This is what a young client asked me many years ago, exhausted, at the end of our job interview training. It was the question that summarised everything after two hours of hard work. «Yes, actually, you should be!» I replied tiredly – I was also at the end of my energy. What had happened?
Paul (name changed) booked a job interview training with me in preparation for an upcoming job interview. It was for a position with representative duties at a renowned organisation that enjoyed a high reputation in society. Paul made a very nervous impression.
The first interview question I asked him was to tell me something about himself. In a solemn tone, he said what an honour it would be for him to represent this organisation and how it would fill him with pride to work for them. I thought I could hear the faint sound of fanfares. He seemed like a schoolboy reciting a poem with stage fright.
If you’re beside yourself, you look fake
I must have looked at Paul, completely dumbfounded, because he became increasingly nervous. Finally, I interrupted him. I gave him feedback on how unnatural he came across and that he would never communicate like that in everyday life, neither in terms of content nor manner. In his disappointment at my feedback, he gesticulated and replied that he couldn’t communicate in a way that reflected his personality. After all, he had southern roots, and his temperament was inappropriate in a job interview. Now I was convinced by him: what a great, lively person!
I advised him to communicate in the same way in the job interview. At best, he could keep the radius of his gesticulation a little narrower. But keeping his hands still on the table like a good schoolboy was out of the question for him. After all, he needs them to express himself, as I described in the article «What do I do with my hands in a job interview?».
Have the courage to show yourself
Now it was Paul who looked at me in amazement. I needed my entire rhetorical repertoire to at least convince him to some extent – as the opening question shows.
As the session progressed, we did some storytelling so that he could communicate his qualities in the interview. He told me a story in which his smart and intrepid nature became apparent in a way that made me laugh out loud.
To summarise, I advised him to show himself personally in the job interview and to communicate in a way that suited his temperament within the context of the applicant role. Above all, however, he should tell his funny story if he could somehow manage it. The way Paul looked at me, he probably thought I had taken leave of my senses.
I didn’t hear from him for a long time and was afraid he hadn’t got the job. A few weeks later, he informed me by e-mail that he had signed the employment contract. The interviews had been successful. He also told the funny story, and his interviewers were bursting with laughter.
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