ESSENTIAL INTERVIEW SKILLSETS

No matter the situation in life, you are going to have to be able to articulate your story to the audience you are engaging (and it should be adapted to your audience depending on what you are trying to accomplish). In this particular situation, it just happens to be an interview.

Self Confidence

Confidence is key when communicating in a business setting. Communicating in a clear and concise manner is key to show confidence. With that being said, communicating too much detail can look like rambling and look as if you do not have an objective with your communication which can be detrimental. Particularly within an interview setting, it gives the perception of one of two things:

1. You lack the ability to structure a clear and concise answer.
2. You are dancing around an answer trying to figure out what the interviewer wants to hear.

Each of these situations are equally bad and shows a gap in good communication skills. I recommend keep the following in mind while preparing for the interview:

1. Unfornutately every question cannot be predicted and you will have to learn how to field questions that you have not prepared for in advance.
2. Trying to anticipate the answer the interviewer is looking for is a loosing strategy. This is because if it is not clear what the interviewer wants to know, then the ambiguity in the question is usually a lack of interviewing experience on the interviewer's side. It is best to clarify the intention if you are not clear or answer it according to your knowledge/experience.

Communication Exchanges That Reduce The Perception Of Confidence

1. Over-apologizing for everything
• This manifests as a sign of low self-esteem, guilt or shame.
• Apologize only when you’ve truly made a mistake.
2. Constantly looking for external validation
• Relying on approval from others shows uncertainty in yourself.
• Trust your instincts and make decisions confidently, without needing external validation.
3. Over-explaining yourself
• Over-explaining shows doubt and lack of confidence in your decisions.
• Keep your message clear and concise. Don’t feel the need to justify everything.
4. Avoiding eye contact
• Not making eye contact shows insecurity.
• Make eye contact during conversations. Start small and try it in one conversation today.
5. Not accepting compliments
• Rejecting compliments signals low self-worth. Embrace your strengths.
• Accept compliments graciously with a simple "thank you.”
6. Focusing on what you lack
• Focusing on what you don’t have fuels negativity and jealousy.
• Spend 2 minutes a day practicing gratitude.
7. Not setting boundaries
• People-pleasing makes you appear weak and easily manipulated.
• Learn to say no when something doesn’t align with your values.
8. Avoiding difficult conversations
• Avoiding tough conversations makes you look passive.
• Be the one to initiate difficult talks with compassion, facts, and without blame.
9. Not dressing appropriately
• Clothes are an expression of individuality, but they must also be appropriate.
• Dress in a way that makes you feel both confident and capable, suited to the situation (e.g. job interview).

Ways to Improve Your Credibility When Communicating

Consider changing the following phrases to supercharge your credibility.

• "To be honest…”
• Implies you weren’t honest before.
• Instead Say: "Here’s my perspective on this.”
• That’s not my job.”
• Comes across as dismissive & unwilling to contribute.
• Instead Say: "Here’s what I can do to support this.”

Self Awareness

There are four particular areas to be sensitive of when engaging in an interview (both formal and informal):

1. Your mannerisms.
2. Your etiquette.
3. Your attitude.
4. The topics you choose to dicuss.

Subjects to Avoid (During a Job Interview)

An easy way to think about this is to assume that you are being observed by those trying to envision whether they would be comfortable having you engage with a client on an important level.

With this being said, in general the following are areas to avoid:
• Do not talk about issues that can be controverial (i.e. politics, religion, etc.).
• Do not talk about issues that will make you seem overly negative.
• Do not crack risky jokes.
• Do not engage in boisteroius talk.
• Do not overuse business jargon.
• Do not use slang unneccessarily.
• Avoid speaking negetively about past employers.

Have you ever heard that the only thing that you are able to control is your reaction? This is what emotional intelligence is all about.

Emotional Intelligence is the ability to understand, use and manage your own emotions in positive ways.

More to come soon.

The world is riddled with problems waiting to be solved (which is what actually fuels the employment market if you think about it). I sometimes wonder if some are intentional (problems that is), but that is a debate for another day. Since this is universally true, it is beneficial to have a framework handy to address challenges that will inherently arise during the course of life (on a pretty consistent basis). One such popular framework is called 4S and is effective in establishing some best practices when solving problems on a larger scale.

The 4S framework utilizes the following stages:

1. State – define the problem statement
2. Structure – Add some structure around the problem
3. Solve (or develop solution sets)
4. Sell (or Set in Motion)

Each stage is discussed in more detail below. Though before jumping into the details of each of the stages above, it is appropriate to quote Albert Einstein in this matter:

“If I had an hour to solve a problem, I’d spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions.”

Stage 1: State

It all starts with the problem (or need). When attempting to solve any problem, it is imperative that the statement does not include any biases or assumptions. The effort needed to define the problem statement will depend on the problem being solved, knowledge and experience of the team. If the team has the knowledge and experience dealing with the specific type of problem at hand, then a robust problem statement can be developed relatively quickly. If the team does not have the knowledge and experience when it comes to the problem at hand, then an accurate problem statement may take longer via a more collaborative effort with a broader audience.

If the problem is not defined accurately then any effort going forward will be wasted on a futile problem statement. So realizing this, it adds immense value to insure that the problem statement is broken down to the purest essence of the problem.

Stage 2: Structure

The approach taken during this phase depends on the type of problem that is trying to be solved. It is essential during this phase that there is a good understanding of the problem before trying to find a solution. This is one of the biggest pitfalls in problem-solving, as most of the stakeholders are just interested in a solution. Hence, there may be immense pressure to develop solutions that do not address the root cause of the problem. This path often leads to providing Band-Aid type solutions that will often end in multiple issue in the long run.

In general, this is where subject matter experts can add value. Though a word of caution, they can fail to recognize the limits of their knowledge and become trapped by their expertise when conditions change. So outside validation may be beneficial.

Stage 3: Solve

The goal in this phase is to design solutions that follow logically from the analysis and address the problem statement. An iterative approach will need to be taken as solutions are vetted. Learnings from this phase may actually have the team revisit the problem statement if some new information comes to light.

Stage 4: Sell (or Set on Motion)

The approach you take here will depend on your level of ownership of the problem that is being tackled.

• Sell - If you are in a “consulting” type role, then the “Sell” framework will be the approach to take. This will focus on selling the solution(s) to the applicable stakeholders.
• Set in Motion – If you have a direct ownership role in solving the problem, then the “Set in Motion” approach will be the path to take.

In both the “Sell” and “Set in Motion” narrative, it is advantageous to keep the applicable stakeholders on-board to maintain momentum for the project during the execution/implementation phase.

The ability to utilize this skill effectively is arguably the number one skill that will contribute to success. There are two characteristics that are used to judge this skill:

• Timeliness of Decision
• Quality of Decision

Each of which will be discussed in more detail below.

Ojective decision-making frameworks can be utilized to help define challenges, evaluate alternatives systemically, consider risks, and align choices with goals.

More to come soon.

More coming soon