The Importance of your Resume During a Telephone Interview

• Resume
• Executive Resume

It is very hard with a telephone interview to be able to “read” the person on the other end of the telephone. Therefore you must maintain a professional manner at all times, try to smile or at least try and enjoy the experience, despite the number of butterflies that are hovering around your stomach. Did you know that a simple smile changes the quality and tone of your voice? Don’t ask me how it works but it does. Next time you listen to someone on a telephone, and lets face it, we all eavesdrop on telephone conversations, no matter how hard you try not to, see how the person’s face reflects the tone of their voice. You will be amazed at how accurate the response is. Whilst you are “listening” see if you can observe the way the person is sitting or standing whilst they are talking. Are they slouched or are they sitting upright, can you see their feet? Are they flat on the floor, or are they crossed at the ankles, or knees. What are they doing with their hands – doodling or taking notes? Are they using expressive gestures to make a point or are they in the defensive position with arms crossed? Does this affect the way that they are speaking on the telephone?

The answer is yes. The way that you sit, the way that you hold the telephone and concentrate on the person that you are talking too, is very obvious to the person on the other end of the telephone.

• Have a notebook and pen handy to jot down any salient points from the questioner.
• Have a few notes ready on how you plan to answer some questions, but whatever you do – do not read your prepared answers. Just because the interviewer can’t see you, doesn’t mean that he or she can’t tell what you are doing.
• Watch your body language - yes even on the phone. The next time you are on the telephone, try slouching in your chair, notice immediately how your voice changes from that of someone who is alert and attentive, to someone who sounds almost bored. This is because you are compressing your chest and therefore lung capacity, and makes it harder to articulate the words properly.
• Speak as if the person is sitting in front of you. This will certainly focus the mind on the task in hand.
• Make sure that there is nothing else in the close vicinity to distract you from the job you are currently doing. If you are at home, make sure that the TV and Radio are turned off, the dogs are outside and the children are being taken care of in another part of the house. If you are sitting at a desk, it is advisable to turn away from the computer screen and concentrate on the telephone conversation that you are having. Whilst many of us say that we can multi-task, it’s very hard to do in practice and even harder to give 100% to each of the tasks that you are doing.
• Try not to doodle on the notepad; this is a visual clue that your mind is elsewhere and certainly not working on the job at hand. Put down the pen or pencil, and only pick it up when you need to write something down.
• Have some questions ready for them - remember this is a two way process.

Telephone interviews for FIFO and Mining People

If you are working away on a mine site, or other role that means you are away from home for extended periods, one of the easiest ways for a hiring organisation to interview you is via the telephone. If you are submitting your Resume or CV for another job, and you are away on FIFO, you should make a note on your Cover Letter so that they know when to contact you

Preparation and practice are keys to handling successful telephone interviews, so make the time to know your Resume or CV inside out. What did you say in the Cover Letter? What achievements did you highlight? If you can have your resume printed out and next to you on the desk or table so you can refer to it. With a telephone interview you don't need to trust your memory.

• Resume
• Executive Resume