Standing Out in Job Interviews

Hi, I’m David Timis and my mission in life is to prepare people for the future of work.?

In this week’s edition of the newsletter the theme revolves around job interviews, a ritual every person goes through at least a couple of times in life. And while the word ‘ritual’ might mislead you to think it’s a peaceful, meditative activity, interviewing for a new role is probably the most daunting part of the entire job searching process. We can all remember the night before a big interview spending hours researching the prospective employer, reading news articles about the industry they’re in and blog posts authored by the CEO. We also spend a fair share of time prepping answers for the most predictable questions we might be asked, questions such as: What’s your biggest weakness? What’s your biggest strength? Why are you leaving your current job? Why do you want the advertised job? However, nailing a job interview takes more than reeling off some pre-cooked answers, and highlighting the best parts of your previous work experiences. You need to take the interviewer/interviewers on a journey to give them the chance to relate to you as a person. That journey is the genuine story you share about yourself. Below are some insights and thoughts that will help you share your authentic self and stand out during a job interview.?

Timeless Insight

“Where do you see yourself in five years?” is one of the most notorious job-interview questions of our time. I say it’s time to flip the script. With talent scarcity a top business concern, maybe job candidates should be asking the companies they are interviewing at, “where do you see yourself in five years?”?- Alain Dehaze, ex-CEO of The Adecco Group

In a post-pandemic world in which talent demand outstrips supply, candidates have more leverage than before in job interviews, and interviewers who cannot give the right answers will have trouble attracting the top talent to their organisation. Many of us have been asked at least once in our career, the most notorious interview question - “where do you see yourself in five years?” The answers we each gave at the time ranged from very specific to vague, but perhaps in the future, instead of only providing answers to the aforementioned question, candidates should follow-up with their own probing questions to employers. Below are the set of questions that Alain Dehaze , the former CEO of 德科集团 , suggested in a thought-provoking article written for the World Economic Forum :?

-”Do you have a truly flexible remote or hybrid work policy?”?

-“Do you encourage and support a healthy work/life balance?”??

-”How are you helping your employees grow professionally?”

-”How do you measure success in your organisation?”

-“Does your company take a stand on important societal issues?”????

-“What steps is your company taking to reduce its impact on the environment?”??

-”Where do you see your organisation in five years?”

-“Will you be an employer I’m proud to work for?”??

In a stretched job market in which talent demand outstrips supply, employers who cannot give the right answers to these set of questions will have trouble attracting the top talent.?

Food for Thought?

The job interview is the most ubiquitous part of the hiring process, and also the most daunting part. If we look back at our careers, we can all remember that one interview we were hoping to nail, which caused us to put a lot of pressure on ourselves to make a positive and memorable impression. However, standing out in a job interview takes more than preparation and practice. It takes being your authentic self, building rapport with the interviewers, and telling them a story about why you’re the perfect person for the role.?

That’s easier said than done. Instead of being ourselves in a job interview, most of us go on some sort of autopilot mode and repeat the answers we memorised the night before. Luckily, there are tactics that we can use to break this habit and become more authentic. After scouting the internet for some solutions, I stumbled upon the following article from the Harvard Business Review , which provides five very useful pieces of advice from their Ascend authors on how to stand out and share your authentic self during a job interview.?

1. Avoid talking about what you’re not - Sharing too much information about yourself can leave the interviewers with a lot of details but an unclear picture of who you really are. Instead, you should focus on sharing your authentic self by going over the following steps in the days leading to the interview. In this case, preparation and practice are essential:

• Write down your personality traits and connect them back to the skills mentioned in the job description of the role you’re applying for
• Ask yourself what does the company value?, what are your key strengths?, and how can you draw a connection between the two??
• Practice making your point in a confident way. Ideally, you should do this in front of a friend or a family member, or in front of the mirror

2. Tell a story about yourself - Personal stories are a powerful way to capture the attention of any audience, including that of the interviewers. If done well, a great story can help the interviewers see your values, skills, and purpose through a more intimate, personal lens.?This will enable you to build rapport with the interviewers, so they can relate to you and view you as a person, as opposed to just another candidate they’re interviewing for the role. Don’t be afraid to talk about difficult moments and how they’ve shaped you.

3. Allow yourself to be vulnerable - To make a genuine impression, you should make yourself relatable by balancing the stories you share about your achievements with a few stories describing challenges you’ve experienced, how you’ve overcome them, and what have you learned through those experiences. When you own up to the fact that you are not perfect (no human being is), when you admit that you’ve made mistakes in the past, and when you allow yourself to be vulnerable, you will stand out to the interviewers.??

4. Don’t hide who you are - You are a unique individual and you shouldn’t be afraid to show that. Too often, we try to fit into an organization’s idea of who they think we are. However, in the long-run, that’ not sustainable for ourselves or for the organisation itself. Our differences help us bring new ideas to the table, share fresh insights that others may not be able to tap into, and give the organization we aspire to work for a competitive edge.? If the organisation doesn’t respect your uniqueness, it might be better to look elsewhere.??

5. Pose thoughtful questions - When you’re job searching, you may spend a lot of time thinking about the role and the responsibilities you’re likely to take on, if successful. However, a company’s culture will define most of your experience in a new role. Therefore, to identify a healthy company culture, you can ask these questions during a job interview:??

• How do people give each other feedback on this team? And how often??
• How often do team members interact with the senior leaders of the organisation??
• How do you measure success in this team? And what are your key metrics?

Article of the Week?

Job Interviews Don’t Work?

Caricature of the Week

Source: Condé Nast

Thank you for reading and keep on growing!

David

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