You have been expecting an important call about a job application you made a few days ago and now it has come. What jubilation! But wait, don’t be so happy yet. The bigger chasm is still yawning wide in front of you. You have to still face the interview and do well in that. The call means nothing if you fall flat on your face during the interview. You have to put in your best efforts in being prepared and even rehearse a little bit as to how you can make a favorable impression on the people who interview you. Always keep in mind that there will be other people vying for the job as well and you have to outshine them if you want to land that job.

Now, if you find this a very daunting task, it might put you at ease to know your own expectations properly. When you are being interviewed for the first time, you won’t be discussing the monetary aspect of things in most probability. They won’t tell you that and you shouldn’t ask that either. Don’t even ask about what perks and incentives you will get. All those things are discussed later, when both you and the interviewers are sure that you are good matches for each other. Let them first check you out, and you check them out as well, and when the equations have been set, they will ask you how much you expect. Or probably they will come right away and tell you what compensation they can provide.

So, during your first interview, make all attempts to showcase your talents and your qualifications. These are the things they want to see. Slowly, but surely, try to market yourself to the employer. They have to see that you will be an asset for them. Speak eloquently about your achievements so far and, if you liked doing something, make sure you mention that. But don’t be too brazen about that because that indicates overconfidence. Your prospective hirers want to get the impression that they are doing the right job hiring you and that they aren’t hiring an egotistical person who, though good at work, will be a tough nut to crack.

There will be some difficult questions thrown about. Any unflattering things on your resume will be looked into minutely. Prepare yourself to answer these questions so that when they are eventually asked, you don’t have to think about the right way to answer it. However, give honest answers because they are the ones that really work. At the same time, always play your pros and try to correct your cons. Your employers want to see you as a person who has a lot of strengths and doesn’t mind correcting weaknesses.

These are the things you have to prepare when that all-important call for your first job interview comes. Go with confidence and you are sure to garner a lot of attention.