A Mistake That Could Cost You The Interview

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shot-putter-558158_1280Did I tell you about the time I blew a job interview? It was not my finest moment.

It was a phone interview, one I thought I had done well to prepare for. I had researched the company, made notes of questions to ask, and had practiced answers to potential questions the hiring manager might ask.

I felt so prepared that I turned out the lights and went out of town for the weekend.

On Monday morning I was still confident, opening my computer and by memory typing in the company website. With my resume on hand and other notes, I thought I was ready.

Everything was going well until the hiring manager asked me a question about a “crisis plan” and I began talking about the need for a global response, especially given the factory in India.

The silence on the other end was deafening.

“What are you talking about?” she barked.

Wondering why she was upset with me, I said, “The company’s overseas operations, I’m looking at right here on your website.”
Again, radio silence.

Apparently I had researched the wrong company.

In my defense, there was a one-letter difference between the two companies. And both happened to be in the same industry doing very similar work.

Still, the hiring manager was not amused. Nor impressed that I had done research.

The fault was mine and I lost the opportunity. All my preparation didn’t matter.

My one shot was gone.

Embarrassment sunk in. Humiliation. The agony of defeat.

My incorrect preparation was similar to an Olympic athlete who, after spending years preparing for the shot put event, arrived at the games to discover he had mistakenly entered the discus throw. While knowing everything about the shot put and being 100% prepared to compete, all the preparation in the world would not impress the judges if he could not throw the discus.

Thank goodness I was not competing in the Olympics with millions of people watching this drama unfold. Not to mention the weight of disappointing my countrymen either.

In many ways interviewing for a job is like preparing to compete in an Olympic event. You’ve got one shot at glory; if you make a mistake it could cost you the gold medal (job).

You may think I’m crazy, but consider this:

Preparation: Olympic athletes train and prepare for years for one moment to capture their dream of winning a medal. Job seekers have even less time to prepare a specific interview, however similar to athletes we are training every day for our next job. If you don’t see that you are kidding yourself. We should hone our craft, work on our skills and update our resumes so we are ready for that one moment when it really counts. Take time to assess your skills as they relate to your industry and jobs you might interview for – do you need to make improvements? Update your resume at least once a year with your accomplishments. And network constantly so you are ready when you want to make a career move.

Practice Makes Perfect: Olympic athletes are “in it to win it”. Their job leading up to the Olympics is to practice every day with the goal of doing better than the day before. Many job seekers prepare for networking events or interviews up to a point then stop, thinking they’ve “done enough”. Let me tell you it’s never enough and “winging it” is not a winning strategy. You’ve got to practice everything from your answers to knowing what you’re going to wear. Even practice smiling in front of a mirror. I’m not kidding, this really works.

Mental Focus: Athletes are masters at focusing on the job at hand and tuning out everything else in order to do their very best. Job seekers should laser-focus their attention on the interview: research the company, know in advance how you will answer potential interview questions and practice those answers out loud, develop your professional story that summarizes who you are instead of boring the hiring manager with every detail of your life. Before walking in to the interview, clear your head and refocus your mind – nothing else is important at that moment.

Preparation. Practice. Focus. These are key ingredients to success whether you’re an athlete or a job seeker.

And take it from me: make sure you have the correct spelling of the company as well as the correct website. Researching the wrong company is a mistake that could cost you the interview.

Show Don’t Tell: Interview Advice for Students

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loneranger[1]

Despite the snow and ice from the Siberian Express, technically its spring and college students are in full interview mode. Some are looking for summer internships while those ready for graduation are seeking full-time employment.

Because of this my phone and email are buzzing constantly with students seeking interview advice.

Biggest question I’ve gotten so far involves responding to the inevitable, “Tell me about yourself.”

So simple, yet complex at the same time, and something that so many stumble on.

The solution? We practice as if I was the interviewer. I ask the students to show me what they’ve got.

Responses include a variety of descriptive words that, in the students’ mind, give the interviewer a good picture of who they are.   I call them “fluffy” words. 

Fluffy words include “Determined”, “dedicated”, “detail-oriented”, “leader”, “passionate”, “risk-taker”, and “driven”.  The list is endless.

While these words may actually be true about the candidate, they don’t really help.  The interview needs to see the concept in action, not just hear the words.

What the interviewer needs is a good old-fashioned grade-school style “show and tell”.

I’m sure you remember show-and-tell.  It was fun to hear about Billy’s vacation to SeaWorld and that he was chosen to feed the dolphins.  But it became more impressive when he pulled out the framed photo of him standing on a platform with the trainer in front of the entire crowd with the dolphin in mid-air grabbing the fish from his hand.

The conviction or proof of your words is in the story that surrounds them. 

My favorite uncle was a real character (doesn’t everyone have such a relative?) who was the ultimate salesman.  He could sell ice to an Eskimo living in an igloo.

He was also a charmer who never met a stranger.  He would tell people that he was the Lone Ranger; it was his opening line.  Once he had their attention, he would prove his identity by pulling a silver bullet out of his pocket.  That was the Lone Ranger’s calling card; he always carried a silver bullet.

Just to be clear, my uncle was not the “real” Lone Ranger, despite carrying a silver bullet in his pocket.  In the world of sales, where building an honest relationship is important, this was his way of proving that he could be trusted.  “I told you I could prove I was the Lone Ranger with a silver bullet and I did”.

My advice to the students is to show the interviewer what they are capable of through short stories about their work.

Show how they are leaders: “As president of the engineering society, I managed an annual budget of $10,000 and led the direction of the student-run board, including decisions on fund raising, social activities, and hiring speakers.”

Sounds much better than “I am a proven leader on campus”.

The interviewer needs to understand what we’ve done; they want to see our fun vacation photos or see the proof that we’re the Lone Ranger.

Remember to show your experience to the interview. Don’t just tell it with fluffy words.

Flying Interview Questions

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Car 1

Ashton Cooper took a surprise hit as we were driving home.  That’s right; Ashton – my Mini Cooper Clubman – had a run-in on the highway with a large piece of flying debris.

We were enjoying a nice ride when suddenly out of nowhere a shredded tire flew right at us.  With just seconds to make a decision, I clutched the steering wheel and held on.  Good news, the piece of tire landed on the ground in front of us.  Bad news, we had to run over it.

Instantly I could tell Ashton was hurt.

He was shaking and different lights illuminated the dashboard. As I searched for an exit, I watched through the rear-view mirror as Ashton’s bumper flew out from under the car down the highway.

Sort of good news: Ashton was no longer shaking. Sigh.

We cruised to a pit-stop to assess the damage. I took photos and texted them to Hubby for a second opinion.

This was uncharted territory for me. Having never been in an accident of any kind (knock on wood) I was not experienced in this situation.  Not to mention I was just outside a small town about an hour from home.  It’s not like Hubby could drop everything to come get me or I could quickly ask my favorite auto mechanic what to do.

I had to think on my feet. And quickly.

So I did what anyone would do in a small town where you don’t know anyone: go to a busy restaurant and ask the manager for a reputable auto mechanic.

Worked like a charm.  After securing what was left of the bumper, the mechanic assured me that Ashton was good to drive home.

Flying objects coming straight towards you are no fun.  Although I’m glad to know that I was able to deal with it; the experience taught me to quickly assess the situation and stay calm under pressure.

Sometimes job interviews sling a flying object or two at candidates, with random questions coming out of nowhere that might catch us off guard.  We only have seconds to develop an appropriate response or risk being left out of the prospective hiring candidate pool.

Happened to me once, after three hours of interviewing with multiple people.  The final interviewer wanted a numerical answer on the spot to the question, “How many gas stations are there in the United States?”

Never. Saw. It. Coming.

Luckily I realized he was more interested in my ability to think logically than actually knowing the correct number of gas stations. I explained my thought process and gave him a number.  He was happy with my answer, enough so that I received a job offer.

I’ve never forgotten that lesson: to be prepared for unexpected flying interview questions. 

How do you prepare? Ask friends and family to help. Share questions that each of you have experienced during interviews to learn from each other.  The last thing anyone wants is to be all “deer-in-the-headlights” when a random question strikes.

It’s important to note that such questions may appear to fly out from left field, with no relevance whatsoever. Yet they are asked for a reason; there is a “question behind the question”.  Treat them as seriously as the rest of the interview.

Ashton and I were very happy to get home.  He’s seen a couple of car doctors who assure us they can repair the damage caused by the flying tire.  Which is great because I’ll need him to drive me to interviews.

Practice Makes Perfect

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Chocolate Cake Slice with Raspberries

“You are a ROCK STAR!” read the text from my PR guy.  Yes, PR people have PR people – it’s a real thing; look it up.

“That was awesome; you did great!” read an email from someone else.  “I can’t wait to watch the video,” said Hubby, who happened to miss the entire thing.

I may charge Hubby a fee for missing it. He claims being on an airplane is a good excuse.

The “It” I’m talking about was my first live online video chat through Google Hangout for the website Resume Edge. The topic was “How to Bounce Back After a Job Loss”, something I discuss when I’m invited to speak to various groups and a subject I’m very familiar with.

Why was I so nervous going into the Hangout?  Maybe it was it because this was my first time using this platform.  It’s always intimidating to try new technology for the first time – with everyone watching – and no IT guy nearby in case I needed help.  Maybe my nerves were acting up because I would have to think on the fly to answer questions as they came in.  Who knows?

So what does a good presenter do in such a situation? Have a Plan B.  And C.  And D, if you think you might need it.

Boy did I have back up plans!  My iPad was charged up and standing by in case my laptop failed me.  My smart phone was on the desk just in case.  I had my notes open side-by-side with the Hangout app so I could see both screens.  If all else failed, I planned to pick up my laptop with the built-in webcam and give everyone a tour of my house, hoping they would be confused and think they tuned in to HGTV or something.

You’d think I was some sort of Hangout savant.

Yet none of my back-up plans were necessary.  Things went smoothly.  Easy-peasy. Piece of cake.

Truth be told, the reason it went so smoothly was that I practiced.  A lot.

First I reviewed all of my presentations on the subject, taking notes and thinking about possible questions that may be asked.  Hubby assisted by randomly throwing questions at me at different times of day to see if I could answer intelligently.  He’s such a helper.

Next, I scheduled a Hangout with my PR guy to test the technology.  Good thing, too, since we quickly discovered that my computer’s internal microphone wasn’t working.  Yikes.  That would have been awful for everyone except those who could read lips.

Once I got the mic working, I spent hours practicing in front of my webcam. Rehearsing as if this were the real-deal.   Also gave me a chance to make sure the lighting was right and the background looked good.

All of the dress-rehearsals paid off.  There were some tech issues – the Hangout kept telling me I needed to login when I was already logged in – but like any good actor I just kept going.  I figured I was either doing a great job, or if I was talking to no one I’d get a text telling me they could no longer see me on the screen.

Practice.  No one likes to do it yet it can pay off in the end.  I am certainly not a fan of talking to myself in front of a video camera.  Boy, am I glad I did.

Same thing applies when you prepare for a job interview.  Practice answering interview questions – out loud.  There’s nothing like having to say the words.   At the very least prepare a list of possible questions you might be asked, then type out your answers.  If nothing else, you will have given it some thought and will not be “winging it”.

Practice allows you to enter the interview with confidence.  If you’re thrown a curveball question, it’s easier to respond.  True, the answer may not be perfect yet imagine what might happen if you tried to “wing it” in this situation?

Practice, people!  It’s what you should do.

Fainting Is Not An Option

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interview pic

As a PR person, I’m no stranger to media interviews.  Sometimes I have the benefit of knowing the questions in advance and can carefully prepare my response.  Many times, though, I only have a high-level overview of what we will discuss.

Such was the situation with a recent radio interview I did.  I was told the host wanted to discuss job searches. 

That was it.  All the information I was given ahead of time: the job search.  Okay, I did get the time of the interview and the name of the host as well as the name of the show. But nothing more.

Job searches, lay-offs, reinventing yourself, interviewing tips. Talk about wide-open!  My mind raced with the different directions this conversation could go.

Normally I’m pretty cool under media interview pressure.  This time I was a giant bundle of sweat. Thank goodness we were not on Skype where they could see me.  Why was I so nervous? This time, it was personal – it was about me, my experience and my book.  The pressure I felt to “get it right” was overwhelming.

It might have helped to do the interview in-person instead of over the phone.  But the show was three states away so the phone was our best option.

Did I mention this was live?  No do-over if I messed up.

Yes, I had prepared.  In fact my Girl Scout instincts kicked into high-gear and I probably over-prepared. I tried to imagine possible questions and developed answers just in case, even typing them out so I could have them in front of me.   Information about the interviewer, recent government job statistics and my resume were at my finger tips, held in place by sticky notes with reminders to mention my name, my book and my website.

And like any good Girl Scout, I had emergency s’mores on hand just in case.

Secretly I wondered if the radio host had sticky notes about me in front of her.  Now that would have made me feel a bit better!  But listening to the earlier part of her show, it sounded like she was cool as a cucumber.

I knew I had only one shot at getting this right.  All I could think of when the interview started was, “Breathe – fainting is not an option!”

Being prepared was definitely a necessity.  The time and energy I spent preparing was key to making the interview sound easy, almost un-rehearsed.  I knew the key points I wanted to get across above all else: my name, my book and my website.

My preparation for the radio interview was really no different than preparing for a job interview.  We all should know our resumes like the back of our hand, have some career highlights to share and have questions to ask the interviewer. Above all, we should know exactly what key points we want to get across in order to leave a great impression.

The radio interview went very well.  My four-legged executive assistant managed to be quiet and the doorbell didn’t ring.  I remembered my key points. And no, I did not faint.

I rewarded myself by eating the emergency s’mores.  Now that’s success!