t give the interviewer any real insights because interviewees will simply deliver a standard answer. The most cliché answers I have heard are ‘I am a perfectionist’ or ‘I work too hard’. Don’t give those answers, they just show that you haven’t really prepared to find a good answer. Also, any good interviewer will try to not laugh in your face and then drill you until he or she finds the real weaknesses.

So if you get an interviewer that asks contrived questions you might as well give a contrived, but considered and honest answer. Here are some strategies you might want to consider:

Avoid the answer by focusing on the skills needed for the job

Normally, before we apply for a job we consider the skills needed and make a judgment that we have or can quickly develop those skills. Use this question as your opportunity to show that you have made such as assessment. You could say something like: “This is a difficult question to answer. Of course, we all have certain strengths and weaknesses. When I applied for this job I assessed the key skills I would need to perform well. For me, this job requires the key skills of X, Y, and Z and I feel that I have all of those. With my new role will come new responsibilities such as X, and in my previous job I have had limited opportunities to fully develop these. However, I am a fast learner and will focus on developing these areas.”

Talk about minor weaknesses and the ones that don’t matter for that job

If the interviewer insists on finding weaknesses, then talk about minor weaknesses that don’t really matter to the job you are aiming to get. It acknowledges that you are self-aware and have weaknesses, like all of us, but none that are any real concern because they don’t really matter for the job. For example, if you are applying for a job as a gardener, you might say that you are struggling with public speaking.

Avoid general statements

Instead of making general statements such as ‘I am bossy’ you might want to qualify this to specific situations along the lines of ‘When there is a lot of pressure on a project I can come across as bossy’. This way you show that it is not a weakness you have all the time but one that you are aware of in that situation.

Talk about past development success

Another strategy is to avoid talking about current weaknesses. Instead, talk about your ability to self-assess, find weaknesses and deal with them. Give one or two past examples of how you identified ‘development needs’ (a much more positive term than weakness) and then improved in those areas. Along the lines of: “No body is perfect. I am always interested in keeping my skills up-to-date and seek out constructive feedback. In my last job I noticed that my social media skills were not as good as they could have been, which made me book on a training course. Now my social media skills are so good that I help to coach others in my company in that area.”

Weaknesses to avoid in your answer

Finally, there are some weaknesses that you should avoid to mention when talking about weaknesses, because they are important skills that matter to any job, such as

• Not being a team player
• Not being able to take feedback
• Not being able to take initiative and work independently
• Not being trustworthy
• Not being reliable

Here is The Idea---->Answer is 'No I Have No Time I Am Busy"

Let's look at 25 of my favorite ideas, ideas which Human Resources departments can adapt and introduce in their organizations to make an immediate difference in spirit. Common sense, as well as much current research, tells us that happy employees are more productive employees, so implementing even a few of these ideas will not only boost morale but will certainly impact productivity and profit.

1. Does everyone in your organization have business cards? If not, that is one of the fastest ways to boost morale. They can be made on the computer for little or no cost, and what a meaningful way to tell an employee how valued and important he or she is. If you already have a business card, look at it for a moment. We use business cards to network and create relationships. However, most business cards I see are boring, there is nothing memorable about the individual, and the back is blank! Ask yourself these questions about your card: Does it have anything distinctive about it? Is there anything that represents you as a unique human being? If not, turn it over and add something on the Human level such as a quotation, a personal motto, or a graphic or picture of something you love. Not only will you make a distinctive impression but people will have a way to connect with you on a deeper level when they learn something important about you, the human being. That is the beginning of a relationship.
2. Have a contest with employees -- "If my company/ department were a T-shirt, this is what it would say. . . . " Then have them actually design the shirt, either on a real T-shirt or an paper. Photograph, post, or videotape the results. You will learn amazing things about the way people feel about your organization, you will be encouraging them to get their creative juices going, and you will have fun in the process. Company legends are created from experiences like these!
3. Collect drawings from employee's children or grandchildren of "What my Mom/Dad/Grandma/Grandpa/Aunt/Uncle does at work all day."Compile these into a company booklet or display them for customers to enjoy. You are helping to blend work and family by involving workers' family members, and you are also creating a memory. If possible, display the drawings where employees can bring their children in to view them as well. That will add a sense of involvement and pride in the organization from the whole family!

Are We SMART as OUR Smart Phone - Hows Things are Changing

Most of us use their smartphone every day, to surf the internet and social media platforms, check emails, manage calendars, listen to music, play games, watch videos, take photos, read the news, write text messages and also, every now and then we use them for their original purpose, to make phone calls. Now all these activities can be done using one single device. If you think back some 25 years ago, some of them were not even possible. Consequently, smartphones have changed the way we live quite drastically.

How Smartphones Change the Way We Consume Information and Communicate

The way we consume information has changed from talking to each other to reading the newspaper to watching television, to gathering info on the web using a computer and now a smartphone. Today we can access any kind of information 24/7, wherever we are. That’s both, convenient and overwhelming. Same is true for communication. Our smartphone offers us several ways of communication: calls, text messaging, instant messaging, email, social media, blogs, etc..

The fact that we can get any information any time we want has quite an impact on our way of living. A recent study by Columbia University found that we are very likely to forget information which we know we can easily retrieve again. Also, when we are asked questions, we tend think about how we can find the answer on the internet rather than thinking about the actual question and answering it ourselves. Basically, we’re getting lazier, because we know that we can access all kinds of information any time.

How SMART PHONE Changes Lives Completely

Smartphones are influencing the we live our everyday lives and interact with other human beings, even our closest friends and family.

In a ground-breaking study Intersperience, the international consumer research specialist, has discovered the incredible extent to which the public are effectively saying: “I am my smartphone” – and the results have far-reaching implications for international brands and public policy makers.

Some 79% of the population now have a mobile phone but almost half, 44%, use a smartphone. Once almost exclusively the preserve of business users, these multi-functional mobile devices are now just as popular with teenagers and housewives thanks to the growth of the “app” download culture and the introduction of more aggressive pricing plans by phone companies.

5 Ways to Do Nothing and Become More Productive

Sometimes the best thing to do is: nothing.

Many productivity books tell you what you can do MORE of in order to achieve goals, purpose, success money, etc. But MORE is hard to do. I’m already busy. Now you tell me I have to make a to-do list with six things that make me feel grateful on top of it? I can’t do it all.

You need to eliminate first. You need to be a productivity minimalist in order to be a success. The key is to find the easy things you can chop off where you can at the very least do nothing instead of doing things that actually DAMAGE your productivity.

Here’s a checklist I use for when to do nothing:

Do nothing when you’re angry. Some people think anger can focus emotions, but it doesn’t. It’s like focusing on a kaleidoscope. You’ll walk straight off a cliff. Anger is a roadmap off that cliff. You have to wait until it settles down and you get perspective. Time is the morphine drip that soothes the anger. Then you can act. Anger is just an outer reflection of inner fear. The fear might be correct, but the anger blurs it.

Do nothing when you’re paranoid. I initially wrote “fear” here. But fear can focus. If you’re in the jungle and there’s a lion on your right and an apple tree on your left then you better run as fast as you can back where you came from. But often I’m not afraid, I’m paranoid. I imagine a chaotic future filled with misery and hate and homelessness and loneliness. My best bet is to sit down and picture a more realistic future, one based on the fact that almost 99 percent of what I’ve been paranoid about in the past never comes true.

Do nothing when you’re anxious. Why did they call at 5 p.m. on a Friday night and say, “We HAVE to talk. Well, I guess you’re not there. Talk Monday?” Ugh! I hate that! Why 5 p.m.? What did they have to say? I should call her house line. I should write. I should drive up and visit (“Hey, just stopping by! So, uhh, what was up with that phone call?”). There is nothing that is ever so important it can’t wait. And if it was that important, then it’s a roadmap to you and not the situation. It’s an opportunity to say, “What about my life can be rearranged so that this one thing doesn’t throw me off so much? What things can I change?” And then have fun changing them.

Do nothing when you’re tired. I was trying to figure out something on the computer the other day. It was both very technical and related to money. First it was 1 p.m. Then it was 6 p.m. Then, against all my rules for a “daily practice,” it was midnight. And I was no closer to figuring it out. I was tired. My eyes were blurry. I was taking ten-second naps on my computer. A week later I still haven’t figured out what I needed to figure out. But right then, because I had invested this time into my “learning” and I was tired, I wanted to keep going. My wife Claudia peeled me off the keyboard and marched me upstairs. Sleep hygiene is the best way to improve productivity in your life. Not beating your head against a computer.

Do nothing when you want to be liked. How many times have I gone to a meeting? Taken a trip abroad? Made stupid investments? Written an article? Done did doing does? Just so someone would like me: a mother, a father, a friend, a reader, an investor, a customer, a stranger. Answer: a lot of times. Too many times. And it works. I put in the input (flattery, attention, false love) and get out the output (false love back). And continue to live the illusion in search of the dream, in avoidance of the nightmare, ignorant of the reality. Do I make any money this way? Do I feel a sense of accomplishment? In my 25 years of business: Never.

Executive Style Dressing For Females

Many men and women are under the impression that all it takes to out-dress the competition is wearing a suit. Yes, a suit is important. However, there are other things to consider for an executive look:

Wear a good suit made of quality materials. A good suit consists of a tailored jacket worn with matching trousers for men and a matching skirt or dress pants for women. However, the style, quality, fabric and fit of the suit are equally important. Before you buy, check the suit for quality, tailoring and details. The best suit fabric is fine wool; the texture smooth; the design lines sharp. There are no puckers or pulling. Seams and stitching should be properly finished; and buttons are sewn on securely. Fit is imperative – have it altered or leave it behind

1. 
   Remember less is best. Executive accessories are high in quality, simple in design and classic in personality. For women, this would include jewellery- in small to medium sizes, quality metals and minimal details – scarves and belts refined in fabric and style. Men’s ties are of quality silk, with a plain or traditional pattern. The belt with a small buckle, must match the shoes, be simple in design, smooth in texture with a small buckle. When choosing your metals, always go for the gold… or platinum.
2. 1. 
      
      
      Wear a good pair of shoes. Shoes that shine classic is the key to any executive look. For women, classic means pumps ¬– in quality leather – preferably black. Classic oxfords are the only choice for men – With thin soles, smooth leather and black or cordovan in colour.
   2. Article By: wikihow.com

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Are You A Good Professional? See to Analyze Yourself

How’s your business mindset? Do you think like a professional?

Here’s a fun and helpful checklist of 23 factors that indicate your professionalism (in random order).

This isn’t a scientific study, but a rather a list of best practices that I’ve observed in successful freelancers over the years. I include a brief explanation with each point.

Give yourself a point for each checklist question you answer with a “yes.” Are you ready? Grab a pencil. Here’s the checklist:

1. Do you use a contract? Contracts or written agreements are the best way to document the agreement between you and your client. They can diffuse disagreements and maybe even legal problems later on.
2. Is there a website for your freelance business? The web has become the place where clients go to find new project team members. It has largely replaced phone directories and newspaper ads.
3. Do you meet deadlines? A sure way to upset a client is to deliver a project late with no explanation. If you find you absolutely must miss a deadline, let the client know as soon as possible.
4. Do you accept criticism well? If you’re in business, no matter what type of business it is, you’re bound to receive criticism sooner or later. How you handle criticism makes a difference.
5. Is there a logo for your freelancing business? A logo for your freelancing business can help transmit your brand. It also says that you’re serious about being in business.
6. Are you willing to get help when you need it? Do you do every business task yourself? There some aspects of your business that (such as legal and accounting matters) that are better handled by others.
7. Do you actively market your business? Marketing is a key factor in getting new clients. Yet, it’s often the first area freelancers let slip when they are busy.
8. Do you respond to client inquiries quickly? If you wait too long to respond to a client inquiry, you may lose an opportunity. I always recommend responding within a business day.
9. Do you pay your taxes on time? Keeping up with taxes is a challenge for new freelancers in the U.S. because there are some tax differences for independent contractors.

10. Are you keeping up with new developments? There are constant changes to web design and to many other freelancing specialties. If you don’t keep up with the changes, your business suffers.
11. Do you listen carefully? Get a detailed scope from your clients. Ask questions if you don’t understand what they mean. It’s better to ask and be sure than to guess and be wrong.
12. Do you charge professional rates? Sadly, many freelancers charge far too little for their work. While this may seem like a good way to get clients, it can backfire if you can’t make ends meet.
13. How do you handle a difference of opinion? Not every client will agree with your suggestions. And that’s okay. Handle disagreements with courtesy and respect.
14. Is your work top quality? Always turn in your best work. Sloppy work is the sign of a freelancing amateur. You don’t want your client to have to pay someone else to fix your mistakes.
15. Is your portfolio up to date? Your portfolio should reflect your best and most current work. If your portfolio isn’t current, you look bad. You could lose potential clients.
16. Are you focused? Do you stay on task during the work day, or do you get distracted easily? An unfocused freelancer is an unproductive freelancer, and that can hurt your bottom line.
17. Do you have regular work hours? As a freelancer, you can set your own work hours. However, that doesn’t mean you should put work off until the last minute. Devoting a regular time to work can help.
18. Do you have a dedicated workspace? While freelance web designers can work from anywhere, working from anywhere isn’t always the best idea. Many freelancers get more done when they work from their own office.
19. Do you give up easily? Many freelancing newbies are looking for instant success. However, for most freelancers, success takes time. If you give up easily, freelancing may not be for you.
20. Are you tuned in to new opportunities? A great thing about the current business environment is that it is constantly changing. Change means new opportunities if you’re tuned into the market.
21. Do you protect your health? Smart freelancers know that they need to eat right, get enough rest, and balance their work life and social life. Otherwise, you risk burning out.
22. Are you open to take risks? Like any new business venture, freelancing involves risk. However, if you do your homework and prepare yourself you can make sure that your risks are smart ones.

Essential Books for Sustaining Civilization

The First Nations People believed in four sacred elements, namely the earth, air, water and fire (meaning energy). Not so sacred for them, but the Babylonians, Sumerians, and later the ancient Greeks believed in the same four. The challenge we are facing today in our increasingly populated planet is how to live within such that its resources (the four sacred elements) can sustain human civilization and the natural environment in a healthy and functional state for many generations in the foreseeable future.

1. Seeing Like a State  by James C. Scott (1998)
2. The Mind in the Cave: Consciousness and the Origins of Art  by David Lewis-Williams (2002)
3. Crowds and Power  by Elias Canetti (1962)
4. The Wheels of Commerce  by Fernand Braudel (1982)
5. Keeping Together in Time  by William McNeill (1995)
6. Dancing in the Streets  by Barbara Ehrenreich (2007)
7. Roll Jordan Roll  by Eugene Genovese (1974)
8. A Pattern Language  by Christopher Alexander et al (1977)
9. The Face of Battle  by John Keegan (1976)
10. A History of the World in 100 Objects  by Neil MacGregor (2010)
11. Contingency, Irony and Solidarity  by Richard Rorty (1989)
12. The Notebooks  by Leonardo da Vinci (1952 ed.)
13. The Confidence Trap  by David Runciman (2013)
14. The Discoverers by Daniel Boorstein (1983)
15. Mother Nature: A History of Mothers, Infants, and Natural Selection by Sarah Hrdy (1999)
16. War and Peace  by Leo Tolstoy (1869)
17. The Cambridge World History of Food (2-Volume Set)  by Kenneth F. Kiple and Kriemhild Coneè Ornelas (2000)
18. The Illustrated Flora of Britain and Northern Europe  by Marjorie Blamey and Christopher Grey Wilson (1989)
19. Printing and the Mind of Man  by John Carter and Percy Muir (1983)
20. Peter the Great: His Life and World  by Richard Massie (1980)

 How can we continue to improve human welfare within the limits of our planet’s resources? The solution is sustainable development! In Our Common Future, the 1987 report of the World Commission on Environment and Development, sustainable development was defined as development that ‘… meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” In other words, it is the use of renewable and nonrenewable resources in a manner that satisfies our current needs without compromising future availability of resources. Then, “What is the maximum number of people our planet can sustain?” That is, what is the sustainable human carrying capacity of our planet, sustaining the natural environment, its species, and its systems in a healthy and functional state? 

Novel Transformed to Movie - " The Huger Games" By Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games is a 2008 science fiction novel by the American writer Suzanne Collins. It is written in the voice of 16-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives in the dystopian, post-apocalyptic nation of Panem in North America. The Capitol, a highly advanced metropolis, exercises political control over the rest of the nation. The Hunger Games are an annual event in which one boy and one girl aged 12–18 from each of the twelve districts surrounding the Capitol are selected by lottery to compete in a televised battle to the death.

The book received mostly positive feedback from major reviewers and authors. It was praised for its storyline and character development, though some reviewers have noted similarities between Collins' book and Koushun Takami's Battle Royale (1999). In writing The Hunger Games, Collins drew upon Greek mythology, Roman gladiatorial games, and contemporary reality television for thematic content. The novel won many awards, including the California Young Reader Medal, and was named one of Publishers Weekly's "Best Books of the Year" in 2008.
Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games was first published in hardcover on September 14, 2008, by Scholastic, featuring a cover designed by Tim O'Brien. It has since been released in paperback and also as an audiobook and ebook. After an initial print of 200,000, the book had sold 800,000 copies by February 2010. Since its release, The Hunger Games has been translated into 26 languages, and publishing rights have been sold in 38 territories. The novel is the first in The Hunger Games trilogy, followed by Catching Fire (2009) and Mockingjay(2010). A film adaptation, directed by Gary Ross and co-written and co-produced by Collins herself, was released in 2012

Presentation Skills That Create a Significant Difference

Reading this blog article will take you only 12 minutes — 12 minutes to find out how to draft great presentations and to become a more effective and convincing presenter. Twelve minutes which can change your professional – and most likely – also your personal life.

 It is very clear, direct, takes just a few hours to read and can help you to save days of work by developing straightforward and very effective presentations.

Some of  key points:

Use multimedia wisely. Presentations must be both verbal and visual. Don´t overwhelm your audience with too much information, animations and pictures. Question: Can your visual be understood in 3 seconds? If not, don't use it!

Include short stories to explain your main points. The best presenters illustrate their points with the use of stories, especially personal ones. Stories are easy to remember for your audience.

Respect your audience. There are three components involved in a presentation: the audience, you, and the medium (e.g. PowerPoint). The goal is to create a kind of harmony among the three. But above all, the most important thing is that you get your audience involved and engaged.

Limit your ideas to one main idea per slide. If you have a complicated slide with lots of different data, it may be better to break it up into 2-3 different slides.

Move away from the podium. Connect with your audience. If at all possible get closer to your audience by moving away from or in front of the podium.

Take it slowly. When we are nervous we tend to talk too fast. Get a videotape of one of your presentations to see how you did — you may be surprised at the pace of your talk.

Keep the lights on. If you are speaking in a meeting room, etc. the temptation is to turn the lights off so that the slides look better. Turning the lights off — besides inducing sleep — puts all the focus on the screen. The audience should be looking at you more than the screen.

In addition I have two final pieces of advice:

Keep it simple. Avoid cluttered slides. Be brave and use lots of "white space" or, how the pros call it, "negative space." The less "chunk“ you have on your slide, the more powerful your message will become. Already Leonardo da Vinci knew: "Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication."

Talk "to" the audience. Never turn your back towards the audience. You do not want to conduct a monologue with the screen. Look at your audience instead and make good eye contact. Try looking at individuals rather than scanning the group.

Disclaimer: Article by  Andreas von der Heydt

How to be Good Negotiator - Principles & Implementation

Negotiations are a fact of life. We constantly negotiate both in personal and professional areas of life. 

Still, many people don´t like negotiating, and as such try avoiding it. As a result it could make resolving and/or progressing problematic.

Others, often success-driven managers and businesspeople, are so competitive that only "winning" would make them a great negotiator in their eyes. Causing, of course, the other person to "lose." Helpful? Most likely not!

Applying below-listed four negotiation principles and executing the outlined three-phased negotiation process will significantly increase the quality of your future negotiations. 

NEGOTIATION PRINCIPLES

Often negotiations fail when the following 4 key negotiation principles are not being taken into consideration:

Aim At Win-Win Outcomes

Those are the results which satisfy all stakeholders involved. They represent the basis for further business and sustainable relationships.

Stay Always Open-minded

Successful negotiators look at each major aspect from multiple perspectives. They´re prepared for anything.

Focus On Long-Term Business Relationships

With this in mind it´s rather impossible to fleece the other party.

Show Respect And Appreciation

Honoring the other person as equal is crucial to any successful negotiation.

NEGOTIATION PROCESS

A professional negotiation process consists of 3 stages: The preparation phase, the negotiation phase, and the follow-up phase. You need to excel in all three of them in order of becoming a master of negotiation. 

Preparation Stage

If you think that negotiating only starts once you meet the other party, then most likely you´ll not chalk up the best possible outcome: “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” (Benjamin Franklin).

In this very first phase define your negotiation targets, strategy and objective criteria based on which you later measure the achieved agreement. Be clear about your alternatives and fall back positions; also known as BATNA: Best Alternative To Negotiated Agreement. 

Crucial to collect all accessible information about the other party and your negotiation counterparts: What are their objectives and potential strategy, what might be their perspective, their motivations, and their opinion on relevant topics? Which is their interest and their reservation price (i.e. when would they walk away)?

Negotiation Stage

During the opening phase of the negotiation stage listen well and frequently ask (open-ended) questions. As a rule of thumb you should listen more than you talk. Use silence as a tactic and mimic your opponent. Sooner or later they will talk. Try to detect commonalitiesrather than differences to generate mutual engagement and to establish a first basis of trust. In general it is essential to separate the people from the issue. Don´t take things personal. Many people consider negotiations as a kind of game. So, stay relaxed and enjoy playing the game!

When you´re about to start the actual negotiation be brave and bring forward the first proposal. Why should you do that? The opening offer always serves as a reference point. It´s what I call an "unconscious anchor.“ In other words: If you’re selling, be first and start the bidding high. And if you’re buying, start the bidding low. 

Often it might be appropriate making two to three equivalent, simultaneous offers. This shows that you understand and respect the other position and possible concerns. Even more importantly, it creates a variety of options and helps avoiding cornering the other side. You should ask for more than what you´re actually looking for. That gives you flexibility and room to maneuver.