How to Be a More Effective Interviewer

If you want to be a professional freelance writer, one of the most valuable skills you can acquire is becoming a better interviewer. Whether you want to conduct interviews for publication, for quotes for a story, or even just for background information for a project, interviewing is a skill that will serve you well in your career. While anyone can become a good interviewer, it takes time and practice to hone this skill. Here are some tips for improving your interviewing abilities:

Decide what you want to accomplish before the interview.

An interview is not just a conversation; it’s a way for you to achieve a goal—usually obtaining information. Before you conduct the interview, decide what that goal is, and then review the list of questions you’ve prepared. Will all of your questions help you reach that goal? Are you leaving anything out? If you plan carefully, you should be able to help ensure that you have achieved your goal for the interview by the time it ends.

Don’t ask questions that have an easy response.

Contrary to popular belief, it can sometimes be useful to ask a question that can be answered with a “yes” or a “no.” If your interview consists largely of those questions, however, you’re probably going to end up with a boring interview. You’re also likely to frustrate the interviewee, since they’ve taken time out of their schedule to answer questions that could just as easily be answered through email. The best questions for an interview are those that are designed to elicit informative responses. Rather than asking “Do you like X?”, for example, you might ask “What can you tell me about X?”

Prepare follow-up questions for every question you ask.

When you’re writing down possible questions for the interview, try to come up with at least one possible follow-up question for each one. You don’t actually have to ask all of these questions, but the very act of writing them out will help you think through the entire interview in advance, so you will be all the more prepared to talk to the interviewee. This can also help keep the conversation flowing, which can ultimately yield a better interview.

Don’t interrupt the interviewee.

First-time interviewers often display their nervousness by talking too much during the interview. It’s important to avoid doing this, as talking over the interviewee or interrupting them will most likely result in a less valuable interview. Ask your questions, but be sure to give the interviewee plenty of time to respond to each one. Every interviewee will answer at their own pace, so make sure you aren’t rushing them.

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