interview Storytelling 101
Go from Awkward to...
AMAZING!
Nowadays Job Interviews often Feel Like a Marathon!
What with phone and online screening meets, behavioral essay questions and long applications, no closing dates on postings (very rude!), PowerPoint presentations, plus 1st, 2nd, 3rd and even 4th one-on-one to panel interviews... the list goes on and on. It's a minefield these days, navigating the increasingly complex Interview Obstacle Course!
Almost 20 years ago, as a recruiter, I would interview and test candidates all day, then hire the ones that stood out! When I moved into Human Resources, I continued developing my hiring/selection skills for another few years before I added "teaching" interview skills to employees (military members primarily) who had rarely ever had any other job interviews than the one they were hired from, 20+ years earlier. So we were starting from scratch.
Since I've hired hundreds of people, and write resumes which have also proven highly successful at getting my clients to their desired interviews, I believe I am very adept at knowing what employers are eager to find in a large pool of candidates.
It all hinges on HOW you tell your "Stories"!
As we've all come to call the answers given when we refer to behavioral questions -- which have become pretty much the standard go-to form now in today's highly competitive job interviews.
Well, since I like nothing better than figuring out a better way to do most things, I've developed a system that helps clients maximize their storytelling ability that -- even if I do say so myself -- works like a hot damn!
Behavioral Questions -- Transformed from Frustration to FLOW...
We begin with a one hour session that introduces you to my "formula" for answering just about any "tell me about a time..." or "give me an example of a time when..." question. From there we can plan for a few more strategy sessions to start brainstorming, honing in on and refining your personalized responses to a number of key scenarios.
Intertwined with that, I'll share my top tips on how to stand out, deliver and up your game to the Nth degree so they'll be eating out of your hand by the end of the meeting.
analysis
Predicting what's going to be asked isn't as hard as you might think! Most job postings -- I call it your "bible" -- give you all the clues you need to anticipate almost any direction your interviewers may take.
Story design
Designing and composing your "story" answers using my "3-step formula" can take a little time to get the hang of, but once you do, you can apply it to almost any question with massively improved results!
write - edit
As with all good writing, the real work takes place in the editing phase. This is where most people fall short and it can make all the difference in avoiding being the "close, but not quite" candidate!
engage
Once you know how to share your strengths in a non-boasty and professional way, the sky's the limit! This is one transferable skill you'll use almost daily, and apply to so many of your other career-growing activities.
