ShareThis"Visualize Interview Success", by Marky Stein, The Interview Expert, posted on Monster.com, suggests that "visualizing your interviews in advance could be worth trying."
"Olympic gold-medalist swimmer Michael Phelps employed visualization and relaxation techniques before his 2004 and 2008 races," writes Stein. "And, Phil Jackson, head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, implores his players to visualize victory before games."
Personally, I visualized parallel skiing after my first short ski lesson in late spring. First time out the next winter, BINGO! It works.
Back to Stein's column. The Journal of Consulting Psychology outlined an experimental study of visualization techniques. One group of job seekers received traditional career counseling and interview coaching. Those in the second group were exposed to the same career counseling and interview training, but also learned to use visualization techniques related to these subjects. Two months after training, 21 percent of those in the group who did not use mental imagery found new jobs. 66 percent of those who used this technique were employed within two months.
Here are steps suggested for seizing the power of your imagination to program yourself for successful interviews:
- Lie down in a quiet room. Close your eyes and use each breath to relax your body from head to toe.
- Imagine yourself preparing for the interview. When you visualize getting to the employer's office, use your senses to imagine the colors, light, shadows and objects in the room. In your mind, hear the interviewer's voice when he greets you. Notice your emotions are calm and confident as you shake hands.
- When you meet the interview, imagine you are smiling warmly, and he is smiling back at you. As the interviewer asks questions, imagine you answer them spontaneously and easily. You feel confident and comfortable. Ideally, at the end of the interview, you might imagine hearing the interview say something like, "you're hired" or "Welcome aboard!"
As Stein says, "You have nothing to lose by trying this technique for succeeding at job interviews - and you might just find it works. Imagine that!"
I say, try it - I know it works. If you can't visualize your success, you won't recognize opportunities when they come your way.
(Marvin Walberg is a job search coach. Contact him at mwalberg(at)bellsouth.net, marvinwalberg.blogspot.com, or PO Box 43056, Birmingham, AL 35243.)
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