In my opinion failure to prepare for anything you do in life, never mind my job as a recruiter or for an interview is a fatal sin.

Abraham Lincoln said “Give me six hours to chop down a tree, and I will spend the first four hours sharpening the axe".  This is the way any successful person should prepare for every battle.  Don’t get me wrong I haven’t always been someone who prepares for every eventuality, however my biggest fear in life is failure and that fear will always drive me.  Failure makes or breaks a person.  It made me.

Through out my life the literature I have chosen to read has changed.  This has influenced what I put into each day, both personally and professionally.  One of the books I have read is ‘The art of war’ by Sun Tzu.  For me one of the most poignant quotes from this book is when Sun Tzu’s is speaking about preparation.  He states “If we are to win the war, we must understand the enemy…Know the enemy and know yourself; in a hundred battles you will never be in peril.  When you are ignorant of the enemy but know yourself, your chances of winning and losing are equal. If ignorant of both yourself and your enemy, you are certain in every battle to be in peril” This quote has been used time and again by influential leaders.  It is very simple, but very true.  If you do not understand what you face then you will underestimate it. Underestimate it and you set yourself up for defeat.

These values are certainly important in any interview.  Prepare for everything that could come up.  Prepare for everything that could go wrong. If you have already mentally prepared for your worst day then that day will not become a reality.

Be the best that you can be and you will not regret missed opportunities. So today, tomorrow and all the days that follow prepare yourself and make sure that when your worst day comes you are ready for it.

Sunjay Patel