An invitation to attend an interview means you're a strong candidate. But you still have to prove you can do the job, and that you'll fit in with the company culture and other employees.
Do your research
Read the company website and press releases, and use Google to find news articles. Use LinkedIn to read the company profile and research key people. Learn about their major achievements, products, services, clients and competitors, and be familiar with any current threats or opportunities. This research will help you answer the typical interview question 'Why are you interested in working here/in this job?' It also helps you prepare thoughtful questions of your own.
Link your CV to the job description to show how your skills, experience and goals match the job requirements and company expectations. Work out how your background and expertise will help you bring value to the company, solving problems, or improving company performance.
Prepare answers to predictable questions, such as the introductory 'Tell me about yourself', and questions about your abilities, career history, personality and goals. Work out how you'll explain problematic aspects of your CV, such as reasons for leaving a company, or gaps in your work history.
If you left a job on the worst of terms, you may well need to clarify why you left, so be prepared to give a concise, factual account of this. Try to avoid getting emotional or subjective about it, or to start blaming others for what happened ... your position became untenable, and you thought it better for the organisation if you moved away from the situation.
It's going to be tricky — the interviewer may seize upon this as an example of how you react in stressful or difficult situations, or how you deal with personality clashes in the workplace. Be prepared for examples of where you've successfully dealt with any other such issues in the past, and let them know how you generally seek to avoid personality disputes.
You need to give the impression that you're putting recent events behind you. Can you point to anything over recent months that has helped you learn something? Has it made you more understanding of difficult situations, more aware of how health issues impact on daily life/employment prospects, more scrupulous in regards to working practice etc? Find examples that will be relevant to the job or organisation you're applying to.
Run through some probable questions with a friend to increase your self-confidence or to eliminate signs of nervousness. Bring spare copies of your CV, as well as references, the job description, and a notepad for interesting points or additional questions.
Be enthusiastic
Explain why you want the job and how it fits into your career goals.
Link a previous resignation into your current career ambitions. Saying that (a previous job) wasn't a good fit for you is a good start, but you'll need to say why this is. You can start by highlighting the aspects of the job you liked, and try and link them to the aspects of the job you're interviewing for.
Saying you also thrive best when you feel passion for a job is a good move, but you'll need to show the interviewer that you do indeed have passion for the new role, so this will require some research on your part to make sure you know what exactly the company is like, the industry as a whole, appreciation for the company's milestone achievements, their ethics and so on.
You may also be asked about the aspects of the job that you didn't like, and you'll need to show some tact here. Saying you don't like doing unpaid overtime could be negatively construed, so stick to something safer like lack of promotion possibilities, or not enough creativity in the role for example. You'll need to really assess what it was you didn't like then try and turn it to your advantage in the interview, by linking the bad points of the last job to the positive points of the new one.
Thorough preparation for any interview is absolutely crucial, but you also need to overcome any potential doubts the interviewer might have over your commitment to the job. This means that thinking objectively about what you like/don't like in a job is so important, as you can then turn it to your advantage during the interview.
Be honest about any shortcomings and explain how you could overcome them through training or coaching.
The interview is also your opportunity to clarify that you want the job and would fit in, so use your research to prepare questions about the demands of the job, plans for company development, training and promotion opportunities, as well as your suitability.
Show your enthusiasm by asking pertinent questions — not about pay/conditions, but probing questions about the particular challenges you'll be facing in the role. What are they expecting of you; what are their priorities for the role over the next year; who would be your manager and what sort of appraisals would there be; how might the role develop, and so on.
More examples of questions you can ask
Be likeable
As you may end up reporting to the interviewer, be someone s/he can get on with. Be punctual, polite, and thank the interviewer at the end. Appear positive and self-confident, maintain eye contact, and show interest. Speak clearly and confidently, don't gabble, go off topic, or monopolise the conversation.
For most jobs, portray a professional image by dressing conservatively, hiding piercings or tattoos, and not wearing too much make-up, jewellery, perfume or aftershave. Don't make demands about your working conditions, or criticise previous bosses or companies.
A final question about any challenges you'd need to overcome in the job, or whether the interviewer has any doubts about your ability, gives you the opportunity to reiterate your strengths. Lastly, make sure you know when a hiring decision might be made, or what the next step will be.
A brief email to the interviewer the day after is a nice touch. Thank the person for their time, restate your key selling points and your interest in the job.
