How you conduct yourself on an interview can make a critical difference in your career. Use the guidelines presented in "Preparing for the Interview" to enhance your marketability.

No matter how strong your skills in your chosen field, it's your interview performance that makes the difference in whether you receive an offer. Proper preparation instills confidence and boosts your ability to perform effectively. Here are some pointers:

Researching the company is a must. Use both the information that may be provided to you by the company in advance and your local reference library or the Web to learn about the business, its products and competitive position, its locations, number of employees and performance.

Develop a list of questions which shows your command of that information and demonstrates your interest in the organization and its players.

During the interview, you'll be asked a wide variety of questions. Be prepared for some surprises and, maybe, a few curve balls. Be ready to answer questions like the following:

• What are your career goals?
• What's your major weakness?
• Why do you want to move?
• Are you willing to relocate?
• What can you contribute?
• What do you know about us?
• What are your favorite duties?
• Tell me about your last boss...
• How do you handle stress?
• Why should we hire you?
• Listen to a candidate being briefed for a telephone interview: Listen
• Listen to a candidate being briefed for a face-to-face interview: Listen