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45 Key Interview Principles 61

employer’s office, a restaurant, or in a social setting. If, for example,
you are interviewed in a restaurant, be sure you observe proper
eating etiquette as well as avoid ordering foods that can be difficult
to eat, such as spaghetti or crabs. Your eating behavior will be
observed. How and what you eat may be as important to the
interview as how you answer the questions. And don’t answer
questions with a mouth full of food!

15. Expect several interviews with the same employer.

Many interviewees are surprised to learn they are subjected to more
than one interview with the same employer. They normally exper-
ience two interviews: screening and hiringplacement. The screening
interview may tale place over the telephone. You must be prepared
for that unexpected telephone call in which the employer probes
about your continuing interest in the position, your availability,
and your job-related expectations, including, perhaps, salary re-
quirements. The hiringplacement interview is normally conducted
in the interviewer’s office. But it may involve a one-to-one interview
or sequential, series, panel, or group interviews. This process could
tale place over a one- or two-week period in which you are called
back to meet with other individuals in one-to-one, series, panel, or
group interview situations. Each interview may probe a different
level of your interests, abilities, knowledge, and skills.

16. Be prepared for different questioning techniques.

While you may be prepared to answer direct questions with direct
answers, some interviewers also include indirect and stress question-
ing techniques. For example, rather than ask ‘Doyou have dzjiculiy
working with your employers, ” they may ask ‘‘Wy didyou leaveyour last
three jobs?” or “How did you get along with your last three employers?”
Rather than ask you directly about your social status and financial
situation, they may ask “Where do you prefer living in the community?”
If a job involves a great deal of stress, the interviewer may ask you
questions that put you under stress during the interview just to see
how you handle such situations. For example, you may unex-
pectedly be asked “If we hireyou and three months later decideyou’re not
the person we want, what are we going to do?” or “We normnlEy don’t hire