This is the second instalment of the guest blog that I wrote for a music industry website, which never got published.
Guest Blog
In my first entry I spoke about what drove me to want a career in the music industry and my first steps into employment. Everyone’s path is different and I’m going to share some of the experiences I’ve had with job interviews.
With some companies it actually seems like an achievement just to get offered an interview, as they attract so many applications.
I’ve managed to gain a lot of experience of interviews, so much so that I have actually lost count. I’ve been to three out of the four majors*, one of the biggest independents, countless PR’s, digital strategists, charities and a few start up music companies.
The first ever interview I had was for a position at Ministry of Sound, whilst I was coming to an end at university. It’s fair to say that I was completely unprepared and horrendously nervous going into that interview. I believe the first words I spoke were ‘My names Cranleigh and I’m from a village called John’. I’m not even joking. To make myself look even worse, I actually repeated these words three times.
I didn’t get the job.
The number one worst interview that I have ever had was after I applied to work for a PR company. The job was for an initial 3 month internship with a view of a permanent position, so I wasn’t too thrilled about it but thought that I would go for experience and work on my interview technique. After we had our regular interview, which I actually do think I did well in, I was asked if I had a few hours to spare in order to complete the interview… a few hours!
Been kind of backed into a corner, I agreed and was given my tasks. These were to answer a questionnaire about myself, a questionnaire about what people think of me, make a banner ad for their website, make an online advert, sign up to related forums, post an advert for their website on those forums and draw a picture that best represents myself. These tasks took so long that the whole department went out to lunch, leaving me on my own in the office. To make this even worse the CEO of the company decided to make an entrance, asking me what I was up to, thinking I was a staff member.
The main advice I can give to anyone going into an interview is to prepared to the maximum. Make sure that you know the company you are going to see inside out, what is happening in the industry at that moment and yourself. If you don’t know everything about your past experience, motives and goals, then no one is. I have been in interviews where I haven’t talked myself up enough or spoken more in depth about tasks I’ve done in previous jobs. Speaking with confidence and conviction is also key. I’ve been turned down for a job, even though they felt I could do the job, all because they didn’t feel I had a ‘spark’.
That was extremely tough to take.
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*I’ve had job interviews at all four major record labels now.
