You Got the Interview: How to Actually Prepare

You got the email. They want to interview you.

After the applications, the silence, the waiting - someone actually wants to talk to you. This is real now.

If you haven't interviewed in a while, this might feel exciting and terrifying in equal measure. The good news: interview preparation is something you can actually do. Unlike the waiting game of Part 2, this is where your effort directly matters.

Here's how to show up ready.

First, Understand What They're Actually Doing

An interview isn't a test with right and wrong answers. It's not an interrogation. It's not a performance where you recite rehearsed lines.

An interview is a conversation where they're trying to answer a few fundamental questions:

Everything they ask you maps back to these three questions. "Tell me about yourself" is really "Give me a quick overview so I can assess all three." "Why do you want this job?" is really "Will you actually do this job with enthusiasm?" "Tell me about a time you handled conflict" is really "Can we work with you?"

Research the Company (For Real This Time)

In Part 1, we talked about doing basic research before applying - a quick Google, a glance at LinkedIn, checking for red flags.

Now you need to go deeper.

Anticipate the Questions

You can't predict exactly what they'll ask, but you can prepare for the categories.

"Tell me about yourself."

This is almost universal. They want a 2-3 minute overview of your professional story. Not your life history. Not a recitation of your resume. A narrative arc: where you started, how you got here, why you're interested in this role. Practice this until it flows naturally.

"Why do you want this job?"

They're testing whether you actually want this job specifically, or just any job. Your answer should reference specific things about the company and role - things you couldn't say about their competitors. Generic answers are obvious.

"Why are you leaving your current job?"

This is a completely legal question (unlike questions about age, marital status, or other protected classes). They're looking for red flags: Were you fired? Are you running from something? Are you a job hopper?

Behavioral questions: "Tell me about a time when..."

These are questions about past behavior as a predictor of future performance. "Tell me about a time you handled a difficult coworker." "Describe a project that failed and what you learned." "Give me an example of when you had to learn something quickly."

For these, you need stories. Real examples from your experience. The STAR format works: Situation, Task, Action, Result. What was the context? What did you do? What happened?

Technical or skill-based questions

Depending on the role, you might face technical assessments, case studies, or skill demonstrations. Know what the role requires and be ready to demonstrate competence. If they mentioned specific tools or skills in the job posting, be prepared to speak to those.

"Do you have any questions for us?"

Prepare Your Stories

Behavioral interviews require stories. You can't wing this.

Think through your recent work experience and identify 5-7 strong examples you can draw from. Each story should be:

• Specific. Not "I generally handled customer complaints well" but "There was one customer who threatened to cancel their enterprise contract, and here's what I did."
• Results-oriented. What actually happened? Numbers are great if you have them. "We retained the account and they renewed for three years" is better than "it worked out."
• Flexible. A good story can often answer multiple questions. The story about the difficult customer might work for "handling pressure," "conflict resolution," or "customer focus."

Know Your Gaps (And How to Address Them)

If you did a gap analysis before applying - either mentally or with a tool like ReApply - you already know where you're strong and where you're vulnerable.

Interviewers will probe your gaps. If the job requires 5 years of experience and you have 3, expect questions about it. If they need someone with management experience and you've only been an individual contributor, that's coming up.

Don't wait for them to attack your weaknesses. Have a plan.

The goal isn't to hide your gaps. It's to show you're aware of them and have a realistic plan.

Prepare Questions to Ask Them

"Do you have any questions for us?" is not a formality. It's an opportunity.

Good questions demonstrate that you've thought seriously about the role. They also help you evaluate whether you actually want this job.

Questions about the role:

• "What does success look like in this role in the first 90 days?"
• "What are the biggest challenges the person in this role will face?"
• "How did this position come open?" (New role? Someone left? Growth?)
• "What's the team structure? Who would I work with most closely?"

Questions about the company:

• "What's the company's biggest priority right now?"
• "How has the company changed in the last year or two?"
• "What do you wish you'd known before you joined?"

Questions that show you're serious:

• "Based on our conversation, do you have any concerns about my fit for this role?" (Gives you a chance to address objections)
• "What are the next steps in the process?"

The question that tells you where you stand:

Here's a question I've used that cuts through the standard interview dance:

This is a bit of a reverse Uno. You're asking them to describe who they're really looking for - which tells you immediately whether you're it or not.

The best answer is some version of "Honestly? Someone a lot like you." That's a great sign.

But I've also asked this question and had them describe someone completely different from me. Different background, different skills, different experience level. I actually laughed and said, "Well, I might have trouble here." We both knew it. Better to find out in the interview than wonder for weeks.

Questions to avoid:

The Interview Itself

You've prepared. Now you have to actually do it.

After the Interview

Send a thank-you email within 24 hours. Brief. Professional. Reference something specific from your conversation.

Debrief yourself. While it's fresh, write down what they asked, how you answered, and what you'd do differently. This helps you improve for the next one.

Don't obsess. You did what you could. Now it's out of your hands again. The advice from Part 2 applies: don't refresh your email every 10 minutes. Keep your pipeline moving. Stay grounded.

Interview Prep: Coaching, Not Scripting

Here's the thing about interview preparation: you can't script authenticity.

The goal isn't to memorize perfect answers. It's to walk in prepared enough that you can be present, genuine, and responsive to what actually happens in the room.

This is exactly what ReApply's Interview Prep is designed to help with. When you mark that you've secured an interview, our AI generates a customized preparation guide: strategic positioning (your unique angle for this specific role), likely questions they'll ask with coaching on how to approach them, deep company intelligence (pain points, culture signals, what they're really looking for), and strategic questions for you to ask.

It's coaching, not scripting. We can't hand you a magic script that guarantees success. But we can help you walk in with the confidence that comes from being genuinely prepared.

The Bigger Picture

If you've followed this series from the beginning, you've learned:

The job search is a process of uncertainty, rejection, and occasional opportunity. You can't control most of it. But you can control how prepared you are, how strategic you are, and how you show up when the opportunity arrives.