Back to job searches for a little while. We have already talked about the multi-prong approach to finding opportunities. Now let’s go to the next level – interviews. Mentally you need to approach an interview as a two-way street. Not only are they interviewing you, but you are interviewing them.

Too often, we are so excited just to get the opportunity and we are too focused on wanting to impress and get offered the job (anything else seems like failure), that we do not spend enough energy on determining whether this actually a place we would ever want to work!

Well, the next question then is how do you do that? If you ask pointed questions during the group interview like “how many hours per week do people work?” they are going to think you are a slacker. Yet, we really do care to know if they expect us to work 50 hours a week or 80 hours per week.

The key then is to be discreet. Ask these questions matter of factly when you are on a one on one tour. Try and determine whether the people who work there, like to work there? do they like their supervisors? do they work a lot (ie. too much)?

During the interview process you need to impress the hiring committee. Where possible, be discreet and try and determine the work climate. That way if you are offered a position, you have the info you need to make a good decision. If you did not get the info you need to make the decision during your interview, you will need to get that info after an offer is made. You can ask the person who is offering you the job if it would be ok for you to call and talk to some of your future co-workers to ask them about their job and how they like it. (If they say no, there is the answer to your question about whether you want to work there).

The Bottom Line: Just because someone offers you a job, doesn’t mean you want to work their. It is your job to try and figure that out before you accept it.

Tomorrow morning we are off to London where we will work for the next week.