1. FOCUS ON WHAT YOU WILL BRING TO THE COMPANY.
An employee should be concerned, first and foremost, with helping the
company, not the other way around.
2. BE HONEST.
When an interviewer asks you something to which you don't know the
answer, it's much better to admit it than to pretend otherwise. Also,
misrepresenting yourself on your résumé in any way is a big mistake, not
just because it will come back to haunt you (since it may not), but simply
because it's wrong.
3. WHEN IN DOUBT, DON'T.
The most fundamental ethical principle of all, Do No Harm, applies to
how you treat yourself as well as others. Resist the impulse to say
something that would make you look foolish, incompetent, or naive. If you're
not sure about how something will be taken, leave it unsaid.
4. DON'T BADMOUTH YOUR PREVIOUS EMPLOYER.
Your prospective employer may ask you about previous jobs and why you
left, or why you want to leave your current one. If a poor relationship with
a boss or colleague was a contributing factor, it's better to say something
like: "My supervisor and I didn't see eye to eye on a lot of projects,"
rather than "He was the biggest jerk I've ever worked for." Criticism at its
best centers on what a person has done, not on who a person is.
Personal attacks make you look petty, and this could be a reason for you to
be passed over for a position. Also bear in mind that professional circles
can be small and tightly knit; it's entirely possible your interviewer knows
your previous boss or colleagues. You don't want to acquire a reputation for
being petty, vindictive, or tactless.
5. LOOK WITHIN.
This last rule is the most important. Before you even apply for a job,
do some soul-searching, and find out what it is you're really looking for.
To embrace a company's mission successfully you have to know what your own
mission in life is, and why you want to devote considerable time and energy
to that organization. Honesty applies not just to how you deal with your
prospective employer; it also applies to how you deal with yourself.
Keeping honesty and good ethics front and center are key to longterm
success, both personally and professionally.
From Career Builder's Weinstein, the Ethics Guy.
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