Search giant Google is well known for hiring talented people and then finding jobs for them. Most companies don't have that luxury; they're looking to fill a specific position, and thus desire candidates with certain skill sets and track records.

Which means you not only must "sell yourself hard" as a boundless bundle of vibrant talent, you must sell yourself in terms of the specific "problem" the people interviewing you are trying to solve.

Thus you should consider an interviewer's "biggest pain point and show them how you'll make things better, not more complex," advises Alice Hill, managing director of Dice.com, a career site for technology and engineering professionals.

That, however, requires an understanding of the interviewer's role, she says.