Unexpected Interviews can lead to unexpected opportunities

No-Commitment Conversation

Some potential candidates seem to fear that, if they speak to a recruiter, they will be forced to make some HUGE decision ON THE SPOT. But that’s not how it works.

The recruiter’s job is simply to introduce you to new possibilities. A good recruiter will get to know you (and the client, of course) to discern whether there’s a match, not just in terms of skills and experience, but a personality match as well. However, there’s no way to tell if there’s a potential match without a conversation!

The Benefits of Interviewing

If you do speak to the recruiter about a position that excites you, the next step would be an interview. (Recruiters should never share your details without your permission. Sadly, at some agencies this does happen, but that is for another post.) An interview is a slightly bigger step, as you need to prepare for it, but it is still just a second date where you are exploring whether there is chemistry, a potential match. Keep in mind that at this stage you still have made no commitment! You’re just exploring your options, verifying your value in the marketplace and sharpening your skills.

Whether or not to receive or accept a job offer, interviewing helps you get a better perspective on what it is you do and don’t want in a position or company as well as a peek behind the curtains—you’ll walk away with more insight into the industry as a whole after seeing how another company works. The questions you’re asked will also give you greater perspective on your own career, your strengths and your successes.

An Interview Is Not a Job Offer

It’s also important to keep in mind, as your excitement grows in the recruitment process, that there might not be a job offer at the end. This could happen for any number of reasons. Or perhaps you do get a job offer, but you decide you would rather stay in your current position instead. The interview will still have been a valuable process: teaching you your value so that you can bring that information back to your current place of employment, perhaps even negotiating yourself into a better position there in the process. Perhaps the company isn’t the right choice for you right now, but in the future, that could change.

Interviewing is also a great opportunity for networking, whether you get/take the job or not.

We’ve had interviewees who did not receive job offers from interviewers who later became their clients.

More beneficial relationships created for all!