Before the interview – prepare yourself psychologically.¹

1. Accept that you have flaws and lack of virtues – all of us have. Accept yourself as you are. That includes the things you would instead try to hide. Remember, there are no perfect employers, neither are there perfect candidates.
2. Most people are nervous before an interview. Fear of failure can make your mind go blank during the interview. The only way to relax and rid yourself of fearing rejection is to expect defeat in advance. You are going to the interview not to get hired—but to go through an interview.
3. Do not focus on the goal – focus on the process. It is an opportunity to present yourself in the best light.
4. Answer questions as concretely as possible. Do not give long, deviating explanations with nothing to do with your employer’s company. Aim to have discussions with the employer about how your professional skills can help them solve their problems.
5. If you don’t get the job, don’t fret—it wasn’t yours to have. Your job will show up. Keep on applying.

Suggestions for questions

You sit at a job interview. The interviewer asks you if you have any questions. Do you either have one or two, or maybe none? According to Stats SA, the youth aged 15–24 are the most vulnerable in the South African labour market, as the unemployment rate among this age group was 55,2% in the first quarter of 2019. Interview preparation is essential because you usually compete against many other job applicants.

Jacquelyn Smith wrote an article about ”good questions to ask” that appeared in the Business Insider SA  of  Jul 26, 2019

Why do you need to ask questions?

It’s important to remember that every interview is a two-way street. You should be interviewing the employer just as much as they’re interviewing you because you both need to walk away convinced that the job would be a great fit. It’s the best way to determine if you’d be happy working for this employer and whether your goals are aligned with theirs.

• The interviewer expects you to have some questions.
• If you are asking good questions, it can positively change the interviewer’s perception of you.
• It is a good idea to have at least four questions ready to ask about the new job. Think about what you want to know.  Don’t just ask anything. It would help if you benefited from getting the answer.
• It allows you to gain information about the job that might otherwise not have been disclosed.
• Be careful not to ask anything that has been addressed already.

Here are Jacqueline’s suggestions for questions to choose from:

https://www.businessinsider.co.za/questions-to-ask-in-a-job-interview-2016-1

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https://www.mobieg.co.za/jobs/

References:

¹Reality Transsurfing. 3. Forward to the Past. Vadim Zeland. 2008