Let me guess. You’re just too good, right? Too passionate. Too focused. Too hard of a worker. Right. This is not what interviewers want to hear. Why? Because it’s bullshit. You know it. And they know it. How do they know? Because they probably answered the same way once upon a time. And they probably hated that question as much as you do.

Polishing a negative until it looks like a positive is widespread advice, but not really the best. It comes off as fake as it feels. When an interviewer hears, “My greatest weakness is being too dedicated to my job,” it immediately translates to, “I’m lying and just saying the easiest thing. It’s not honest. I’m not original.” Yikes. So what should you stay instead?

I’m not by any means advocating that you fill in a potential employer on your penchant for getting a little saucy at happy hour, or that you are a perpetual procrastinator. You know where the line is for what is appropriate to share. But you can and should be honest. There must be something you’re not that great at. If there isn’t, then you’d probably already be gainfully employed. Maybe you’re stuck on certain technology or have trouble with public speaking. An employer would much rather hear that you’re facing a real challenge. And then they want to hear what you’re doing to overcome it. Maybe you’re spending extra time studying that new software package, or you’re taking a class in public speaking. This is the time to share that. It’s ok not to be perfect, just be trying.

Anyway, you know what will impress in an interview? A customized online portfolio! It shows that you’re tech savvy, current, creative, and willing to go the extra mile. And guess what? We’ll make one for you — check out The Capitalista Contest if you haven’t already.

Happy hunting!

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Alexandra Saville (@CapitalistaBlog) is the Media and Writing Specialist at Law Street Media. She has experience in the publishing and marketing worlds and started her own publishing company right out of college. Her blogs, The Capitalista and Capitalista Careers, focus on the young and the entrepreneurial.

Alexandra Saville

Alexandra Saville is the Media and Writing Specialist at Law Street Media. She has experience in the publishing and marketing worlds and started her own publishing company right out of college. Her blogs, The Capitalista and Capitalista Careers, focus on the young and the entrepreneurial.

The post What’s Your Biggest Flaw? appeared first on Law Street.

This edition of Capitalista Careers is a shout out to one of our newest bloggers, Imran Ahmed. Imran killed his interview! Basically, he was the perfect interviewee. Imran successfully did all the things that I incessantly rant about doing, and avoided all the common mistakes.

Let’s take a lesson from him, shall we? Let’s talk about the things that he did right.

1. He dressed to impress. Stay tuned for a post on what appropriate (and inappropriate) interview attire is, but until then here’s your teaser: Imran showed up in a suit. Mandatory? No, probably not. His resume was great and his personality was a good fit for our vibe. But it was a breath of fresh air to see someone who cared enough to put his best foot forward. How you’re dressed says a lot about you. It’s a first impression. It never hurts to always go for business/business casual attire.

2. He showed up early. You know my policy that 15 minutes early is on time. Imran showed up on time in my book.

3. He was prepared. He came with copies of his resume and was prepared to walk us through his accomplishment. Remember the Interview Tips post from a few months back? I talked to recruiter Jack Farrell on his top interview advice — he stressed that your resume should read like a script and that you should be prepared to highlight the important parts when asked.

4. He was well researched. Imran was able to pinpoint specific things he liked on our website. I’ve written about it to tedium before, but far too often applicants don’t take the time to google the company they’re interviewing with. It. Is. So. Simple. It will show if you haven’t looked at the site. There is no way to bullshit that. Anyway, Imran obviously went to the site, did his homework, and came prepared to discuss what he liked about it, and where he saw himself fitting in.

5. He followed up. Following up isn’t just to inquire about the status of the position. He sent thank you emails to everyone he interviewed with. This level of attention to detail just reaffirmed that he will be a great addition to our team and an enjoyable person to work with.

Keep your eyes peeled for Imran’s new blog! He’ll be featured on our site writing about the legal implications of social media.

I’m sure that the rest of the new bloggers interviewed just as well. We’re very fortunate to have such a great group. Stay tuned for more new blogs soon!

xo The Capitalista

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Alexandra Saville (@CapitalistaBlog) is the Media and Writing Specialist at Law Street Media. She has experience in the publishing and marketing worlds and started her own publishing company right out of college. Her blogs, The Capitalista and Capitalista Careers, focus on the young and the entrepreneurial.

Alexandra Saville

Alexandra Saville is the Media and Writing Specialist at Law Street Media. She has experience in the publishing and marketing worlds and started her own publishing company right out of college. Her blogs, The Capitalista and Capitalista Careers, focus on the young and the entrepreneurial.

The post Our Newest Blogger Nailed His Interview appeared first on Law Street.