Say Goodbye to Interview Anxiety: ChatGPT Can Help You Prepare for Anything the Interviewer Throws Your Way!

Have you ever left a job interview feeling like you bombed it?

I have.

You replay every question and answer in your head, wondering how you could have responded differently. You spend the next few days or weeks anxiously waiting for a response, but deep down you know it's not going to be good. It's a terrible feeling to know that you blew your one shot and didn't perform up to your potential. But what if there was a way to erase this situation? What if you could take control of your interview fate and confidently walk into any job interview knowing that you're fully prepared to impress your interviewer? With #chatgpt and a little practice, you can turn your interview anxiety into interview success.

STEP 1: Use a single Chat string. Start a new string and let Chat know exactly what this conversation will be about. I started with: PROMPT: Chat, for this entire chat string, you are "Chuck: Awesome Interview Coach" a supportive but strict coach who will guide me to interview success. I want you to correct my responses to a series of interview questions. I will type in the question and then type my response. Your job as my interview coach is to comment on my form, tone, completeness of response and also give me pointers on how I might answer the question better. Remember, I believe feedback is a gift and I'm interviewing for a job as a management consultant at a retail organization. Ready?

I immediately started firing off interview questions to myself and typing in my responses, and Chuck's coaching and suggestions for improvement were good, but not great. So I paused, and added...

STEP 2: Feed Chat as much information as possible to personalize your responses. PROMPT: Chuck, I want you to know me personally. How do I build an exact user profile of myself within ChatGPT so that your responses are targeted to me, my experiences, and my personality?

RESPONSE:

Ahhh - the dreaded "As an AI language model..." response. You get these from time to time, and essentially this means you're not getting exactly what you asked for. Chuck did provide a short list or recommendations, but I wasn't satisfied. So I added:

BINGO. That's the ticket.

STEP 3: Copy and paste in everything Chat asked for. This included three paragraphs of my career goals, aspirations and where I see myself in the future. I was reminded of a presentation by Nicole Nieves I recently attended. She asked the audience to confront tough questions: "What sets your soul on fire?" and "What long term impact do you want to make through your gifts and life's work?" Deep.

To fulfill number 4, this included a collection of S.P.A.R. stories about some of my top Set-up, Problem, Action, Result experiences - we covered these a bit in Newsletter 1 and more on these next week.

RESULTS:

ME: Tell me about yourself.

My name is Mark Villalovos, I've worked in leadership for various retailers for over 25 years. I have led Marketing, Operations, Communications, Customer Experience and store teams. My career highlights include 18 years with the Walt Disney Company where I led the Guest Experience team on an award winning store design project.

CHUCK: Great start, Mark! You introduced yourself clearly and concisely, highlighting your relevant experience in leadership positions in the retail industry. It's great that you mentioned the specific areas you have experience in, such as marketing, operations, communications, and customer experience.

To improve your answer, you could add a bit more about what drives you and what you're passionate about in your work. You could also mention any particular achievements or awards that demonstrate your strengths as a leader. Finally, it's a good idea to relate your experience to the specific role you're interviewing for, such as how your previous experience could help you succeed as a management consultant at a retail organization.

ME: Why should I hire you?

I love this question. You should hire me because from what I've read in your job description, you are looking for someone with both field and corporate operations experience. I know that in order for operations to improve, there are software upgrades that are implemented with regularity. This often causes stress and uneasiness with our field teams - I've worked on both sides. I am truly empathetic with our front-line teams and I am a champion of their cause, applying pressure on our Product Development teams to ensure that all operational improvements are tested to perfection prior to implementation.

CHUCK: Great answer, Mark! You showed that you have read the job description and understand what the organization is looking for in a management consultant.

You also emphasized your experience in both field and corporate operations, which is an asset for the position. Additionally, you mentioned your empathy towards the front line teams, which is an important trait for a consultant who will be working closely with various teams within the organization.

To improve your answer, you could further elaborate on your specific achievements or experiences that showcase your ability to handle software upgrades and the related challenges that come with it. You could also mention any relevant technical skills or certifications that you possess that would make you an even stronger candidate for the role.

ME: Tell me about a situation when your work was criticized.

Hmmm... I do recall a video project that I wrote, produced, and acted in. It was a hype video for a new culture building program that my team and I had produced. We wanted the field teams to be excited about its arrival and provide motivation for them to complete the program once it arrived. Our field teams are made up of 20 and 30-somethings, and I did an in-depth study of top YouTube creator MrBeast. I studied what made his videos so popular, and emulated his writing, filming, music, and acting styles. The CMO called our film "corny", but that film was the number 3 most watched video of 2022 and was number one in both Likes and Comments.

CHUCK: Interesting story, Mark! You provided a specific example of a video project that you were involved in, and how it was criticized by the CMO. It's great that you were able to turn the criticism into a positive outcome, as the video was very popular with the field teams.

To improve your answer, you could provide more context on why the CMO criticized the video. Did they provide any specific feedback on what they didn't like about it? Additionally, you could mention how you responded to the criticism, such as if you took any specific actions to address the CMO's concerns or if you used the criticism as a learning opportunity to improve your future work. This will help demonstrate your ability to handle criticism constructively and use it to grow and improve.

I practiced this with 7 additional questions. Notice that in each case, there were tips on how I might improve my answer (like I asked for), all designed to reflect what an interviewer would find valuable in your answers. How? I asked Chuck how he became such an expert interview coach.

CHUCK: As a large language model, I have the ability to assist coaches, consultants, trainers, and mentors in a variety of ways. With my vast knowledge and understanding of different subjects, I can provide insights, resources, and tools to help job seekers achieve success.

Crazy. But of course, it's always best to double check Chat. I plugged this response into Google and got this article by Divya Shlokam ?? ????? ?????? on LinkedIn.

In addition to using ChatGPT, it's important for job seekers to have a clear understanding of their career goals and aspirations, as well as polished and practiced S.P.A.R. stories, which can help you stand out during the interview process.

Remember, interviews can be nerve-wracking, but with the right preparation and support, you can turn your interview anxiety into interview success and I can help! Reach out to me if you'd like some one-on-one coaching. I've now helped nearly a dozen clients use ChatGPT to turbocharge their job search. DM me and we'll connect. BONUS! If you DM me your email address with a note, I'll send you the article, "How to Answer The 64 Toughest Interview Questions." Finally, please share your thoughts, criticisms, and ideas in the Comments below! #interviewtips , #jobsearch , #careeradvice , #jobinterview