Day 17: Who are You in the Interview?
Bexs Nelson, PMP, PMI-ACP, CSM
PMO & Operations Expert with Measured Results | PMP, PMI-ACP, CSM | I help Customer Service Reps transition to joy in Project Management Careers
Who are you?
Every interview...
Every resume review...
In every networking conversation...
You are not only going to show your value, but you are also going to show your values.
One of the main reasons I had you start with you and your family "User Stories" is I wanted you to identify what those values were. It may not have surfaced all of the values, but it likely got the core ones up. Chances are you are a dynamic person. In the focus of first impressions for the sprint, I am going to ask are you prepared to show it?
People often talk about wearing a suit of armor in an interview. I say leave the armor at home. The armor is noisy. It clangs and clinks and calls attention to itself. You get so focused on just how to walk and the tiny slits to see through, you don't take stock of your surroundings.* The interviewer will sense your armor (you'll sound stiff, trust me) and will have to see something of merit to push past and keep you in the next round in hopes that you will remove the helmet and they can get a look at whom they are hiring.
I am happy to freely admit I've had an interview with two fantastic people in the past month, both of whom are connections now even though ultimately there was someone in their organization that wanted the role.** Both of them would likely tell you that I oozed "Bexs" during the interview and that is why we are still connected and I sing their praises to people in posts for not only managing their own people and teams well but for matching my authenticity with theirs. They sold me not only on their teams but on their companies.
It may feel desperate to get that interview. Then, you may feel desperate to nail it. Then desperate to hear back. Don't let that desperation seep away at who you are. Don't let it sap away from what you have to offer. Instead, where your values are on you like a shirt that makes you feel confident. You can even refer to the blouse or suit jacket you always wear as my "tenacity" jacket or my "resilience" shirt. Bonus, when you are asked what word you embody, you may start to answer before the interviewer is even finished your that ready for it.
Are you one of the following?***
Think of your own! This list isn't comprehensive. The real message is here, don't armor up, suit up.
领英推荐
Don't armor up, suit up!
I challenge you to share which one you are with your LinkedIn network. Hashtag it up. Tag me in the comments so I can smash the like button for you. Show me your "suit".
Tomorrow I am going to share a resource I found helpful and you may also. It's full of questions asked at interviews so you can pre-contemplate how to approach tricky questions. Also what to ask and what it may reveal.
Till then, stay fantastic!
Bexs
*Resulting in scooby-doo-esque shenanigans as you wait to be unmasked by the interviewer.
**Shout out to Shannon Beasley (Shift Paradigm) and Matt Tanke (Galland Henning Nopak) for being ambassadors for your companies, even in an interview! Shout out to the companies for retaining such wonderful people and for putting emphasis on taking care of your employees. That is how it is done!
*I actually just saw HootSuite give a list of similar values in a job description that was sent to me and this idea came to me for this post so they deserve a shout-out for making their job descriptions dynamic enough to spark the content they didn't even intend it to. Also, shout out to Jeremy again for another great post that lead me down that bunny trail this morning.
Job Search Like a Project Manager Series:
Sales leader | SaaS - B2B - B2C | MBA | Data Analysis
2 年This has a lot to see with the first impression we give. We need to be ourselves. First impressions always remain forever.
PMO & Operations Expert with Measured Results | PMP, PMI-ACP, CSM | I help Customer Service Reps transition to joy in Project Management Careers
2 年Shout out to Jeremy Randall and his most recent post which contained Hootsuite as a recommendation, that then put me down a bunny trail of curiosity into how they handled their career page layout. Jeremy has great content so go click on his face and follow/connect!
PMO & Operations Expert with Measured Results | PMP, PMI-ACP, CSM | I help Customer Service Reps transition to joy in Project Management Careers
2 年Shout out to Shannon B. (Shift Paradigm) and Matt Tanke (Galland Henning Nopak, Inc.) for being ambassadors for your companies, even in an interview! Shout out to the companies for retaining such wonderful people and for putting emphasis on taking care of your employees. That is how it is done!