How do I handle a lunch or coffee interview?
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Karen James Chopra, LPC, MCC, NCC, has been counseling career clients since 1999 and has helped hundreds of clients change careers, find new jobs and deal more effectively with workplace challenges.
In addition to her private practice, she has worked for two national corporate outplacement firms: Lee Hecht Harrison and Resource Careers. These are the organizations that help people who have experienced a layoff or downsizing to find new jobs, and their programs are usually considered the gold-standard of job search technique.
Ms Chopra is a regular presenter on career issues, having taught career theory at the graduate level, designed and delivered numerous workshops, and served as a regular guest commentator on WMAL’s career radio show “Your Career Life.”
She is a career-changer herself. Before entering the counseling field, she worked for nearly a decade as a trade negotiator for the United States Government, first at the Department of Commerce and then at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.
Ms. Chopra holds a number of relevant licenses and certifications: licensed professional counselor (LPC) in the District of Columbia; Master Career Counselor (MCC), a designation of the National Career Development Association (NCDA); and National Certified Counselor (NCC), a designation of the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC). She belongs to all of the relevant national and local associations involved in career counseling, including the American Counseling Association (ACA), the National Employment Counselors Association (NECA), the National Career Development Association (NCDA) and the Washington Metropolitan Area Career-Life Planning Network (MAC-LPN).
Her B.A. is from the University of Virginia, and she received a masters of science in foreign service from Georgetown University, and a masters in community counseling from George Washington University.
How do I handle a lunch or coffee interview?
How do I handle a lunch or a coffee interview?
Karen Chopra: Many recruiters will prefer to meet you over a cup of coffee in a hotel lobby or perhaps over lunch and some employers, so will invite you out for lunch.
So the first rule here is dress as that you are going to an interview and the second rule here is never order alcohol, they can order alcohol and just say, no, right now, I would like focus, order something light to eat. Make sure that it's easy to eat.
Transcripts
How do I handle a lunch or a coffee interview?
Karen Chopra: Many recruiters will prefer to meet you over a cup of coffee in a hotel lobby or perhaps over lunch and some employers, so will invite you out for lunch.
So the first rule here is dress as that you are going to an interview and the second rule here is never order alcohol, they can order alcohol and just say, no, right now, I would like focus, order something light to eat. Make sure that it's easy to eat.
So the rule of thumb here is to order salads, to order soups, what you are looking for is something that you can control, something that you cut into small bites and then you can ferry the food to your mouth quickly, chew it discreetly and then be ready to answer a question.
It is normal for them to pick the tab. So you shouldn't sort of sit back and relaxing with them, pickup the tab for the coffee or for the lunch, and it's normal to let them decide, when they are going to start the interview, they will often want to do some chit-chatting and getting to know you ahead of time.
So let them decide, when it is they are going to actually start the interview part of the lunch or the coffee meeting.
The last thing that I would say about lunches and coffees is everyone is in motion right before the interview and logistical problems happen, sometimes you end up in the wrong part of the hotel waiting for the recruiter.
So make sure you have cell phone numbers and then they have your cell phone number so that you avoid any last minute problems.
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