What Are Employers Really Looking For?

Dear Liz,

I am at my wits' end with my job search. I wish I knew what employers are looking for. In one case I got a phone interview and the interviewer was very nice, but at the end of the call she said "We need someone with more supervisory experience."

I understood that because the only supervisory experience I have was three months when my manager was out on leave. Then two weeks later I got called in for a face to face interview in a different company and it went well, but I got a no-thanks letter. I didn't get a reason.

Now I have another interview coming up and I'm wracking my brain to think "What qualities should I emphasize on the interview?" I don't know what to say about myself because I don't know what employers are looking for. I've heard a lot of different things.

I've read that the most important thing on a job interview is to talk about problem-solving experience and I have a lot of that. Other people say no, the most important thing is to talk about your values. How would you even bring that up? I am confused. Please help me, Liz! I trust your advice more than anyone's.

Thanks,

Morgan

Dear Morgan,

You will drive yourself crazy worrying about what hiring managers want, and all that worry and stress won't help you! There is no such group as "hiring managers." Every hiring manager is different. Each manager has his or her own likes and dislikes and priorities, the way we all do.

Even if you tried, you couldn't be the perfect candidate for every single manager or even the majority of them. On top of that, why would you want to try to be somebody other than the amazing, one-of-a-kind person you are?

You had a fantastic phone interview and the recruiter told you that you were only missing one thing (supervisory experience) that the company felt it needed. The truth is you probably would have done a great job, but that's okay -- only the people who get you deserve you, Morgan! That phone interview was a triumph, not a flop.

You had a great face-to-face interview and you didn't get that job. That doesn't mean you failed.  You have to stop looking at a job interview that doesn't result in a job offer as a failure on your part.

If you set yourself up to see every interview that doesn't get you a job offer as a slip-up, you will have a hard time maintaining the mojo level you need to land the job you deserve!

We have been served up a lot of toxic lemonade over the years, and one of the biggest lies we've been told is that our goal on a job interview is always the same: to get the job offer. That's not true!

There is no way to fail on a job interview, assuming you bring your best to the meeting. All you can do on a job interview is learn more about yourself and other people. That's a good thing, whether you get the job or not!

Sometimes you'll go on an interview and realize that you wouldn't take the job for all the money in the world. You are not a lowly job-seeker desperate for someone to find you acceptable. You are in search of people who resonate at your frequency -- those are the only people you have time for! 

If you want a focal point and a mission for your next job interview, make it your mission to learn about the business problem, what we at Human Workplace call Business Pain, behind the job ad. You will zero in on that Business Pain by researching the company before your interview. I don't want you to talk about your values or your virtues or your best qualities.

If you met someone for coffee, would you tell that person what you feel your best qualities are? No way! That would be very socially awkward. It would be groveling, and you are way too smart and cool and self-assured to do that.

You would ask your coffee partner about his or her life. That's what you'll do when you meet your next hiring manager on an interview, and the one after that, and so on until you accept a job offer!

You don't have to please anyone or change anything in your interviewing approach, Morgan, except to stop worrying about what hiring managers want and worrying about your interviews generally. You've had two great interviews already and you have another one coming up. You can be proud of yourself! 

Most job-seekers have different problem. They can't get job interviews. You can -- be happy about that!

You will never please everyone, so go to your next interview with the idea that you're there to check out the organization and its people, the same way they are checking you out.

You have nothing to prove, nothing to hide and no one to impress. The right people will be overjoyed to get you on their team. 

Beneath this column you'll find resources that will help you as you research your next prospective employer. Your careful research will help your muscles grow.

The more prepared you are for your upcoming interview, the more confident you will be and the more easily your wonderful, natural Morgan-ness will show itself in the interview. We are cheering you on from the sidelines! 

Best,

Liz

Articles By Liz Ryan About Researching An Employer Before a Job Interview

• Nine Ways to Research Prospective Employers 
• How to Research an Employer Before a Job Interview
• Fifteen Interview Questions to Ask Your Next Boss
• Ten Tips to Ace Your Next Job Interview

Questions and Answers

Who draws the images for Liz Ryan's stories?

Liz draws them.

How does she have time to draw them?

How does anyone have time to do anything? Liz is passionate about her mission.

What is her mission?

Our mission at Human Workplace is to reinvent work for people.

Why does work need to be reinvented?

It is broken! It is too mechanical and too dry. People are required to fit into the structure of work, but work should be designed around the people who perform the work. Too many jobs dim people's flames. That is economically foolish and bad business. People are vibrant and creative and resourceful far beyond what their job descriptions require or even allow. We are reinventing work to celebrate and exalt the amazing talents of people, who operate very differently from machines!

How is the mission going?

Wonderfully! We are grateful that 30 million people read Liz Ryan's columns. We are delighted that Liz's column on Forbes.com generated four million page views in January. Thanks for spreading the word about the Human Workplace movement!

How can I learn to interview more effectively?

Check out the Four-Week Virtual Course Interviewing with MOJO or the intensive 12-Week Edition of Interviewing with MOJO!

This month, our virtual course members get awesome FREE GIFTS! Read about them here! 

Reach us with your questions here!