While you're probably beset by some anxieties
unique to your personal psychology, your letter also reflects
the type of feelings felt by many interviewers, young and
old alike. Look at your emphasis on "the right answers,"
on "turning the tables," on getting the upper
hand…on winning. Evidently you approach each interview
as it it's a test. An adversarial proceeding. An inquisition.
A desperate quest for a passing grade. When it comes to
interviews, you perceive yourself as relatively powerless.
The interviewer is driving, you're being driven. He's the
decision-maker, he's in control. No one likes to feel out
of control, so your natural tendency is to try to hide your
sense of powerlessness. But that can be nerve-wracking:
You might get found out! Your slip may show! Your answer
to an important question may trigger gales of mocking laughter!
Grab 'Em by the Lapels
I've seen articles that urge the opposite tactic: Take control!
Grab the reins, "manage the interview," make them
play by your rules. I can't agree. This approach almost
bombs out, even for aggressive risk-takers. With your worries
about presentation style percolating just below the surface,
a show of bravado would look forced and ring hollow. Practice
your swagger a hundred times and it still won't convince.
So what's the alternative? Try to change your basic mindset.
Think of it this way: A successful interview is more than
just a sales pitch geared to getting an offer. It's a collaborative
process intended to provide both parties -- employer and
employee-- with the information they need to make an informed,
intelligent, accurate decision about whether they should
work with each other. I've seen a lot of people who "won"
an interview, only to find themselves in jobs that differ
horribly form their expectations. In short, these people
got so caught up in selling themselves that they forgot
to buy.
Don't start selling your virtues before you know what the
person is buying
Everyone wants a job that's a good "fit."
But what is "fit," anyway? How do you convince
the interviewer that you would be more productive, easier
to manage and more enjoyable to work with than your competitors
- particularly when he often isn't doing such a hot job
of communicating his own needs and wants? Unless you are
in a skillfully-executed screening interview conducted by
a trained human resources expert, chances are you'll have
to field some dumb questions, vague questions, questions
to which the interviewer himself doesn't know the desired
answer. It sometimes is hard to "connect" in a
hiring interview-- not because the interviewer is out to
give you a hard time, but because he often isn't any more
skilled at eliciting and providing information than you
are.
The Magic Strategy
A simple bit of strategy can foster a collaborative tone
in almost any interview. Forget the rehearsed answers and
canned, planned responses. Instead, remember these three
words: MATCH NEEDS NOW.
In other words, FIRST do all you can (preferably before
the interview, but, if need be, during the interview) to
find out about the interviewer's most immediate needs and
priorities. THEN, match your skills, background, aptitudes
and personality to his needs. Don't start selling your many
virtues before you have the best possible information about
what the person is buying. As one recruiter I know put it.
"If you're a smorgasbord and I want a grape, sell me
a grape."
If your whole attitude reflects a determination to identify
and meet the interviewer's needs and priorities (rather
than simply to give polished answers to his questions),
you will engage his interest. A dialogue may ensue. A discussion.
A conversation Gives and take, instead of pitch and hit.
Even before it's "your turn to ask questions,"
you may find yourself spontaneously asking for information
and clarification to pinpoint his needs better so you can
match yourself to them better.
Consider the classic dumb question that starts off many
interviews: "Well Len, tell me about yourself."
Gulp. You have no idea what he wants. Your philosophy? Your
priorities? A description of the time you won the swim meet
when you were eight? Clearly, there's at least one bad answer:
"What do you want to know?" (Translations: "Your
question is so stupid I can't even attempt to answer it.")
Or you can try a "Sominex" answer: "I am
a civil engineer with over 14 years of diverse project management
experience in building water systems."
Or you come to him with the "Match Needs Now"
type of answer: Probably the most relevant way to answer
that, Mr. Jones is in terms of the priorities suggested
in your ad. Now, as I understand it, you have an immediate
need for someone who can manage your desalinization project
in Saudi Arabia. This looks like a particularly good fit
for my skills and experience. It's a lot like the project
I handled in the Sudan, Where we built a water treatment
plant using local labor under difficult political conditions.
See? Don't talk about your priorities. Talk about your ability
to help the interviewer out with his priorities. If you
don't have enough information upon which to build your match,
ask for more before you try to create that sense of fit:
I'd like to tell you about myself, Mr. Jones, but I think
the most relevant way to do that is to describe my skills
and potential contributions in terms of your needs. The
problem is, I don't have a clear understanding from your
ad of what the job is all about. So that I can give you
a better answer, could you first tell me a little bit more
about the needs and priorities this job will address?
Let's try another question "Okay, Elmo, out of all
the applicants, why should I hire you for this job."
Mr. Jones, what the recruiter tells me about this job, I
gather that first and foremost you need someone who can
get into the field, troubleshoot problems with slumping
sales and morale and provide practical leadership. Of all
things I've done in my 10 years of sales management, fighting
fires in the field is the thing I've enjoyed most and achieved
the best results doing. That's why I was so enthusiastic
about this opportunity when the recruiter called. Your needs
really match my greatest strengths.
Managing The Match
My experience suggests that it's almost impossible to overuse
the word "match" in an interview. I don't recommend
giving exactly the same answer to every questions you're
asked, but you'll be surprised at how consistently responsive
your answers sound if you focus on selling those attributes
for which the buyer has suggested an immediate need. (And
by the way, expressing your enthusiasm never hurts; a number
of interviewees seem to think it's illegal to crack a smile
or state that this looks like a neat job that they would
really like.)
Finally, Match Needs Now is a good strategy for fielding
those unpleasant questions about your shortcomings: "Well,
Ned, you seem to have many strengths. Tell me, what do you
think are your weaknesses?" "I've heard a number
of techniques for handling this hot potato. For example,
the candor and confession approach:
Well, to be frank, Mr. Jones, I don't manage time very well,
I have trouble delegating, I can't relate to authority figures
and my handwriting stinks. But I want to be honest with
you because we're being so collaborative here.
No doubt your candor will be praised highly as he shows
you the door and ushers in the next candidate. Or there's
the technique of describing strengths as if they were weaknesses.
Well, Mr. Jones, my staff would tell you that when the stakes
are high and the deadlines tight. I really tend to get tough
and demanding. Not unfair, but I insist on performance.
Yes sir, I can be a real hard driver.
Why run the risk of provoking a contemptuous snort when
Match Needs Now provides a far more satisfying answer? Mr.
Jones, I think I have a pretty clear understanding of what
this job calls for in terms of skills and experience. I
suppose we all have some shortcomings, but I honestly can't
think of any I have that would affect my ability to perform
this job extremely well. This looks like a great match and
that's why I'm so excited about it.
It helps, of course, if this last answer is true. I see
no point in claiming a match simply to help you get a job
you suspect may in fact not be a good match. The truth underlying
Match Needs Now is that it addresses an interviewer's core
concerns (Can you perform? Are you motivated? Are you easy
to manage? Should I worry?). It doesn't merely supply pat
answers to questions that may or may not accurately reflect
those concerns. The idea is to help someone interview you,
to foster sharing of information, to clarify vague points
and to make the interview a prototype for the candid and
collaborative relationship you and the hiring manager would
enjoy if you were hired.
Author: Douglas B. Richardson
Article courtesy of: National Business Employment Weekly
top
of page
