Interviewing Like a Deer in the Headlights?

Let's face it, interviewing can be nerve racking just like a casting call.

Unlike a casting call, its not a short performance where they yell, 'Next', and you're out of there, you usually have 30 to 45 minutes to make your case.

Liz Ryan once said, the worst thing you can do in an interview is to be a totally forgettable candidate.

In other words, you can be polite, smile and dress appropriately but...

...unless you give them a reason to remember you, you're history before you walk out the door.

Keep in mind, interviewing is hard for both the candidate and the hiring manager

While you're worrying about whether you'll do well enough to get the job, the hiring manager, who is frequently not the most experienced interviewer, is thinking to herself,

Great, I have 30 minutes to make a decision that could impact my entire career. Why didn't I become a doctor like my parents wanted?

That's right, the hiring manager knows she will be judged based on the quality of her decision.

She also knows that the quality of her decision will impact her ability to meet this year's objectives.

Wow, a double whammy!

There is a way to make interviewing easier for the hiring manager and for you.

Here's how I did it...

When I was asked that all important question,

Tell me about yourself.

I replied, the best way to get to know me is to hear my achievement stories.

What is an Achievement Story?

Achievement stories contain four parts...

Situation

First you provide the context of what was happening. This is the before picture, namely what was going on at the time.

Obstacles

These are the issues and problems you were encountering. Interviewers like this because you illustrate what you had to overcome.

Action

This is where you explain what you did to overcome these issues and problems.

Results

This is where you share the outcome of your action – both quantitatively and qualitatively. (1)

Why Achievement Stories Help You In Interviews...

Achievement stories are exactly what the hiring manager wants to hear...

...Because your Achievement stories tell the hiring manager what she can expect from you if she hires you.

Achievement stories are also the best way to share your accomplishments. 

How Achievement Stories Help You...

According to a recent Harvard Business Review (HBR) article (2) on the impact of stories,

  “When you want to motivate, persuade, or be remembered, start with a story of human struggle and eventual triumph. It will capture people’s hearts – by first attracting their brains.”

Another HBR article (3) stated,

“People are attracted to stories…because we’re social creatures and we relate to other people.”

Achievement Story Example I

Here’s an example from my career:

Situation

In my department one of the things we did was implement products in the Sales systems. 

Obstacles

I observed how speed was the top priority. I also knew there weren't a lot of controls in the process.

Action

Knowing my concern alone, would not change things, I started an audit. 

Results

I uncovered a product where the customer had paid us for three years straight, however because it wasn't implemented correctly we never recognized the revenue. Working with Finance we were able to recognize $7.2M that year. That revenue went straight to the bottom line because the costs had already been incurred.

The other positive outcome was people now understood this was an issue that had to be addressed. As a result, a new process was established where I had to approve the coding for each new product. In addition, the discovery of this error made the coding folks significantly more careful going forward. 

Achievement Story Example II

Situation

I joined a department of product managers, product managers who were measured on the profitability of their products. There was just one thing. There was no reporting to tell them how they were doing.

Obstacle

Finance was only interested in reporting total revenue. They weren’t interested in reporting revenue at the product level, the level of detail needed by the product managers to do their job. What was worse, no one was taking any action to address this issue. 

Action

I did some investigating. I spoke with folks familiar with existing reporting.

Result

I discovered a report created to process journal entries. The report provided the level of detail needed by the product managers to understand the success of their products.

I generated this report for many years, giving the product managers visibility to the success or lack of success of their products. In other words, the product managers could finally do their job; they could finally make fact-based decisions. They could quickly see which products were succeeding and which were bombing. This was a great success for the department.

More Benefits of Achievement Stories

One of the great things about achievement stories is interviewers are usually more than happy to let you share one story after another. Of course, I always ask if I can go on. The average interviewer is not comfortable interviewing so when you’re sharing stories, they’re off the hook because you're filling that time.

How Enthusiasm Can Multiply The Impact of Achievement Stories

Someone once said,

"Enthusiasm glows, radiates, permeates and immediately captures everyone's interest." 

Because I've enjoyed the work I've done. Because I've enjoyed solving these problems, when I share these stories my enthusiasm captures everyone's interest.

When the hiring manager sees your enthusiasm. She’ll like the fact that you are excited about your work. She’ll also find you hard to forget.

I had 17 stories in my last interview. I’m not saying I had the chance to share them all, but I did share many of them. 

I also took hard copies of my achievement stories so I could refer to them in the interview. I later offered these hard copies to the hiring manager.

*****

Clark Finnical is a Career Expert and author. Clark's first book, Job Hunting Secrets (from someone who's been there), was published in 2017. LinkedIn Strategies to Take Your Career to the Next Level was published last year. Clark is currently writing, 'Over 50 and Out of Work, the Inside Scoop on Overcoming Ageism'.

Feel free to send me a LinkedIn invite if we're not connected.

Happy Saturday!

(1.) The S.O.A.R. Answer Model. https://www.humanresources.com/491/the-soar-answer-model/

(2.) Why Your Brain Loves Good Storytelling. Paul J. Zak https://hbr.org/2014/10/why-your-brain-loves-good-storytelling

(3.) The Irresistible Power of Storytelling as a Strategic Business Tool. Harrison Monarth. https://hbr.org/2014/03/the-irresistible-power-of-storytelling-as-a-strategic-business-tool