Job interviews can be a nerve wracking experience  for both native and non-native speakers alike.  

But it's especially challenging if you're being  interviewed in a foreign language. However if  

you prepare and anticipate the different scenarios  that you'll likely encounter during an interview  

and you make sure to practice the necessary  language skills you'll need for the occasion  

your chances of succeeding will increase  significantly. Trust me I've conducted over 100  

interviews at this point for Real Life English  so I know what can make or break an interview.  

So in this lesson I'll share with you tips and  strategies that you can use to pass your next  

job interview in English with flying colors. So  watch until the end if you want to learn the most  

common questions to expect in an interview, how  to answer them authentically and confidently, what  

not to do in a job interview and finally useful  vocabulary and of course true to our style you  

will have a stress-free learning experience with  real authentic English from movies and tv series.  

Some of these clips are sure to make you laugh,  I mean you don't want to be like this guy 

All right so let's get started but just a quick  reminder first every week here on Learning with  

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Alright so let's start out by looking at some tips  that will help you get ready for that important  

job interview focus on technique not just  vocabulary an important thing to keep in mind is  

that when it comes to interviews in english it's  not just about knowing the right vocabulary to use  

technique is equally important for example  when asked the typical "can you tell me a  

little bit about yourself" you might know all  the necessary words to answer that question  

but you need to be able to provide a satisfactory  and honest answer by structuring your response in  

the correct way which we'll look at today.  Research and prepare for common questions  

as I said earlier it's important to anticipate the  different situations that you'll encounter in the  

interview. So begin by predicting the  possible questions you'll be asked  

and think of what your answers will be. A Google  search will bring up many articles written on the  

subject. So depending on how much time you have  you can really prepare yourself for anything.  

Practice with a mock interview you could even  conduct a mock interview which means that  

you can ask someone to do a fake interview  with you so you're better prepared for it. 

Seize every opportunity to practice. Another tip  can be to accept any and all interviews for jobs  

even if you are not interested in it  and see it as an opportunity to practice  

and receive feedback. If you do it right you'll  be able to head into the interview feeling relaxed  

and confident and that will definitely  increase your chances of landing the job.

All right so in the rest of the lesson  we're going to prepare for some of the most  

common interview questions that you can  expect. We will look at what you should do  

and what you should not do. Let's play  a little game. We'll show you an answer  

and then some questions and you'll have a few  seconds to match that answer to the question.

Now at a job interview you'll almost  always be asked about your background  

previous experience, your  accomplishments, your weaknesses,  

etc. You want to make sure that  you make a good first impression. 

Keep in mind that there is no perfect answer to  interview questions. The interview process really  

is about sharing your story and experience  with the representative of the company.  

Interviewers usually have a lot of experience and  can see right through dishonesty. And this is why  

it is so important to practice so you can actually  help them to get to know you and show that you  

really are the best person for the position. Now  even if you don't encounter these exact questions  

in an interview, preparing for them will help you  answer most questions that you could be asked.  

So let's start with one of  the most classic questions 

The key to nailing this question is speaking  briefly and relevantly to the job. You don't  

want to give a 10-minute summary of your life. So  focus on things related to the work and especially  

your career objectives. In this clip she actually  does a good job of structuring her answer,  

but she needs to focus on the positive  parts of her previous experience. 

Never offer negative information. Instead sell  yourself using positive words or what's known as  

power phrases. A players know what their  objectives are and can communicate them  

clearly. So to show that you are an A player  in your answer you could say things that  

highlight your ability to: show initiative Solve problems, control or manage a budget 

Achieve objectives, motivate colleagues,  create ideas and meet deadlines. 

If you need a formula, try present past  future. So first you start with the present,  

where you are right now. Then talk about your  past. Mention some of the experiences you've had  

and finally finish with the future why you are  really excited for this particular opportunity. 

You can even use this formula to create a script  that you can practice. So you'll be able to nail  

this part of the interview. If you need more  suggestions on this I highly recommend this lesson  

that I made on our Real Life English Channel that  will help you to make a perfect introduction.  

I'll link that in the description below so you can  watch it next. Alright so once you master the tell  

me about yourself pitch you can think about your  answer to the next most common interview question: 

I can't tell you the amount of times  I've had to pass on a candidate  

who might have been a great fit for the role  but failed to sufficiently show me this by  

being able to talk competently about their  strengths and weaknesses. Don't be this person 

When you're asked to describe your  strengths I recommend that you don't  

just give them a list of random skills like Instead, do your research on the position  

and choose two or three important strengths  that relate directly to the position that  

you're applying for. Choose the ones  that will set you apart from others  

and it's crucial to give  some evidence or examples. 

Some good examples of strengths that  you can include in your answer are:

Now you're also likely to be  asked about your weaknesses.  

Don't be afraid of this question because if you  prepare for it it is actually an opportunity to  

make yourself look good in the eyes of the  employer on the other hand no one is perfect  

so if you can't think of any weaknesses it shows  a lack of awareness and it may even make you look  

like you are not a very trustworthy person. Any qualified interviewer will see right  

through this. This will actually be seen  as if you're dodging the actual question.

Like in this example we saw before you don't  want to over share or add in details that are not  

relevant. It wasn't necessary to say for example  that they are living again with their mother. 

Instead you should share real  weaknesses that have been  

difficult or caused issues in the past and then Here's a funny demonstration of what not to do  

when asked about this question: So these are some examples of good  

weaknesses to mention. However remember  that it's essential that when you mention  

any of these also say what you've done plan  to do or are currently doing to overcome them  

and by the way two things that I often see  that mess up non-native speaking candidates for  

position are: first of all not having good enough  comprehension and making me repeat myself several  

times or rephrase the question and two, not  having the words necessary to answer a question  

in a clear way. Now, you don't want this to  happen to you. The lessons on our channel  

can help you a lot in building your colloquial  vocabulary and improving your listening. And if  

you really want to take these skills to the next  level I recommend our Fluent with Friends Course.  

In just a few months you will notice that you  have more of the everyday vocabulary that you  

need to speak and that you even understand  natives more effortlessly. So you can try it  

for free! Join our free Master Class. Just click  up here or down description below to learn more.  

Now the next couple of job interview  questions are the ones that fall into  

the category of behavioral questions. The  main one to be expected is something like:

You definitely need to prepare for this question  because nothing says hire me better than a record  

of achieving amazing results in past jobs or  projects. A few things you should keep in mind  

are: while this is an opportunity for you to be  boastful about your past success don't go for too  

long without connecting it to how it actually  helped the company or other people that were  

involved in the process. Find the link to how it  helped the company reach its goals. Also remember  

to give credit where credit is due. If it was  a team effort you should not make it sound like  

you did all the work. You need to communicate that  you're a good team player, so say something like 

So you could use the star technique to actually  answer this question which will help you to  

organize your thoughts and communicate them in  a clear way. So first off describe the situation  

in which the event took place. Then describe  the task you were asked to complete. If there  

was a particular problem or issue that you  were trying to solve describe that here.  

Follow it up with an explanation of  what action you took to complete the  

task or solve the problem. Finally  explain the result of your actions.  

Try to focus on how your actions resulted in  a success for the company. Here's an example: 

Besides questions about your achievements you're  likely to face questions about past behavior. 

For example leadership, problem, solving or  creativity. Again you don't want to be in a  

position where you are asked this and you have  to actually think about a situation on the spot.  

Preparation is key. So a good idea is to have  some situations in mind before your interview.  

Think about a particular time when your leadership  problem solving and creativity all came into play.  

So if you're asked about a time where your  leadership skills shine through you can mention  

that specific circumstance. But if the question is  about your problem-solving skills you can explain  

the same thing while putting more focus on how  the situation required solving that problem.  

Here you can use the star technique once  again or even a simplified version of it.  

The situation, what you did and the result. 

Another type of behavior question involves your  ability to deal with conflict. So you may be asked 

With questions about conflict interviewers want  to see that you can communicate that you care  

about relationships. It's important to let your  interviewer know that you are a good listener and  

that you can accept that someone has a different  view on something without getting upset. So if  

you're prompted to talk about a past experience  with a question like tell us about a time that  

you had to deal with conflict with a co-worker.  Remember the star technique or the more simple  

method where you describe the situation, what  you did and the result. Now a big don't is  

to never throw someone under the bus or sound  bitter. This will reflect very poorly on yo.u  

Instead, explain how you approach the conflict  with a mindset of listening understanding  

and growth mindset. Spin the conflict as a  constructive experience. Here's an example: 

Alright so to wrap up remember that  preparation for the interview is key.  

For the tell me about yourself question, keep it  short but impactful with power phrases. You can  

use the present, past, future method. When you're  asked about your strengths don't just list random  

skills just two or three that are relevant to the  position will do the trick. When asked about your  

weaknesses say how you're working on overcoming  them. Use the star technique to describe past  

situations at the workplace like achievements  and moments that put your skills to the test.  

When talking about a conflict in the  past never criticize your co-worker.  

Let them know that you care about relationships. So all the best of luck to you on your next job  

interview I hope this has helped a lot and now  it's time to go beyond the classroom and live  

your English. Aw yeah! So if you like many  English learners out there are interested in  

applying to a University or getting  a job in an English-speaking country,  

then oftentimes it is not enough to simply state  on your resume that you are an intermediate or  

advanced speaker of English you're going to  actually need to certify your level of English  

and this is exactly what the IELTS  exam does for you it accurately.