Congratulations on getting the interview! I trust that means that you submitted an impressive résumé. Now it's time to really prepare, because unless you do this a lot you might need a little planning. Once you're sitting at the table you can no longer hide behind your credentials.

How many times have you gone into a conference room for an interview and found a panel of a dozen people, each with a copy of your resume in front of them? Scary thought? It happens. More commonly you might be seated opposite 3-6 people. Still scary? How about just one, but you can tell he just came out of a yelling match with someone because he's flushed, disheveled, rushed, and really pissed off? How about just one again, but this guy's really nice, although he has a nasty habit of asking you every question you were hoping he wouldn't? Are you ready?

Like the résumé it's important to remember that this isn't a permanent position interview. The questions are likely to be more focused around the position that's open and not on your goals or lifetime career dreams. The manager is going to want to have his good feelings about your résumé confirmed and it's up to you to do it.

Study your own résumé.

I regularly make it a habit to ask candidates questions about their previous positions. It's a great way to get a feel for what they've done. How many times have you sat before someone and been totally lost when they asked you about something you forgot you put on your résumé? It happened to me years ago, and I've done it to others since. Don't let it happen to you.

Do you even know anything about my company?

Many managers will expect you to know something about their company when you come in. They may ask you questions about their own products or services. It's not strictly necessary for you to have any knowledge in this area, but it does give you a leg up on your competition.

Did you read the job requisition? And would it have mattered?

If the job requisition says they want someone who can develop in ASP.NET will they want you to know cascading style sheets? Probably. If they want someone who can tune the enterprise software to take the best advantage of the business processes in place will they want someone who knows SQL? Yup. If they are looking for a hard core system level C language device driver coder will they want someone who can dance the tango, play the harp and hum Debussy's Claire de Lune? Sure! – well maybe not. The point is that what's on the job requisition usually only tells part of the story and it would do well for you if you had at least a basic understanding of complementary technologies. (Don't forget to tout those technologies as another reason to hire you!)

How many times have you been in an interview only to find out that the job has absolutely nothing to do with the job for which you've applied? Be prepared for change. Study your areas of weakness and hope your recruiter understood what the heck the manager was talking about when he wrote the requisition in the first place.

Limber up your brain.

I find that one of the best ways to get mentally prepared for an interview is to hit one of the many web sites that contain logic problems. It really gets your brain going and helps you to think quickly on your feet. Here is one of my favorites: www.crpuzzles.com/logic/index.html. Or you can study technical questions at sites such as this one: www.techinterviews.com.

Don't wear a garbage bag.

My wife is a professional artist who does quite well, but back in college she had an experience she'll never forget in an art class. She had worked many many hours on a major project for class and felt that she had done quite well. She was anticipating high marks for her piece, but when the due date came it was raining outside so she grabbed the only thing she had available to protect her piece from the rain: a garbage bag. When she walked into the room the instructor took one look and said "I can see what you think of your piece" and gave her an instant F. He wouldn't even let her take it out of the bag. Dress up – ties for guys, skirts or nice slacks for gals.

Be polite, relaxed and conversational.

The interview will be more than just a confirmation of your skills – it will be a test of your personality to see how well you will fit in with the team. If you have all the skills I need but I can tell you're going to be difficult to work with what does it profit me to hire you? Maybe you'll get the job done, but my life will be miserable while you're doing it. People don't like to be miserable, so you're just not going to get hired, especially in a market where managers get 50 résumés or more for a single position.

The job activity that is usually regarded as the most emotionally charged is firing an employee. A close second to this can often be the hiring process. Both can be difficult to do. When a manager hires someone he pulls from a pool of talent and picks the one he feels will do the best job, but there's no real way to know in advance. So get on his good side in the interview by listening carefully and not interrupting. Be polite – this could be your boss after all. Smile and be pleasant. Project the air of someone who is easy to be around. (And if you're really not then work on it!)

Keep casting the line.

If you don't get the job don't take it too hard. There is a lot of competition out there, and even though you may be the happiest most well-adjusted developer in the world, the rest of the team may have been a bunch of disgruntled unhappy programmers and the manager knew you wouldn't fit in. You did your best and other interviews will come.

If you got the interview in the first place that means you were probably qualified, so focus on that. Study the technologies you say you know so that they're fresh in your mind. Learn a little about the next company you are targeting, limber up your brain and get ready all over again. You hooked them with your résumé, now reel them in with a great interview. Good luck!