1. Learn about the company.

Find out about the company you are applying to. What are its activities? What's the business? What are the techs, etc.

I had an interview some time ago and from the beginning, I was asked questions about the company.

If I hadn't been able to answer it, I would have failed at the start of the recruitment process.

2. Inform if you are late

If you are up to 10 minutes late, notify as soon as possible by any means. Call the person you need to meet directly if you can.

If you're more than 10 minutes late try to show up anyway and don't give up. Apologize and ask how much time the person has to give you.

3. Prepare questions

You will be asked if you have any questions.

If you have nothing to say, it may send the wrong message.

That you aren't particularly interested.

You want to look interested. So be prepared.

4 Have a pencil and paper

It does school, yes.

But it also shows that you it's important for you.

Take notes of what seems relevant to you.

5. Be positive

The recruiter will probably ask you if you have done "this thing" before.

We can't know and master everything.

If you don't know what the recruiter is talking about, anchor your answer in the positive.

For example, answer: "I do not know but I have heard about it and it interests me" is more reassuring for the recruiter than to say "never done."

6. Talk about yourself and not about your former colleagues

You have surely done some great projects with great teams in great companies.

The thing is, this is your interview.

Everyone is aware that if there are 10 of you on a project then you haven't done everything.

Talk about yourself, your experience, what you have done, your successes, failures, etc.

7. Illustrate your words

If you are asked about qualities, for example, it is best to illustrate them rather than enumerate a list.

Give concrete examples of experience or show the connection to the current position.

8. Show interest for the job

Be curious and show that you are interested in the products, the business and the working methods.

For example, if it is an open source IT project and the development method is pair programming, show that you are interested in this.

That's all.

There are surely other tips and soft skills that are super important for interviewing but here is my list that I try to remember when I have to do one.

I didn't learn that in school, I learned by doing. Maybe it can be useful for others.

Takeaways:

1. Learn about the company

2. Inform if you are late

3. Prepare questions

4. Pencil, paper, take notes

5. Be positive

6. Talk about yourself and not about your former colleagues

7. Illustrate your words

8. Show interest in the position

Also, I frequently share things related to mobile dev (Jetpack Compose and KMP) so if you are interested make sure to check my work at appkickstarter.com.